Mispillion Light
Encyclopedia
Mispillion Lighthouse is a lighthouse
in Delaware
,
United States
, on the Mispillion River
near the Delaware Bay
, Delaware
. Over many year's of private ownership and neglect, the lighthouse had fallen into an extreme state of disrepair, and was considered by Lighthouse Digest Magazine to be America's Most Endangered Lighthouse. After a fire started by lightning destroyed most of the tower portion of the lighthouse, the remains of the lighthouse were sold in 2002. A replica of the lighthouse was rebuilt at Shipcarpenter Square in Lewes, Delaware in 2004 using what was left of the structure of the old lighthouse, and based on the original plans. The new owners also added a substantial addition during reconstruction, used as their living quarters. The steel skeletal tower remains at the original location but is not active or open to the public.
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 Delaware
Delaware
Delaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania...
,
United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, on the Mispillion River
Mispillion River
The Mispillion River is a river flowing to Delaware Bay in southern Delaware in the United States. It is approximately 15 miles long and drains an area of 76 square miles on the Atlantic Coastal Plain....
near the Delaware Bay
Delaware Bay
Delaware Bay is a major estuary outlet of the Delaware River on the Northeast seaboard of the United States whose fresh water mixes for many miles with the waters of the Atlantic Ocean. It is in area. The bay is bordered by the State of New Jersey and the State of Delaware...
, Delaware
Delaware
Delaware is a U.S. state located on the Atlantic Coast in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It is bordered to the south and west by Maryland, and to the north by Pennsylvania...
History
The original Mispillion Lighthouse was built in 1831. The second Mispillion Lighthouse was a 65 ft square cylindrical wood tower rising from one corner of a 2 story Gothic style wood keeper's house and was built in 1873. It served until 1929 when it was deactivated and replaced by a steel skeleton tower that had originally served at Cape HenlopenCape Henlopen Light
Cape Henlopen Light was a lighthouse in Delaware, United States, on the north side of the Great Dune on Cape Henlopen, Delaware. It was the sixth lighthouse built in the colonies.-History:...
. Over many year's of private ownership and neglect, the lighthouse had fallen into an extreme state of disrepair, and was considered by Lighthouse Digest Magazine to be America's Most Endangered Lighthouse. After a fire started by lightning destroyed most of the tower portion of the lighthouse, the remains of the lighthouse were sold in 2002. A replica of the lighthouse was rebuilt at Shipcarpenter Square in Lewes, Delaware in 2004 using what was left of the structure of the old lighthouse, and based on the original plans. The new owners also added a substantial addition during reconstruction, used as their living quarters. The steel skeletal tower remains at the original location but is not active or open to the public.