Cape Henry Lighthouse

Year Built

Original tower - 1792, current tower - 1881

Cost

$150,000

Type

Cast-iron-cylinder

Height

157 feet

Location

Virginia Beach

Automated Year

1983

First Lit

1881

Lens Type

First-order Fresnel lens

Fog Signal

None

Year Deactivated

Active

Color

Vertical black and white stripes

Last Keeper - Date

John T. Kemp (1890 – 1891)

Description

The old tower is open for climbing. The new tower is not.

Brief History

•  In 1879 a contract for a new iron lighthouse, consisting of cast-iron plates backed by masonry walls, was entered into and after two more appropriations of $25,000 each in 1880.
•  The first-class steam siren housed in the fog signal building commenced operation on December 1, 1880.
•  The lighthouse was officially turned over to Keeper Jay Edwards on December 15, 1881 and placed in operation that evening.
•  A radiobeacon was placed in commission at Cape Henry on June 1, 1923, making it one of the first lighthouses in the United States to deploy such a device.
•  Since 1984, Cape Henry Lighthouse has been fully automated, rendering the presence of a keeper unnecessary.