Massachusetts - Ten-Pound Island Lighthouse

The Ten-Pound Island Lighthouse is located at Gloucster, MA. The first light built here in 1821 was a 20-foot rubble masonry structure with a stone house nearby for the keeper and a covered walkway between the two. The light station was rebuilt in 1881 when the present 30-foot, brown, cast-iron tower was erected.

The light at Ten Pound Island was automated in 1956. Twelve years later, the beacon was relocated to a nearby skeletal tower rising from a concrete house. In the meantime, the keeper's dwelling and oil storage building were allowed to fall into ruin, and the property was returned to the town of Gloucester, the original owner. Working to get the lighthouse named to the National Register of Historic Places, the city obtained matching grant money to restore and relight the light. The tower color was changed to white. On August 7, 1989, the light was turned on as a private aid to navigation. It shows a red light for six seconds, followed by an equal period of darkness. At the time of my visit in 1997, this was an active light.