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Nobska Light
Nobska Light.JPG
Nobska Light in 2016
Location Nobska Rd., Woods Hole, Massachusetts
Coordinates 41°30′56.9″N 70°39′18.4″W / 41.515806°N 70.655111°W / 41.515806; -70.655111
Year first constructed 1829
Year first lit 1876 (current tower)
Automated 1985
Foundation Natural Emplaced
Construction Iron with brick lining
Tower shape Cylindrical
Markings / pattern White with black lantern
Height 40 feet (12 m)
Focal height 87 feet (27 m)
Original lens Fifth-order Fresnel lens, 1876
Current lens Fourth-order Fresnel lens, 1888
Range White 13 nautical miles (24 km; 15 mi), Red 11 nautical miles (20 km; 13 mi)
Characteristic Fl W, 6 sec. Red sector
Fog signal 2 blasts every 30s
Admiralty number J0456
ARLHS number USA-550
USCG number 1-15560

Nobska Light, also known as Nobska Point Light, is a famous lighthouse located in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. It stands on the southwestern tip of Cape Cod, looking out over Buzzards Bay, Nantucket Sound, and Vineyard Sound. From the lighthouse, you can see Martha's Vineyard and Nonamesset Island. The first light station was built here in 1826. The tower you see today, made of iron and 42 feet tall, was built in 1876. Nobska Point Light Station was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1987 because of its important history.

What is Nobska Light?

Cape cod11
Nobska Point in 2005

Nobska Light is located at the very end of Cape Cod. It is separated from the shore by Nobska Road. The light station has four main buildings. These include the tall lighthouse tower, the keeper's house, a radio beacon house, and a small oil house.

The lighthouse tower is 40 feet (about 12 meters) tall. It has a brick inside and a metal outside. The outside is made from four rings of iron panels. The first three panels have windows with an Italianate style. The top level has four round porthole windows. At the very top, there is a ten-sided lantern house. An iron balcony and railing go all around it. A wooden entrance connects the tower to the keeper's house. The oil house is a small brick building with a sloped roof. The radio beacon house is a larger brick building, also with a sloped roof.

History of the Lighthouse

The Nobska Light station was first built in 1828. The original light was placed on top of the keeper's house. In 1876, the current iron tower was built. Part of the keeper's house and the oil house were also built at this time.

The keeper's house was built in two parts. It was designed to hold both a main keeper and an assistant. The older part of the house was built in 1876. The other half was added in 1905. It is a 1-1/2 story house made of wood. A central section extends towards the tower. This section has enclosed porches on both sides.

In 1937, a tall steel radiobeacon tower was put in place. Over the next ten years, the old fog horn was replaced with a new one. In 1939, the United States Coast Guard took over from the U.S. Lighthouse Service. They became responsible for keeping the light working. However, a civilian light keeper stayed at Nobska until 1973. Joseph Hindley, who retired then, might have been the last civilian light keeper in New England.

In 1985, the lighthouse became automated. This means it could run by itself without a keeper. The last keeper retired, and his house became a home for the Commanding Officer of the Coast Guard in the area. In 2012, the house needed a lot of repairs. It was no longer used as a home. The lighthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1987.

Light Keepers of Nobska

Many people worked as light keepers at Nobska Light over the years. Here are some of the main keepers:

  • Peter Daggett (1828-1849)
  • William Davis (1849-1853)
  • William Ferguson Jr. (1853-1861)
  • Frederick Ray (1861-1874)
  • Oliver A. Nickerson (1874-1911)
  • George I. Cameron (1911-1913)
  • George L.Lyon (1913-1929)
  • John M. Scharff (1929-1955)
  • Osborne E. Hallett (1955–1968)
  • Joseph G. Hindley (1968–1972)
  • Gary Williams (1972-1983)
  • Charles Tebo (1983–1985)

Nobska Light Today

In 2015, the Coast Guard decided to offer the light station to local groups. These could be towns, non-profit organizations, or even private buyers. Four groups in Falmouth, who care about saving old buildings, joined together. They formed a new non-profit group called the Friends of Nobska Light. They worked with the Town of Falmouth to apply for the lighthouse.

The Town of Falmouth's application was accepted in September 2015. The plan is for the Town to let the Friends of Nobska Light handle the repairs and upkeep. Once the restoration is finished, the Friends group plans to open the lighthouse as a museum. It will be free for everyone to visit. Nobska Light will then be one of over 100 lighthouses in the country that are now managed locally. This happened because new navigation tools, like GPS, mean fewer lighthouses need people to run them.

The Friends of Nobska Light hope to offer tours of the light keeper's house by 2020. The lighthouse tower might be open for tours in the summer of 2017. For now, you can visit the site, but you cannot go inside the buildings. There is a small parking lot available. By March 2017, the Friends of Nobska Light had raised about $66,000. They planned to ask the Town for about $265,000 more to finish the restoration.

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