This is a list of all lighthouses in the U.S. state of Massachusetts as identified by the United States Coast Guard. Enumeration of the lighthouses in this state is complicated by the number of multiple tower stations and replacement of older towers, with the Brant Point Light station having had nine towers, two of which survive. [1] At present there are forty-seven active towers, of which eleven are privately maintained; thirteen are standing but inactive, seven have been replaced with skeleton towers, thirteen have been destroyed or removed, and one tower has been moved to another state. The oldest station, Boston Light, established in 1716, was the first lighthouse built in the colonies, and the current tower at that station, built in 1783, is the oldest survivor in the state and the second oldest in the nation, and was the last lighthouse automated in the United States. [2] The last station established was at the Buzzards Bay Entrance Light in 1961 (since replaced by an automated light on a steel tripod), but in 1986 the 1818 Great Point Light was rebuilt and relit, making it the last tower constructed in the state. The tallest towers in the state are the two Cape Ann Light towers, but the highest focal plane is at the Hospital Point Range Rear Light, which is located in the steeple of the First Baptist Church of Beverly. [2]
A number of inactivated Massachusetts lights have met with unusual fates. The Three Sisters of Nauset were sold off to separate private buyers before being purchased by the National Park Service and moved back near their original site. Range lights in Nantucket and Hyannis were incorporated into private dwellings, the former housing the Gilbreth family of Cheaper by the Dozen fame. The Point Gammon Light was converted into an observation tower for birdwatching.
If not otherwise noted, focal height and coordinates are taken from the United States Coast Guard Light List , [3] while location and dates of activation, automation, and deactivation are taken from the United States Coast Guard Historical information site for lighthouses. [4] Lighthouses in the "Former" section only include structures that no longer exist.
The United States Coast Guard lists these as active lighthouses.
| Name | Image | Location | Coordinates | Year first lit | Status | Current Lens | Focal Height |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buzzards Bay Entrance Light | — | Buzzards Bay | 41°23′49″N71°02′05″W / 41.3970°N 71.0347°W | 1997 | Active | Unknown | 67 ft (20 m) |
| Ipswich Light | — | Ipswich | 42°41′07″N70°45′58″W / 42.6853°N 70.7662°W | 1939 | Active | Unknown | 42 ft (13 m) [11] |
Brant Point Light is a lighthouse located on Nantucket Island. The station was established in 1746, automated in 1965, and is still in operation. The current tower was added to the National Register of Historic Places on October 28, 1987; it has the distinction of being the tenth light on the point, in addition to several range lights. Four of the others burned or blew down, two were condemned, two were unsatisfactory, and the remaining one stands unused.
Old Scituate Light also known simply as Scituate Light is a historic lighthouse located on Cedar Point in Scituate, Massachusetts. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1987 as Scituate Light.
The Bridgeport Harbor Light, later the Bridgeport Harbor Lighthouse, was a lighthouse in Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States. It is located on the west side of the Bridgeport Harbor entrance and the north side of Long Island Sound. Originally constructed in 1851 and rebuilt in 1871 with a dwelling, it had a red-fixed light throughout its service life. The builder and first keeper of the light was Abraham A. McNeil who is also credited as improvising the first light for the Bridgeport Harbor in 1844. By 1953, the lighthouse was in poor condition and the United States Coast Guard opted to build a skeleton tower in its place. In the 2014 edition of the Light List Volume 1, the skeleton tower is marked as "Light 13A" with a height of 57 feet (17 m) and a visual marker of a square green dayboard with a green reflective border. The lighthouse was sold and an attempt was made to move it to serve as a monument for Connecticut's maritime history, but it was later decided to scrap the structure. The lighthouse caught fire and was destroyed during the dismantling in 1953.
Black Rock Harbor Light, also known as Fayerweather Island Light, is a lighthouse in Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States which stands on the south end of Fayerweather Island and marks the entrance to Black Rock Harbor. The first lighthouse at the site, built by Abisha Woodward under contract with the United States government, was a wooden tower that was lit and made operational by 1808. A storm destroyed the tower in 1821 and the current, stone lighthouse was erected in its place in 1823. The Black Rock Harbor Light was an active navigational aid until 1933 when it was replaced by two automatic lights offshore. The beacon was subsequently given to the City of Bridgeport in 1934. Two significant efforts during the 1980s and 1990s served to restore the aging tower and the light was relit as a non-navigational aid in 2000. Black Rock Lighthouse is listed as a contributing property for Bridgeport's Seaside Park historic district.
