The Tchefuncte River Lighthouse is located on the north side of Lake Pontchartrain at Madisonville, LA. . It was first built in 1838 at a height of 31-feet. Its light was provided by a series of lamps and reflectors. These were replaced in 1857 by a fifth-order Fresnel lens. During the Civil War the lighthouse was so badly damaged that it was later torn down and rebuilt in 1868 to a height of 41-feet on its old foundation using some of the brick from the original tower. Its lantern room was transferred in from the destroyed Cat Island station. The Tchefuncte River Lighthouse also functioned as the rear range light in a range light system started here in 1903. After it became a rear range light, a single vertical black stripe was painted on one side to help the mariners line up the front range light with the rear. (Stripe not shown in picture.)
The focal plane of the light is 100-feet above sea level. In 1952 the light was automated. At the time of my visit here in 2000, the light was an active aid to navigation with plans for it to be made part of a museum when transfer was completed from the U.S. Coast Guard.
Accessibility to the tower was only by boat. However, it could be viewed from across the water. At the time of my visit, I was able to get closer by traveling Highway 22, turned south onto Main Street which ran parallel to the river. Approximately 1 1/2 to 2 miles down this road, crossed a narrow wooden bridge, and found a small park and boat launch. From there the lighthouse was easily visible by looking back to the right.
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