The first 25-foot (7.6m) rubblestone lighthouse and dwelling were built on the bluffs of West Chop in 1817.[3] Following constant erosion, the lighthouse was moved back in 1830, and again in 1846.[4]
The first lightkeeper was pilot James Shaw West who tended the light for thirty years, from 1818 to 1848. His pay was $350 a year. Subsequent lightkeepers were Charles West, 1849–1868; his son Charles P. West, 1869-c1909; George F. Dolby (1909–1919); James Yates (1919-?); and Octave Ponsart (1946–1956) Sam Fuller has also been mentioned as a lightkeeper.[5]
The present 45-foot (14m) tall brick tower and dwelling were built in 1891.[6] In 1976 West Chop Light became the last Martha's Vineyard lighthouse to be automated, but the original Fresnel lens is still in operation. The former lightkeeper's dwellings are now vacant but remains property of the U.S. Coast Guard and off limits to the public.
Captain James Shaw West (1777–1859), the first lightkeeper, was born December 11, 1777 in Tisbury, Massachusetts, the eldest son of Captain Jeruel West and Deborah Shaw of Frog Alley, Tisbury. He was married to Charlotte Hammond (1781–1849) of Falmouth, Massachusetts.[7] West was listed in the records first as a "mariner" and later as a "pilot." He and his wife first lived in the area of the "Neck" of West Chop which is now Hatch Road.
Shortly after the erection of the first West Chop Light in 1817, they sold this property and presumably moved into the lightkeeper's dwelling adjacent to the lighthouse. (In 1842, they purchased a 30-acre (12ha) lot known as the "Point Lot" which surrounded the lighthouse property.)[8] West was the lightkeeper of the West Chop Light for thirty years. During his term as lightkeeper, West oversaw the installation of new lamps in 1829, and in 1846 the lighthouse was rebuilt and moved away from the eroding bluffs, and a new dwelling built. (The old dwelling was given to his youngest son Gustavus and moved to Music Street, West Tisbury.)[8]
In late 1847, West bought a home across the street from the Methodist Church in Holmes Hole and the following year retired from his position as lightkeeper and moved to their new home in town. West was about sixty years old upon his retirement. His wife Charlotte died the following year, in 1849. Later records call West variously a "mariner" and a "gentleman." "James Shaw West" was listed as a licensed inn-holder in Holmes Hole and ran the "County House," but it is unclear whether this was lightkeeper James or his eldest son, James Junior. In 1859 James Senior died of "palsy" at the age of 81. His children included Captain Abner West (co-inventor of the Holmes & West Harpoon[9]) and Captain David Porter West (1814–1886) (a whaling captain and a scholar of Japan in the 1850s.)
Martha's Vineyard, often simply called the Vineyard, is an island in the Northeastern United States, located south of Cape Cod in Dukes County, Massachusetts, known for being a popular, affluent summer colony. Martha's Vineyard includes the smaller adjacent Chappaquiddick Island, which is usually connected to the Vineyard. The two islands have sometimes been separated by storms and hurricanes, which last occurred from 2007 to 2015. It is the 58th largest island in the U.S., with a land area of about 96 square miles (250 km2), and the third-largest on the East Coast, after Long Island and Mount Desert Island. Martha's Vineyard constitutes the bulk of Dukes County, which also includes the Elizabeth Islands and the island of Nomans Land.
Dukes County is a county located in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. As of the 2020 census, the population was 20,600, making it the second-least populous county in Massachusetts. Its county seat is Edgartown.
Chilmark is a town located on Martha's Vineyard in Dukes County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 1,212 at the 2020 census. The fishing village of Menemsha is located on the western side of the town along its border with the town of Aquinnah. Chilmark had the highest median home sale price of any town or city in Massachusetts in 2013.
Edgartown is a tourist destination on the island of Martha's Vineyard in Dukes County, Massachusetts, United States, for which it is the county seat.
Oak Bluffs is a town located on the island of Martha's Vineyard in Dukes County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 5,341 at the 2020 United States Census. It is one of the island's principal points of arrival for summer tourists, and is noted for its "gingerbread cottages" and other well-preserved mid- to late-nineteenth-century buildings. The town has been a historically important center of African American culture since the eighteenth century.
Tisbury is a town located on Martha's Vineyard in Dukes County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 4,815 at the 2020 census.
