Fowey Rocks Lighthouse

Year Built

1878

Cost

$100,000

Type

Skeletal octagonal pyramid

Height

112 feet

Location

Seven miles southeast of Cape Florida on Key Biscayne

Automated Year

1974

First Lit

1878

Lens Type

1878: 1st order drum Fresnel lens - 1982: Flash tube array - 1983: 300mm - Current: VRB-25

Fog Signal

None

Year Deactivated

Active

Color

Brown and white

Last Keeper - Date

Earl S. Bagley (1964 – at least 1966)

Description

Snorkeling is great around the base of the light, but the structure itself is not open to the public.

Brief History

•  1877, The lighthouse was built to mark Fowey Rocks, so named because a Spanish galleon, H.M.S. Fowey had been lost in that area in 1748.
•  In 1935 a hurricane washed away the first deck of the lighthouse.
•  1975, A windmill was installed to use wind power to generate electricity.
•  1982 The lighthouse converted to solar energy and the Fresnel lens was replaced by flash tube array lamps.
•  In 2015, the Florida Trust for Historic Preservation listed Fowey Rocks Lighthouse as one of the eleven most endangered sites in the state.