Can You Imagine How It Looked?

Can you imagine what this picture would look like if the lighthouse were painted brown and there was a white bridge connecting the lighthouse to the hill? That’s how it looked in the days when this light station was operational.

The Fort Pickering Lighthouse, built in 1871, is located at Salem, MA. It served as an official aid to navigation for only a quarter of a century. This is one of three lighthouses built in and around Salem during the early 1870's. Its conical tower and ten-sided lantern stands atop a concrete base. The cast-iron tower, brick-lined inside, originally was painted brown and connected to shore by a white bridge. As shipping declined in the late 19th century, usefulness of the light diminished and its use discontinued in 1897. The tiny tower, since painted white, is all that remains of the light station. The  keepers house, service buildings, and footbridge, which lead to the keeper’s house and service buildings, have all been removed. At the time of my visit in 1997, this active light, then solar-powered, was operated by the City of Salem as a private aid to navigation.