Fenwick Island Light facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Fenwick Island Light

Spring 2008
Fenwick Island Light Location in Delaware
Location	Fenwick Island, Delaware
Coordinates	38°27′05″N 75°03′17″W / 38.4514°N 75.0548°W / 38.4514; -75.0548
Year first constructed	1858
Year first lit	1859
Automated	1940
Deactivated	1978-1982
Foundation	Natural
Construction	Brick
Tower shape	Conical
Height	87 feet (27 m)
Original lens	Third order Fresnel lens
Current lens	Third order Fresnel lens
Range	15 nautical miles (28 km; 17 mi)
Characteristic	White flash every 13s
Admiralty number	J1354
ARLHS number	USA-283
USCG number	2-0205

Fenwick Island Lighthouse is a lighthouse in Delaware, United States, on the Delaware/Maryland state line. The structure dates back to 1858 making it the oldest lighthouse in the state of Delaware.

History

In 1856, the United States Congress appropriated $25,000 for the Fenwick Island Lighthouse and on January 11, 1858 a ten-acre tract for the station was obtained from Mary C. Hall for only $50. The Fenwick Island Lighthouse was completed on December 29, 1858, but would not be lit until August 1, 1859. Construction was supervised by U.S. Army Captain William F. Raynolds. The lighthouse was built on an isolated peninsula in the southernmost portion of Delaware at the Maryland state line. It is 87 feet tall, brick, with a central cast iron spiral staircase, and equipped with a third-order Fresnel lens. It was automated in 1940.

The lighthouse was decommissioned in 1978 and remained dark for several years. A public movement to save the lighthouse resulted in ownership of the lighthouse being transferred to the State of Delaware, and the lighthouse was relit in 1982. In 1997, after extensive fundraising efforts made it possible, the rapidly aging lighthouse underwent a full restoration. It was rededicated in July 1998.

The lighthouse is owned by the state of Delaware and maintained by the private, non-profit New Friends of the Fenwick Island Lighthouse. The "isolated" lighthouse now stands surrounded by a neighborhood of houses and businesses. Visitors can enter the base to view a small museum and gift shop. The lighthouse, however, is not open for climbing.

It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.