Cuttyhunk Lighthouse

Year Built

1823

Cost

$3,000

Type

Skeleton Tower

Height

59 feet

Location

Cuttyhunk Island

Automated Year

N/A

First Lit

1947 (skeleton tower)

Lens Type

Fifth order Fresnel lens

Fog Signal

None

Year Deactivated

2005

Color

NR Dayboard

Last Keeper - Date

Octave Ponsart (1943 – 1946)

Description

Only a stone oil house remains from the lighthouse station, missing its door and roof.

Brief History

•  In 1823 the first light at Cuttyhunk was built.
•  1860, the poorly constructed tower was torn down. A second story was added to the Keeper’s Quarters and the lantern was placed on the roof of the structure.
•  1891, a 45-feet stone tower was erected with a Keeper’s house. The Fifth Order lens was installed in the new tower.
•  The Great Atlantic Hurricane of September 15, 1944 heavily damaged the light station.
•  The Coast Guard tore down the structure and replaced it with a light on a skeletal tower in 1947.