Grindel Point Light

Year Built

1850

Cost

$3,500

Type

Square Tower

Height

39 feet

Location

Ferry Rd., Islesboro

Automated Year

1934

First Lit

1874

Lens Type

Fifth order Fresnel Lens

Fog Signal

Bell originally, None now

Year Deactivated

1934-1987

Color

White

Last Keeper - Date

William H.C. Dodge (1920 – 1934)

Description

The lighthouse is a tapered square brick structure, topped by a lantern house surrounded by a metal deck with rounded railing. A covered passageway connects the tower to the keeper's house. Just northwest of the house stands a wooden boathouse, and a small brick oilhouse stands further north.

Brief History

•  In 1856, a fifth-order Fresnel lens was placed in the lantern room, replacing the old reflector lighting apparatus.
•  James E. Hall, the former head keeper at Matinicus Rock, moved to Grindle Point in 1908. Hall remained there until a blasting accident resulted in his death at the light station in 1916.
•  Grindle Point Lighthouse was decommissioned in 1934, and its Fresnel lens removed.
•  Islesboro residents successfully lobbied the Coast Guard to reactivate the light, and as a result the skeleton tower was torn down and a solar-powered optic that produces a flashing green light was installed atop the old lighthouse.
•  Grindle Point Light is one of the few lighthouses in Maine where summer visitors may climb to the top of the tower.