Location | Ponce, Puerto Rico |
---|---|
Coordinates | 17°53′35.37″N66°31′16.28″W / 17.8931583°N 66.5211889°W |
Tower | |
Constructed | 1887 |
Foundation | stone base |
Construction | stone (Classical revival) tower |
Automated | 1945 |
Height | 19 m (62 ft) |
Shape | cylindrical tower with balcony and lantern atop a keeper's house |
Markings | gray tower, black lantern |
Heritage | National Register of Historic Places listed place |
Light | |
First lit | 1887 |
Focal height | 91 m (299 ft) |
Lens | Third-order Fresnel. [1] |
Range | 18 nmi (33 km; 21 mi) |
Characteristic | Fl W 30s |
Faro de la Isla Caja de Muertos | |
Architectural style | Neoclassical |
MPS | Lighthouse System of Puerto Rico TR |
NRHP reference No. | 81000690 [2] |
Added to NRHP | October 22, 1981 |
Caja de Muertos Light, (Faro de la Isla de Caja de Muertos) is an 1887 lighthouse in Ponce, Puerto Rico, that is unique amongst all other lighthouses in Puerto Rico for its unusual Cross of Lorraine, double-arm, T-type shape structure. [3] The historic lighthouse is located on Caja de Muertos, an uninhabited island off the coast of Ponce, Puerto Rico. The light stands at the highest point of the island.
The light was built in 1887 by the colonial government of Spain to serve as a 3rd order lighthouse. The original lighting apparatus was built by Sautter, Lemonnier & Company lens in 1885. In 1945 the lighting was automated. [4] The lighthouse was restored by the Puerto Rico Department of Natural Resources and houses a lookout and a museum. In 2009, the government of Puerto Rico announced plans to make Caja de Muertos Island and this lighthouse a priority of the department. [5] [6]
The Faro de la Isla de Caja de Muertos is a major light and unique architectural structure within the Spanish Lighthouse system, as well as under American rule.
The structure is important because it is unique amongst all other lighthouses in Puerto Rico in that it has an unusual Lorraine cross, double-arm, T-type shape. [3] The light is somewhat similar to the Isla Culebrita Light "but, in itself, is a major example of a variation within the central theme of utilitarian functions and aesthetical interpretation." [4]
The light stands atop of the highest point of Caja de Muertos, Puerto Rico. The most catchy characteristic of the lighthouse is its unique and unusual Lorraine cross double-arm "T" shape. [7]
Within this structure, the main entrance opens to a small vestibule. The vestibule in itself is a section of a 12 x 1 meter long corridor which led to the keeper's quarters. The entrance to the tower, which has a 3.9 meter square base located in the center of the structure, is across the main entrance. On both sides of the tower base there were two 4.74m x 4.55m rooms one which served as the engineer's room and the other as a storeroom. North of the tower base the oil room was located. This one measures 3.6m x 1.5m. Therefore, from west to east a structural connection is formed by the storeroom, towers' base, oil room, engineer's room, and the corridor. This section links the keeper's quarters. These were arranged into two parallel sections running north to south and oriented of identical dimensions. [7]
In order of disposition, first, came the living room, measuring 4.9m x 3.4m, followed by two sleeping rooms, measuring 3.5m x 3.5m each, and a kitchen-dining area, also 3.5m x 3.5m. The last three rooms connected to an 8.9m x 1m long corridor which reached the bathrooms. Each living room had three windows, the kitchens have two windows, and the dormitories, storeroom, and engineer's quarters had one window each. [7]
The tower is a massive cylindrical structure, of 19m high—including the lantern—by a 2.5m inside diameter. It terminates in rectangular bracket-supporters for the cement circular gallery and cast-iron balustrade that encloses the cast-iron, copper, and glass 3rd order lantern. A cast-iron spiral stairway also led to the lantern that had vertical bars. [7]
