Long Point Lighthouse is located near Provincetown, MA. This
lonely lighthouse sits at the outermost curl of Cape Cod, and is almost the sole
surviving structure at the location of what was once a thriving settlement.
During the mid-nineteenth century, as many as 200 souls lived and worked along
the sandy spit known as Long Point. However, during the Civil War the active
community was abandoned after the Confederate warship Alabama was spotted in
the waters off the Cape. Provincetown authorities hastily commissioned a pair
of earthworks at Long Point as protection for the harbor town. No enemy ever
materialized and local residents dubbed the twin embankments: "Fort
Useless" and "Fort Harmless".
In 1827 the first light at Long Point was placed in a
six-sided, wood-frame tower on the roof of the keepers dwelling which stood on
piles. These piles were set eight feet in the sand and protected by 1,800 tons
of granite blocks.
The light was relocated in 1875 to the top of the
thirty-eight foot square brick tower pictured. The tower was originally attached to
the keepers dwelling which has been demolished. In
1927 a fifth-order Fresnel lens replaced the lamps and reflectors used earlier.
The fifth-order lens eventually was replaced by a modern optic. In 1952 the
light was automated, and in 1981 solar panels were installed. At the time of my
visit the lighthouse was active and remains so as of the time of this writing.
1 comment:
Excellent blog. I enjoyed the history about the civil war. Great info to learn about the lighthouse. Thanks, Al!
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