West Quoddy Head Lighthouse is located at Lubec, ME. This candy-striped lighthouse stands on the eastern-most mainland point in the U.S. At certain times of the year, it is also the first spot in the country to see the morning sun. West Quoddy Head forms the western entrance to Cobscook Bay and the St. Croix River. In 1808 a rubble masonry tower was first constructed here. At forty-nine feet tall, it was as tall as any built in Maine prior to 1850. (Except the one at Portland Head, Me). The West Quoddy Head Lighthouse received one of the nation's first fog bells in 1820. However, by then the light had fallen into such a state of disrepair that it was rebuilt in 1853. Unfortunately, improper mortar was used in the job, (Not an uncommon occurrence in early lighthouse construction.) and the tower was soon in as bad a shape as ever. It was torn down then replaced in 1858 by this forty-nine foot high cast-iron structure and overlaid with brick. The West Quoddy Head Lighthouse was automated in 1988. A computerized mechanism now operates the third-order Fresnel lens flashing a white light. The light shines its beam from eighty-three feet above the water. This light station is now part of Quoddy Head State Park. At the time of my visit in 2001, the park was open to the public.
This lighthouse sits atop a high cliff and this location enables one to see the islands of Grand Manan and Campobello, NB, Canada, when the weather is clear. Grand Manan is sixteen miles long and had a population of three-thousand. The island used to belong to the United States but we swapped it for Moose Island on which Eastport Lighthouse is located.
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