Deer Island Light
Encyclopedia
Deer Island Light is a lighthouse
in Boston Harbor
, Boston, Massachusetts.
The United States Coast Guard Light List
description is "Red cylindrical tower; black cylindrical pier". The actual light is 53 feet (16 m) above Mean High Water
. Its alternating white and red light is visible for 11 nautical miles (20.4 km).
The light is at the end of a reef that extends about 1,500 ft (450m) south from the island. The location first had a stone beacon
in 1832. The first light, a sparkplug type light
, was lit in 1890. It cost about $50,000. It included a three story dwelling, a veranda with boat davits, and a circular parapet. The water supply was a cistern in the base of the structure. A spiral staircase ran from the cellar to the top floor. It had a fixed white light, which was changed to flashing red every thirty seconds and then to the present alternating red and white flashes. The old light gradually deteriorated and was replaced in 1982 by a white fiberglass tower. The white tower raised complaints because it blended in with the background and was hard to see, so the Coast Guard moved it to Great Point Light
, Nantucket, as a temporary replacement when that tower was destroyed by a storm in March, 1984. The present tower was installed immediately thereafter. While the Spark plug light was interesting, it was much more expensive to maintain than the fiberglass structure now in place. Imported from England, the pole light was the first of its kind in the United States.
Lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses or, in older times, from a fire, and used as an aid to navigation for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways....
in Boston Harbor
Boston Harbor
Boston Harbor is a natural harbor and estuary of Massachusetts Bay, and is located adjacent to the city of Boston, Massachusetts. It is home to the Port of Boston, a major shipping facility in the northeast.-History:...
, Boston, Massachusetts.
The United States Coast Guard Light List
Light List
The United States Coast Guard Light List is an American navigation publication in 7 volumes made available yearly by the U.S. Coast Guard which gives information on lighted navigation aids, unlighted buoys, radiobeacons, radio direction finder calibration stations, daybeacons, racons, and LORAN...
description is "Red cylindrical tower; black cylindrical pier". The actual light is 53 feet (16 m) above Mean High Water
Tide
Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the moon and the sun and the rotation of the Earth....
. Its alternating white and red light is visible for 11 nautical miles (20.4 km).
The light is at the end of a reef that extends about 1,500 ft (450m) south from the island. The location first had a stone beacon
Beacon
A beacon is an intentionally conspicuous device designed to attract attention to a specific location.Beacons can also be combined with semaphoric or other indicators to provide important information, such as the status of an airport, by the colour and rotational pattern of its airport beacon, or of...
in 1832. The first light, a sparkplug type light
Sparkplug lighthouse
A sparkplug lighthouse, sometimes known as a bug light, is a type of caisson lighthouse so named because of its shape. Generally speaking, a sparkplug lighthouse consists of a three-story living area, with the lantern on top; the whole is then placed upon a concrete or metal caisson. The...
, was lit in 1890. It cost about $50,000. It included a three story dwelling, a veranda with boat davits, and a circular parapet. The water supply was a cistern in the base of the structure. A spiral staircase ran from the cellar to the top floor. It had a fixed white light, which was changed to flashing red every thirty seconds and then to the present alternating red and white flashes. The old light gradually deteriorated and was replaced in 1982 by a white fiberglass tower. The white tower raised complaints because it blended in with the background and was hard to see, so the Coast Guard moved it to Great Point Light
Great Point Light
Great Point Light, officially, Nantucket Light is a lighthouse located on the northernmost point of Nantucket Island. First built in 1784, the original wooden tower was destroyed by fire in 1816. The following year a stone tower was erected which stood until toppled in a storm in March 1984...
, Nantucket, as a temporary replacement when that tower was destroyed by a storm in March, 1984. The present tower was installed immediately thereafter. While the Spark plug light was interesting, it was much more expensive to maintain than the fiberglass structure now in place. Imported from England, the pole light was the first of its kind in the United States.