BLOCK ISLAND (SOUTHEAST)

Type:
Year Established:
1875
Existing:
Yes
Source:
LL-1908
Block Island Southeast
Download:
File Type:
jpg (image/jpeg)
Photo Date:
2011
Photo Credit:
Candace Clifford
Photo Courtesy of:
U.S. Lighthouse Society
Collection / Donor:

LOCATION

Location:
MOHEGAN BLUFFS/BLOCK ISLAND
Latitude:
41° 9.2'
Longitude:
71° 33.1'
City / Town:
NEW SHOREHAM
U.S. State:
Rhode Island
Location County:
WASHINGTON
Country:
United States

OWNER & ACCESS

Open to Public:
Yes
Light List Data:
  1. BLOCK ISLAND (SOUTHEAST)
Light list data courtesy Gary Riemenschneider

STRUCTURE

Year Discontinued:
1990-1994
Year Tower Established:
1875
Tower Construction Material:
RED BRICK
Tower Foundation:
GRANITE/CONCRETE/BRICK
Height of light above mean high water, in feet:
201 feet above water
Height, in feet, from base of structure to center of lantern:
48 Feet
Tower Shape:
OCTAGONAL PYRAMIDAL ATT TO DUPLEX
Tower Daymark:
Red
Fog Signal Building?:
No
Year Fog Signal Building Constructed:
1908
Fog Signal Bldg Construction Materials:
BRICK
Keeper's Quarters?:
Yes
Year Keeper's Quarters:
1873
Keeper's Quarters Style:
GOTHIC REVIVAL DUPLEX
Keeper's Quarters Construction:
BRICK
Other Structures:
STORAGE BUILDING, RADIOBEACON, GARAGE, MODERN BRICK RANCH HOUSE (1961); MODERN FOG SIGNAL (C. 1988); DESTROYED: CISTERNS, BOATHOUSE

OPTICS

Active Aid to Navigation?:
Yes
Current Optic:
FIRST ORDER, FRESNEL
Original Optic Type:
FIRST ORDER, FRESNEL
Year Original Lens Installed:
1875
Private Aid:
No
USCG Access to Optics:
No
Comments:

HISTORICAL INFORMATION:

  • 1856: Congress appropriated $9,000 to build the lighthouse in 1856; however, the Lighthouse Board spent the money to rebuild the Block Island North Lighthouse on a site further inland after the 1837 lighthouse was swept into the sea.
  • 1872: Subsequently, President Grant signed the congressional appropriation bill in 1872 to build the station.
  • 1875: Block Island Southeast Light was first lighted on February 1, 1875. The original optic was a first-order Fresnel lens with four circular wicks feeding on whale oil.
  • 1880: In 1880 this optic was replaced by a single kerosene-fed lamp inside a modified first-order classical lens that rotated on a bath of mercury and was driven by weight powered clock work that had to be rewound every four hours.
  • 1990: The light was deactivated by the Coast Guard in 1990 and transferred its mission to a beacon placed on a nearby steel tower.
  • 1993: In 1993 the 2,000-ton lighthouse was moved about 300 feet back from the eroding cliffs. The Fresnel lens was removed from the tower for the move. However, due to the potential hazard caused by the mercury float of this lens, it was decided not to reinstall and re-light it. It was replaced with Cape Lookout’s original first-order lens, which had been on display at the Coast Guard’s Support Center in Portsmouth, Virginia. The original Block Island lens is on display in the museum. The same firms that moved Cape Hatteras Lighthouse – International Chimney Corp. and Expert Movers of Maryland, carried out the move of the Southeast Lighthouse.
Entered by:
t.wheeler
Entered Date:
Jul 21, 2017