Lots of folks have an interest in lighthouses - I'm no exception, finding them quite photogenic. Here are some photos I've taken of lights east of the Mississippi River.
West Quoddy Head Light, Lubec, ME
Here we are at the easternmost point in the United States. Still operational, the West Quoddy light was built in 1858, stands 49' high and is equipped with its original third order Fresnel lens.
3 Aug 2009
Lubec Channel Light, Lubec, ME
Standing in the center of the channel into Lubec Harbor, the cast-iron lighthouse was built in 1890. The 40' tower originally contained a fourth-order Fresnel lens, which was replaced in 1985 with a solar-powered optical lens.
3 Aug 2009
Egg Island Light, Winter Harbor ME
protects the entrance to Frenchman Bay on the eastern side of Mount Desert Island. It was built in 1875 and automated in 1976. It now has a VRB-25 optic system 64 feet above sea level.
Sep 2007
Bass Harbor Light ME
Built in 1858, the light has a fourth-order Fresnel lens 56 feet above sea level. It was automated in 1974.
Sep 2007
Fort Point Light, Stockton ME
This light was built in 1857. It has a fixed white fourth-order Fresnel lens with a 250-watt halogen bulb. The light is 88 feet above sea level and can be seen from more than 10 miles. Automated in 1988.
Sep 2007
Rockland Breakwater Light ME
This light is located at the end of the 7/8 mile jetty that protects Rockland Harbor. It was built in 1902 and originally had a fourth-order Fresnel lens, which was replaced with a VRB-25 optic system. Automated in 1965.
Sep 2007
Owls Head Light ME
This is one of the older lights in Maine, built in 1825. Its present fourth-order Fresnal lens was installed in 1856, and is 100 feet above sea level.
Sep 2007
Marshalls Point Light, Port Clyde ME
Built in 1857, it originally had a fifth-order Fresnel lens, which has since been replaced with 300 mm optic system, which is 30 feet above sea level.
Sep 2007
Two Lights, Cape Elizabeth ME
This is the one picture that I didn't take - my Dad took it in 1958. The name originated from the twin lighthouses located nearby at the end of Two Lights Road. Built in 1828, these were the first twin lighthouses on the coast of Maine. Although not open to the public, the eastern light is an active, automated light station, visible 17 miles at sea. The western light ceased operation in 1924 and is now a private home. One of these towers was the subject of Edward Hooper's famous painting Lighthouse at Two Lights.
Nubble Light, York, ME
Built in 1879 and automated in 1987. The fourth-order Fresnel lens is 88 feet high.
Mar 1968
Nubble Light in winter.
Jan 1969
Montauk Light NY
Built in 1796, Montauk Light is the oldest lighthouse in New York and is the 4th-oldest active lighthouse in the country. It stands 110' tall.
20 Mar 1967
Solomons, MD
The Calvert Maritime Museum is home to the relocated Drum Point Lighthouse. It is of the screw pile construction style, and was built in 1883 at Drum Point on the Patuxent Rver. Its 47' tower held a fourth order lens, which is still in place. Deactivated in 1962, the lighthouse was moved to its present location in 1975.
26 Dec 1992
Currituck Beach Light NC
Its first-order light first beamed out on 1 Dec 1875 from the 158-foot tower. The tower was left unpainted to distinguish it from other lights along the Outer Banks.
14 Apr 1997
Bodie Light NC
Built in 1872 with a first-order Fresnel lens, the Bodie Light stands 150 feet tall. This is the third Bodie Light: the first, built in 1847, became unstable and was abandoned in 1859, while the second light was destroyed by Confederate troops in 1861 to prevent its use as an observation post.
18 Apr 1997
Cape Hatteras NC
The Cape Hatteras Lighthouse was built in 1870 and is the tallest tower in America, standing 197 feet high. It orginally contained a First Order Fresnel lens, which was replaced in 1972 with a DCB-24. Since this photo, the tower in 1998 was moved back 2900' to protect it from erosion.
17 Apr 1997
Ocracoke Light
This is the oldest lighthouse in North Carolina, and the second-oldest operating light in the country, built in 1823. The light from the fourth-order Fresnel lens in the 76-foot tower is visible 14 miles to sea.
15 Apr 1997
Hunting Island SC
This 136' lighthouse was built in 1875 with a second order lens. This tower replaced the original 1859 light, which was destroyed during the Civil War. It was deactivated in 1933.
5 Mar 2004
Saint Augustine FL
This 165' lighthouse was built in 1874, and held a first order lens, which is still in use. It was damaged by rifle fire in 1986 and was out of service for several years. It was relit in 1993 and the temporary light was removed.
Feb 2006
Ponce De Leon Inlet FL
This light was erected in 1887 and is today considered one of the most complete light station preserved. The original first-order lens in the 175-foot tower was replaced in 1933 with a third-order lens from the discontinued Sapelo Light in Georgia. The Ponce Light was de-commissioned in 1970, but was re-activated in 1982 when a new high-rise condo blocked the Coast Guard station light then in use.
Jan 2005
Pensacola FL
Built in 1824, the first Pensacola Lighthouse was the first on the Gulf coast. 35 years later, this 171' tower replaced it. The lens was originally rotated by a clockworks mechanism; it was electrified in 1939. Automated in 1965, the light is still in use. It is said to be haunted.
25 Feb 2007
St Marks Lighthouse FL
This light dates from 1830, and had an additional 10 feet added to it in 1883, putting its fourth-order Fresnel lens 80 feet above sea level. It has survived hurricanes and use by both sides during the Civil War.
Jan 2004
Shelburne Museum, Shelburne VT
This lighthouse was built in 1871 to mark Colchester Reef in Lake Champlain. In 1952, it was dismantled and moved to the Shelburne Museum, where it is now on display beside the 220-foot steamship "Ticonderoga".
Jul 1969
Escanaba MI
The Sand Point Light was built in 1867. The 41' tower houses a fourth order lens, which was deactivated in 1939 and removed. In the late 1980's, the Delta County Historical Society restored the light, reinstalling a fourth order lens.
25 Jun 2008
Manistique MI
The Manistique Lighthouse on the east breakwater overlooks the entrance to the Manistique River. The 34' tower was built in 1916 and contained a fourth order lens. Automated in 1969, the light is still operational.
25 Jun 2008
St Ignace MI
The Wawatam Lighthouse was originally built by the Michigan highway department at the Monroe Welcome Center on I-75 near the Ohio state line in the southeastern corner of the state. When the welcome center was renovated in 2004, the highway department donated the structure to the City of St. Ignace. The lighthouse was installed at the end of the former railroad ferry pier, where for many years the ferry Chief Wawatam loaded and unloaded railroad cars crossing the Strait of Mackinac. After a wait for Coast Guard approval, the lighthouse was inaugurated as a privately maintained aid to navigation on August 20, 2006. Its tower measures 52' in height.
26 Jun 2008