The original illuminating apparatus was an 1885, lenticular 3rd order lens, manufactured by Sautter, Lemonnier & Company of France. The central drum measured 1 meter in diameter. It had six panels of which three were flashing panels. In each panel of the central drum there were seven elements; each panel above central drum had eleven prisms and four prisms below. The flashes were produced by the central revolving drum mounted on a chariot activated by a clock work system. The clock cord descended through the central column in the stairway. The mechanism was protected by a circular iron and glass case. The original light characteristic showed a white flash every 3 seconds and had an 18-mile range. In 1923 the light characteristics were changed. In 1945 the light was electrified. It was also changed into an automatic, unwatched light that exhibited the original characteristics. The structure was abandoned and boarded up. The lens was replaced by a 500mm lens. No record has been found which indicates that major structural changes or alterations were introduced in the dwelling. The decorative elements are purely neo-classic especially its cornices and pediment. [7]
The following is an alphabetical list of articles related to the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
Caja de Muertos is an uninhabited island off the southern coast of Puerto Rico, in the municipality of Ponce. The island and its surrounding waters are protected by the Caja de Muertos Nature Reserve, because of its native turtle traffic and ecological value of its dry forests and reefs. Hikers and beachgoers are often seen in the island, which can be reached by ferry from the La Guancha Boardwalk sector of Ponce Playa. Together with Cardona, Ratones, Morrillito, Isla del Frio, Gatas, and Isla de Jueyes, Caja de Muertos is one of seven islands ascribed to the municipality of Ponce.
Faro Los Morrillos de Cabo Rojo, also known as Los Morrillos Light, is a historic lighthouse located on the capes of Los Morrillos de Cabo Rojo in the municipality of Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico.
Arecibo Lighthouse & Historical Park is a historic lighthouse located in the city of Arecibo, Puerto Rico. It is also known as Los Morrillos Lighthouse and is as a monument to Puerto Rico's complex history under Spanish colonial rule. Perched atop the Punta Morrillos headland since 1898, this iconic lighthouse was the last constructed under Spain's 300-year presence on the island. Despite the collapse of the Spanish Empire following the Spanish-American war that same year, the Arecibo Lighthouse endured.
Punta de las Figuras Light is an historic lighthouse located in Arroyo, Puerto Rico. It was first lit by the Spanish government in 1893. The light was relocated in 1938, and the structure was deactivated and abandoned. During World War II, the lighthouse was used as a lookout. After the U.S. Army abandoned the structure in 1963, the lighthouse was repeatedly vandalized. In 1969 the lens and lantern were destroyed. The lighthouse was again damaged by Hurricane Maria on September 20, 2017. The light housing is broken, all of the windows are boarded up, and several of the surrounding light pole fixtures are downed. The interior is currently inaccessible.
Cardona Island Light is the only 6th order lighthouse in Puerto Rico with a cylindrical attached tower. The light is located on Cardona Island, a small island on the west side of the entrance to the harbor of Ponce, Puerto Rico. It was listed in the U.S. National Register of Historic Places on 22 October 1981 and on the Puerto Rico Register of Historic Sites and Zones in 2001.
Mona Island Light, also known as Faro de la Isla de la Mona, is a historic lighthouse located on the island of Mona, Puerto Rico, in the Mona Passage between Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. It is the only lighthouse built of iron and steel in Puerto Rico. While some sources reported that the structure was designed by Gustav Eiffel, who also designed the Eiffel Tower in Paris, recent studies have shown that the tower was designed around 1885 by Spanish engineer Rafael Ravena.
Guánica Light was a historic lighthouse located in the municipality of Guánica, Puerto Rico in the Guánica State Forest. It was first lit in 1893 and deactivated in 1950. The light marked the entrance to Guánica Bay and bridged the gap between Los Morrillos Light and Caja de Muertos Light.
Isla Cabras Light, also known as Faro de Isla Cabras, was a lighthouse located on a rocky but flat islet with the same name, which sit just off the coast near Ceiba, Puerto Rico, toward the Vieques Passage.
