Nubble Light, as the lighthouse is popularly called, is a cast-iron structure lined inside with brick. When it was completed in 1879 it was painted red, but in 1902 the color was changed to white and has remained so since then. The distinctive red oil house was built in 1902, and the covered walkway connecting the keeper's house and tower was added in 1911. The station originally had a fog bell and bell tower, until it was raised in 1961. An 1891 fourth-order Fresnel lens, although not the original, is still in use. A bucket, suspended on a line across the channel, was used to transport supplies to the station. The conical tower measures 39-feet from ground level to the center of the lantern, which shows a red light 88-feet above the ocean. The last keeper left in 1987 when the light was automated.
At the time of my visit here in 1997, the light was still active and the station was maintained by the town of York. The town had received more than 300 offers from people wanting to be live-in caretakers. Some restoration work had been done with a 1989 grant from the Maine Historic Preservation Committee.
This lighthouse and grounds are among the most appealing and photographed in the world. It has an estimated 250,000 visitors annually.
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