Alabama - Sand Island Lighthouse

The Sand Island Lighthouse is located approximately 3 miles offshore from Mobile Bay, AL It is on the west side of the main entrance to the bay.

The original lighthouse built in 1838 was 55-feet high. Its light was provided by multiple lamps and reflectors. Due to erosion of the island, the lighthouse was in jeopardy so a new lighthouse was built in 1856. This one was constructed of brick and stood 150-feet high. Its light was provided by a first-order Fresnel lens.

During the Civil War that tower was blown up and destroyed beyond repair. A temporary wooden tower was built at a height of 48-feet and the lantern room contained a fourth-order lens.

In 1873 a new brick tower was constructed and stands 132-feet tall. It was fitted with a new second-order Fresnel lens. However, due to erosion of the island, this new tower was built further northwest of the temporary tower. Since then the new tower has withstood hurricanes and been threatened by continuing erosion. Some keepers of this lighthouse and their families lost their lives during hurricanes, and other keepers lost their lives traveling to shore while the sea was rough. Multiple keeper dwellings have been built over the years and destroyed by erosion and weather.

The Coast Guard took over responsibility and control of this lighthouse in 1939. The lighthouse was automated in 1948 and the need for keepers was discontinued. The light was darkened in 1971and the second-order Fresnel lens removed and placed on display at the Fort Morgan Museum.

I visited this lighthouse in the year 2000. The land you see in the above picture is all that remains of the island. It was approximately 400 acres when the original lighthouse was built. Through time and massive erosion, the ocean waters have consumed almost all of the island, but the lighthouse stood at the time of my visit.

Florida - Sand Key, Alligator Reef, and Sombrero Key Lighthouses

The Sand Key Lighthouse is located 8.5 miles southwest of Key West, FL. The first lighthouse built here in 1827 was replaced by this one in 1853. This is one of six Florida reef lighthouses. At the time of my visit here in 2001, this was an active lighthouse.

The Alligator Reef Lighthouse is located 4 miles east of Indian Key, FL. The tower was finished in 1873 and enclosed a square keeper's dwelling more than 20 feet above the Gulf waters. From it, a circular staircase within a central shaft rises to the lantern deck. The new lantern room was fitted with a first-order Fresnel lens which emits a sequence of white and red flashes out to sea at a height of 136 feet above the water.

Some of the most intense weather to ever effect the light was the infamous "Labor Day hurricane" in 1935.  It raked the Florida Keys and took a toll of nearly 400 lives. There was a twenty-foot storm surge and accompanying 200 MPH winds. One of the most violent tropical storms to strike the U.S. The barometric pressure dropped to 26.35 inches -- the lowest reading ever noted in the western hemisphere at the time. The lighthouse survived the blow, essentially because its skeletal construction offered only the barest resistance to the madcap seas. The wind took out every station window except one. The Coast Guard automated the light in 1963.

At the time of my visit here in 2001,  this light was active. I saw this lighthouse from US Highway 1 on my way to Key West, FL but didn't get to photograph it. The above picture and some of the data was taken from a lighthouse magazine to document part of this lighthouse's history, and to preserve the memory of another Florida lighthouse that I've seen.

The Sombrero Key Lighthouse is located near Marathon, FL. It was built in 1858 and is the tallest at 142-feet of the six skeleton towered Florida Reef lighthouses. It was the third of the series and the last of its type in which engineer Lt. George Meade played a significant role. The huge cast-iron structure stands on a coral bed almost five miles south of Vaca Key, FL.

Over the years, this rugged tower has also survived the mightiy blows Mother Nature has thrown at it, suffering only minimal damage. Periodic scraping and painting of the metal has kept the entire framework in remarkable shape. Coast Guard keepers left the station for good in 1963. The modern twelve-volt optic, which replaced the original Fresnel lens, routinely furnishes a flashing white light that guides mariners past the surrounding reefs. The glass-prismed Fresnel lens was removed in 1982 and is displayed at the Key West Lighthouse Museum.

At the time of my visit her in 2001, this light was active. I also saw this lighthouse from U.S. Highway 1 on my way to Key West, FL, but didn't get to photograph it. The above picture and some of the data was taken from a lighthouse magazine to document part of this lighthouse's history, and to preserve the memory of another Florida lighthouse that I've seen.

Florida - St Augustine Lighthouse

This lighthouse is located at St Augustine, FL on Anastasia Island. The original tower, located some 600 yards away, was built by the Spanish. They had built several towers on the island over the years they occupied FL. In 1821 the U.S. took over FL from the Spanish, and in 1824 converted the latest Spanish built tower. The U.S. made alterations to it by removing about twenty feet from the top of the old structure. Elias Wallen, a local contractor, created thicker walls strong enough to support a soapstone deck and iron lantern.

By the 1840's, mariners had begun complaining that the harbor light was too weak, so officials decided to elevate the tower by adding ten feet. Complaints continued and in 1852 another twelve feet were added. However, even the extra height wasn't enough for mariners to differentiate between the lighthouse beacon and those lights of the nearby city. So, in 1854 a larger lantern and a fourth-order Fresnel lens were added to the tower. By the 1860's, erosion around the base of the lighthouse was a great concern.

In 1872, the Lighthouse Board funded a new light station for construction 600 yards to the southwest of the old one. Their action resulted in this 165-foot brick tower painted with spiraling black and white bands. It is the only spiral banded FL lighthouse. This lighthouse was equipped with a first-order Fresnel lens and six flights of stairs with frequent landings. Construction was completed in 1874.


After the light was automated in 1955, the federal government sold the station grounds to St. Johns County. The Junior Service League of St. Augustine later leased the property. In 1980 they began a sweeping restoration of the entire site, which resulted in it being returned to exceptional condition. At the time of my visit here in 2001, the original first-order Fresnel lens still functioned and was active. Although the frequent landings in the stairway make the 165-foot tower a less tiring climb to the lookout, it is well worth it for the sweeping view it affords of "America's Oldest City."