the tramway was dismantled. The picturesque lighthouse, perched on a 130-foot cliff overlooking the world's largest lake, began attracting small numbers of visitors within weeks of its opening. However the completion of Highway 61 opened the floodgates to tourism. In 1938 it was estimated that 100,000 visitors stopped by, five times more than any other federally operated lighthouse. Some of the lighthouse keepers' children opened a souvenir stand just outside the station entrance in 1941. Both the U.S. Lighthouse Service and the U.S. Coast Guard which absorbed it in 1939 were obliged to add seasonal staff to help conduct tours. State park creation In 1945 Clarence R. Magney, a former mayor of Duluth turned associate justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court, noticed a sign near the Baptism River reading "Lake and River Frontages for Sale." A staunch advocate of public lands on the North Shore, Magney determined to protect some of this land from the development boom that would accompany the end of World War II. At this time Gooseberry Falls was the only Minnesota state park on Lake Superior. A bill promoted by Magney easily passed in the Minnesota Legislature, creating both Baptism River State Park (now Tettegouche State Park) and Split Rock State Scenic Wayside. The wayside consisted of a hill offering a view of the Split Rock Lighthouse. Due to its popularity with tourists, the lighthouse was kept operating well after radar and other technology had rendered it obsolete. However, by 1967 the Coast Guard was considering decommissioning the station. The state legislature acted to expand the wayside into a full-fledged state park including the lighthouse itself. The station was officially closed in 1969 after 59 years of service. Under the Surplus Property Act the grounds and buildings were transferred to the state of Minnesota for free to be operated as a historic site. The state parks division developed an entrance station, picnic grounds, roads, and trails. The Minnesota Historical Society took over management of the lighthouse station in 1976. Over the next decade they restored several buildings to their 1920 appearance and constructed a $1.2 million history center. Meanwhile, from 1984 to 1990 the state park spent $555,000 to improve the recreational facilities, including a new access road, picnic area, and all-season trail shelter, and an expanded trail system. They also developed the park's first campground, an unconventional design in which campers wheel their equipment to