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.