Massachusetts - Wings Neck Lighthouse

The Wings Neck Lighthouse is located at Pocasset Harbor, Bourne, MA. - This light started in 1849. A light keeper's house built of stone with a red shingled roof, had an octagonal frame tower and iron lantern mounted on the housetop. The lantern showed a fixed white light 44 feet above the high tide mark. In 1856, a Fresnel lens was installed to replace the original light and give the lantern's beacon greater intensity.

Then in 1878, tragedy struck when fire swept through the tower. The Lighthouse Board reported: "The lantern is on top of the dwelling; the roof has been crushed by the weight. A new tower is required, and the dwelling should be extensively repaired."  Despite the damage, the lantern continued to be used until 1890 when the house was demolished. In its place, workers constructed a white shingled hexagonal tower and wooden house. The two were connected with a covered walkway as shown above.

After the construction of the offshore Cleveland Ledge Light in 1941, the importance of the Wings Neck station was all but gone. It closed in 1945 and was sold two years later to the Flanagan family as a private residence. At the time of my visit here in 2001, the lighthouse and grounds were private property and not open to the public.