[HOME] [SCREENSAVERS] [DOWNLOAD] [PURCHASE & REGISTRATION] [LIGHTHOUSE FACTS] [WALLPAPER] [USER'S GUIDE]
|
[HOME] [SCREENSAVERS] [DOWNLOAD] [PURCHASE & REGISTRATION] [LIGHTHOUSE FACTS] [WALLPAPER] [USER'S GUIDE]
|
|
Nobska Light (Woods Hole, Massachusetts)
Nobska Light is located on the southern
mainland coast of Massachusetts above Woods Hole harbor.
The first lighthouse, called "Nobsque" light, was built here in
1828 and consisted of a stone saltbox style keeper's cottage with an octagonal lantern
room above the roof.
The stress of the heavy lantern room on the roof of the house resulted in
leaks so a new lighthouse was constructed in 1876. The front half of the current
keeper's house was built along with a new 42-foot tall separate brick tower with
a cast iron shell. The light tower and
keeper's house were both painted a maroon-brown with white trimmings. A
covered walkway between the tower and the house was added in 1899 and in 1907 a
second keeper's house was added. The two keeper’s houses were merged into a single
dwelling in 1985. Today, the dwelling and tower are painted a classic
Coast Guard white with a red roof.
An interesting feature of the tower railing is the miniature brass lighthouses that are attached to the top of each vertical post. Other lighthouses that have this feature include Cape Neddick Light, Maine and Lubec Channel Light, Maine, and Edgartown Light on Martha's Vineyard.
Initially, a fifth-order Fresnel lens was
installed. In 1888 the light was upgraded to a fourth-order
Fresnel lens and then in 1985 the light was automated. Currently, a
28,000 candlepower, 1000 watt lamp
provides the light that shines through the fourth-order Fresnel lens at 67 feet
above sea-level. It is visible for up to
17 miles out to sea. A red pane installed in the lantern room causes the light to appear
red from the east. This is used to warn ships away from Hedge Fence and
L’Hommendieu Shoals south of the cape. Nobska Light became part of the Coast Guard in 1939 when the lighthouse service merged with the Coast Guard. Today, it is the home for the Group Commander of the Woods Hole Coast Guard Base. The Woods Hole Group serves the mainland and islands from Plymouth, Massachusetts to the Rhode Island/Connecticut border.
[Back to Massachusetts Lighthouses]
|
|
All pictures are the original work of Rick Totton and are protected under copyright laws. Do not reproduce any images from this website without permission of the author. Copyright (c) 2000 Rick Totton.
|
