Ten Pound Island Light

Ten Pound Island Light
The 1821 lighthouse
LocationGloucester, Massachusetts
Coordinates42°36′6.7″N 70°39′56″W / 42.601861°N 70.66556°W / 42.601861; -70.66556
Tower
Constructed1821
FoundationBrick
ConstructionStone and cast iron
Automated1934
Height39 feet (12 m)
ShapeConical tower
MarkingsWhite with black lantern
HeritageNational Register of Historic Places listed place 
Fog signalOriginal: Bell
Now: Horn: 2 every 20 seconds
Light
First lit1881
Deactivated1956 - 1989
Focal height57 feet (17 m)
Lens5th order Fresnel lens (original), 9.8 inches (250 mm) lens (current)
Range5 nautical miles (9.3 km; 5.8 mi)
CharacteristicIsophase Red 6 seconds
Ten Pound Island Light
Built1881
MPSLighthouses of Massachusetts TR
NRHP reference No.88001179[1]
Added to NRHPAugust 4, 1988

The Ten Pound Island Light is a historic lighthouse in Gloucester Harbor in Gloucester, Massachusetts. It is located on Ten Pound Island, near the eastern end of the harbor. The tower, built in 1881, is a conical cast iron structure 30 feet (9.1 m) tall, replacing a stone tower first built on the site in 1821.[2][3][4] The main body is painted white, and the top is painted black.

The tower is the only surviving part of a more extensive light station, which included a keeper's house and an oil house. The island additionally hosted a federal fish hatchery and a Coast Guard air (seaplane) station; only ruins survive.[5]

The lighthouse was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988. Both Winslow Homer and Fitz Henry Lane painted the first tower.[3]

See also

References

  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
  2. ^ Light List, Volume I, Atlantic Coast, St. Croix River, Maine to Shrewsbury River, New Jersey (PDF). Light List. United States Coast Guard. 2012. p. 84.
  3. ^ a b "Historic Light Station Information and Photography: Massachusetts". United States Coast Guard Historian's Office. Archived from the original on May 1, 2017.
  4. ^ Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of the United States: Northern Massachusetts". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
  5. ^ "NRHP nomination for Ten Pound Island Light". Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Retrieved December 23, 2013.