Vineyard Haven is a community within the town of Tisbury, Massachusetts on the island of Martha's Vineyard. It is listed as a census-designated place (CDP) by the U.S. Census Bureau with a population of 2,114 as of the 2010 census.
West Tisbury is a town located on Martha's Vineyard in Dukes County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 3,555 at the 2020 census. Along with Chilmark and Aquinnah, West Tisbury forms "Up-Island" Martha's Vineyard.
Cape Poge Light, sometimes called Cape Pogue Light, is at the northeast tip of Chappaquiddick Island that is part of Martha's Vineyard, off the coast of Cape Cod, Massachusetts.
West Chop is a residential area located in the town of Tisbury, Massachusetts on the north end of the island of Martha's Vineyard. It is a peninsula surrounded on the north and west by Vineyard Sound and on the east by Vineyard Haven Harbor. A lighthouse, West Chop Light, stands at the north end of the chop. It is accessible by car from Vineyard Haven by two roads, Franklin Street and Main Street.
East Chop, also known as the Vineyard Highlands, is a residential area located in the town of Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts on the north end of the island of Martha's Vineyard. It is a peninsula surrounded on the North and East by Vineyard Sound and on the West by Vineyard Haven Harbor, and features the high, prominent bluffs that gave Oak Bluffs its name. A lighthouse, East Chop Light, stands at the north end of the chop on Telegraph Hill.
East Chop Light is a historic lighthouse standing on a bluff overlooking Vineyard Haven Harbor and Vineyard Sound, located along East Chop Drive in the town of Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts. It is one of five lighthouses located on the island of Martha's Vineyard.
Gay Head Light is a historic lighthouse located on Martha's Vineyard westernmost point off of Lighthouse Road in Aquinnah, Massachusetts.
The William Street Historic District is a historic district in Vineyard Haven, Massachusetts, on the island of Martha's Vineyard. The district includes houses on William Street from Woodlawn Avenue in the north to several houses south of Camp Street. It represents the single best preserved area of mid 19th century houses in Vineyard Haven.
The West Chop Club Historic District is a historic district in Tisbury, Massachusetts, on the island of Martha's Vineyard. The district represents a well-preserved planned summer resort community of the late 19th century. Located in and around Iroquois Avenue, the district encompasses the northernmost portion of West Chop, a peninsula that separates Vineyard Sound and the sheltered waters of Vineyard Haven Harbor, an area that was developed by the West Chop Land Company in the 1880s. The land is now owned by the West Chop Land Trust and managed by the private West Chop Club. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2007.
The Old Mill is an historic mill building at 690 Edgartown-West Tisbury Road in West Tisbury, Massachusetts, on the island of Martha's Vineyard. The current structure was built c. 1848, and occupies a site that has seen industrial use since the 17th century. The property is currently owned by the Martha's Vineyard Garden Club.
The Ritter House is an historic house on Beach Street in Vineyard Haven, Massachusetts, USA, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The house is one of the few remaining Federal period buildings in Vineyard Haven. It has had a succession of occupants and uses, and as of 2007 served as a retail establishment.
The Cleavelands were a family of whalers from the islands of Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, Massachusetts, United States, from the seventeenth though the nineteenth centuries. They are related to many of the other whaling families of the islands, including the Mayhew, Athearn, Coffin, Look, Luce, and Pease families.
The Tashmoo Springs Pumping Station is a historic waterworks facility in Tisbury, Massachusetts, on the island of Martha's Vineyard. The pump station and associated works were first constructed by private interests in the 1880s to provide a reliable water supply for the burgeoning resort areas of Tisbury as well as the port of Vineyard Haven. The facilities were taken over by the town in the early 20th century, after which some alterations were made to accommodate technological improvements. Followinga series of hurricanes in the mid-20th century, which highlighted the risks of the station's location and ability to provide reliable drinking water, the town abandoned the facility. Since then it has been largely abandoned, although it was used in the 1990s by a bottled water interest, and some work has been done to preserve the Late Victorian main pumping station building.
Martha's Vineyard Transit Authority(VTA) is a bus transportation system serving Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts. In addition to diesel buses, it has 12 electric buses charged at several points. The Edgartown facility has 700 kW solar panels and a 1.5 MWh battery adding to the bus power.
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