Paseo Tablado La Guancha is a boardwalk in the La Guancha sector of the Playa barrio in the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico, facing the Caribbean Sea. It was built under the mayoral administration of Rafael Cordero Santiago, Mayor of Ponce from 1989 to 2004, at a cost of 2.6 million dollars, and inaugurated on 23 June 1998. It receives over 750,000 visitors a year. In September 2017 the boardwalk was damaged by Hurricane Maria and the area closest to the water was fenced off and off-limits to the public, but the rest of the facilities continued to operate uninterrupted. In January 2020, however, while still fenced off from the 2017 hurricane damage, the boardwalk—together with its adjoining recreational complex—closed when the area suffered severe damage from the 2020 Puerto Rico earthquakes and, as of 17 June 2020, it remained closed. By late 2020 arrangements were made for the merchants that operated from waterfront kiosks to reopen their businesses out of provisional facilities at a temporary location away from the waterfront while reconstruction of the waterfront area takes place.
Barrio Playa, also known as Playa de Ponce, Ponce Playa, or La Playa, is one of the thirty-one barrios that comprise the municipality of Ponce, Puerto Rico. Along with Bucaná, Canas, Vayas, and Capitanejo, Playa is one of the municipality's five coastal barrios. Barrio Playa also incorporates several islands, the largest of which is Caja de Muertos. It was founded in 1831.
Morrillito is a small uninhabited island off the southern coast of Puerto Rico. The island is protected by the Reserva Natural Caja de Muertos natural reserve because of its native turtle traffic. Together with Caja de Muertos, Gatas, Ratones, Cardona, Isla del Frio, and Isla de Jueyes, Morrillito is one of seven islands ascribed to the municipality of Ponce.
Isla Cardona, also known as Sor Isolina Ferré Island, is a small, uninhabited island located 1.30 nautical miles south of the mainland Puerto Rican shore across from Barrio Playa, on the west side of the entrance to the harbor of Ponce, Puerto Rico. The small island is considered part of barrio Playa. It is home to the 1889 Cardona Island Light, which is listed in the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. Together with Caja de Muertos, Gatas, Morrillito, Ratones, Isla del Frio, and Isla de Jueyes, Cardona is one of seven islands ascribed to the municipality of Ponce. The island gained notoriety in 2010 when the Puerto Rican Bird Society made it a target for the eradication of the black rat.
Culebrita Lighthouse is the only remaining Spanish-era structure in the Culebra archipelago. Construction of the lighthouse began on September 25, 1882, and was completed on February 25, 1886. The Spanish Crown built the lighthouse to help secure its claim over the main island of Culebra. It is the most eastern light outside mainland Puerto Rico. It guided navigation through the Virgin Passage and the Vieques Sound connecting in the Puerto Rico Light System with the Cape San Juan Light.
Fuerte de San José, also known as Fuerte de la Playa de Ponce, was an 18th-19th-century Spanish fortress located in Barrio Playa in the municipality of Ponce, Puerto Rico. It was part of a three-fort system design to defend the Port of Ponce, the Barrio Playa seaport village and the City of Ponce from seaborne attacks. However, only two of the three fortifications materialized, with Fuerte San José being the largest and most complete. The fort was in operation 125 years, from 1760 to 20 March 1885, and was demolished in 1907 by order of the Puerto Rico Legislature to make room for the growing civilian population of Barrio Playa. Fuerte de San José has been compared to Fortín de San Gerónimo in San Juan, in terms of design, purpose and size.
Caja de Muertos Nature Reserve is a nature reserve in southern Puerto Rico consisting of the islands of Caja de Muertos, Cayo Morrillito, Cayo Berbería, and their surrounding reefs and waters in the Caribbean Sea. This nature reserve was founded on January 2, 1980, by the Puerto Rico Planning Board as recommended by the Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources with the purpose of preserving the subtropical dry forest ecosystems found within these islands, some important sea turtle nesting sites, and the marine habitats found on their surrounding reefs and waters.