The Prudence Island Lighthouse, more commonly known locally as the Sandy Point Lighthouse, is located on Prudence Island, Rhode Island and is the oldest lighthouse tower in the state. Sandy Point is nicknamed Chibacoweda, meaning "little place separated by a passage", because the location is a little more than one mile offshore.
Palmer Island Light Station is a historic lighthouse in New Bedford Harbor in New Bedford, Massachusetts, USA. The lighthouse was built in 1849 out of stone rubble. It was discontinued when the harbor's hurricane barrier was built in the early 1960s, as its location immediately north of the barrier was no longer an outlying danger and there are lights on either side of the barrier opening.
West Dennis Light is a lighthouse in West Dennis, Massachusetts. It was previously known as Bass River Light. It is owned by and sits on top of the Lighthouse Inn, a seasonal hotel.
Annisquam Harbor Light Station is a historic lighthouse on Wigwam Point in the Annisquam neighborhood of Gloucester, Massachusetts. It can be viewed from nearby Wingaersheek Beach, Gloucester. It lies on the Annisquam River and is one of the four oldest lighthouses to surround the Gloucester peninsula as well as; Eastern Point Light, Ten Pound Island Light, and Thacher Island Light.
The Newburyport Harbor Light, also known as Plum Island Light, built in 1788, is a historic lighthouse on Northern Boulevard in Newburyport, Massachusetts.
The Clarks Point Light is located in New Bedford, Massachusetts. Originally constructed as a wooden tower, it was replaced with a stone tower in 1804. This in turn was replaced by a structure on the parapets of Fort Rodman which was deactivated in 1898. After restoration in the early 1970s, it was relit again in 2001 by the city as a private aid.
Stage Harbor Light is a lighthouse in Chatham, Massachusetts built in 1880. It was discontinued in 1933, replaced by a skeleton tower 200 ft (60m) west which remains an active aid to navigation. The original light helped to mark a vessel staging area anchorage in deep water south of Harding's Beach used during periods of low visibility (fog) by vessels waiting to round Monomoy Point and Pollock Rip Channel. The lighthouse also lined up perfectly with the Chatham Twin Lights, making an effective range for Chatham Roads, the deep water channel crossing Nantucket Sound from south of Bishop & Clerks Reef off Point Gammon at Hyannis to the staging area. The original light is now a private residence. It sits at the entrance of what is still a busy harbor, used primarily by Chatham-based fishing fleets, sailboats from the Stage Harbor and Monomoy yacht clubs, and private craft owners.
The Nantucket Harbor Range Lights are range lights that were built in 1908 to guide vessels through the narrow channel to Nantucket Harbor. They replaced an older arrangement involving the Nantucket Beacon and the Brant Point Light, which became unusable when the latter was replaced with a new tower.
The Nantucket Beacon formed a range with the Brant Point Light to guide vessels into Nantucket harbor. Operated at various times in the 19th century, it was deactivated sometime after 1870. This range was eventually succeeded by the Nantucket Harbor Range Lights, which are still in operation.
The Nantucket Cliff Lights, also known as the Nantucket Cliff Range Lights were a set of range lights on Nantucket. Over the years, there were several sets of range lights to lead ships into Nantucket Harbor. The first were built in 1838. The second, a pair of conical white towers which still exist-owned by the Gilbreth family of "Cheaper by the Dozen" Fame-although not on the same site, were discontinued in 1912. The Gilbreth Family purchased the two latter range lights in 1921.
The Spectacle Island Range Lights were a pair of range lights on Spectacle Island in Boston Harbor. They were established in 1897 and discontinued in 1913 after changes in the entrance channels to the harbor made them obsolete.
The Point Gammon Light was a lighthouse that stood on its eponymous point at the south end of Great Island in West Yarmouth, Massachusetts, on the east side of Lewis Bay and the entrance to Hyannis Harbor. Long inactive, it was converted into an ornithological observation tower in the late 19th century.
