Washington - Admiralty Head Lighthouse

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I visited the Admiralty Head Lighthouse in 1999. It is a Spanish-style structure located high on a bluff overlooking Admiralty Inlet on Whidbey Island, WA. The U.S. purchased 10 acres of land from a Dr. Kellogg for $400. The original lighthouse was built in 1861. It had a low square tower made of wood and was painted white. It was located roughly one-half mile south of the current lighthouse. In the early 1890's, Fort Casey, with a big-gun battery, was built to protect the waters of northern Puget Sound. Because the location of that first lighthouse offered the best big-gun location, the lighthouse was moved north of Red Bluff toward where the present lighthouse is today. Once the new stucco lighthouse was built in 1903, the original lighthouse was used as a non-commissioned officers quarters. In 1928 the wooden lighthouse was dismantled and used to build a Sergeants home on South Whidbey. The current lighthouse was built by the Army Corps of Engineers. It has 18 inch thick brick walls which are covered with stucco. This lighthouse was believed to be the most comfortable home in the territory due to an indoor bathroom and laundry room. For only 19 years, 1903-1922, the light operated and then was extinguished due to changes in the channel and shipping routes. Later, the lens was given to the New Dungeness Lighthouse. You can also read my reference to the Admiralty Lens in the New Dungeness Lighthouse post I made on 9 Jun 2011.