The Fenwick Island
lighthouse is located on the Delaware/Maryland border in Sussex
County and was established in 1859.
Because more than one person was required to operate the lighthouse two
keeper’s dwellings were built next to it. This 87-foot lighthouse originally
used lard oil but was converted into kerosene in 1879. It is now home to a
museum and is lit as a private aid to navigation.
Maryland
The Piney Point lighthouse sits on the Potomac River
west of Piney Point in St. Mary’s County and was established in 1836. Piney
Point has been a popular vacation spot for past presidents and other notable
Americans so it is often called the “Lighthouse of Presidents.”
North Carolina
The Bald Head, or “Old Baldy”, lighthouse sits on Bald
Head Island
near the Cape Fear River in Southport.
It’s light was first lit in 1817 but is no longer operational. This lighthouse
is North Carolina’s oldest
standing lighthouse. The Smith Island
Museum is housed in the replica of
original 1850’s keeper’s cottage. The museum commemorates more than 400 years
of maritime history.
The Ocracoke Island
lighthouse is located in Ocracoke, Hyde
County and was established in 1803.
The existing tower was constructed in 1823. This lighthouse is the oldest
lighthouse in North Carolina that
is still in operation.
Virginia
The Jones Point lighthouse is located on the Potomac River
in Jones Point
Park in Alexandria.
This lighthouse is, literally, a light built within a house and looks nothing
like the traditional lighthouse used all over the world. It was established in
1856 and was originally fueled with whale oil and later with gas. It is
surrounded by a 50-acre park and is next to the Woodrow
Wilson Bridge.
In 1926 it was replaced by a steel frame tower and was discontinued. The
National Park Service now maintains this lighthouse.
The Old Point Comfort lighthouse sits near the entrance to Hampton
Roads Harbor
in Hampton. This lighthouse was
established in 1774 and its light was first lit in 1802. A keepers dwelling was
added to the property in 1900. This 54-foot tall tower still houses the
original 4th order Fresnel lens that was installed in the 1850’s. The Old Point
Comfort lighthouse is still in use today as an aid to navigation.