Marblehead

Marblehead is a village in Ottawa County, Ohio, United States. It sits at the tip of the Marblehead Peninsula, which divides Lake Erie proper from Sandusky Bay. Marblehead is part of the area that is referred to regionally as Vacationland (which includes nearby Sandusky and the Lake Erie Islands), due to the large number of tourists who flock to the area in the summer months.

Marblehead is home to the Marblehead Lighthouse, the oldest continuously-operating lighthouse on the American side of the Great Lakes. The lighthouse is a part of the Marblehead Lighthouse State Park located within the village. Marblehead is also home to a United States Coast Guard station. Nearby, in Sandusky Bay, is Johnson’s Island, a former Confederate officer prisoner of war camp during the Civil War.

Marblehead’s economy benefits from its lakefront situation, with its fishing, boating, and recreational tourism industries providing employment opportunities for many locals. Marblehead and surrounding attractions in Ottawa and Erie County are collectively known to visitors as “Vacationland,” or more recently, Lake Erie’s “Shores and Islands.” The regional tourist economy is anchored by attractions like Cedar Point, Put-in-Bay, and Kelleys Island. Marblehead is the primary mainland port of the Kelleys Island Ferry Boat Line, the main passenger and vehicle ferry to Kelleys Island. Nearby Lakeside Chautauqua and Bay Point Resort serve as lakefront destinations as well. Marblehead contains many summer and second homes that residents of nearby Toledo, Cleveland, and Columbus visit during the tourist season.