The Craighill Channel Upper Range Front Light is one of a pair of range lights that marks the second section of the shipping channel into Baltimore harbor.
 undated photograph of the Craighill Channel Upper Range Front Light (USCG) | |
 | |
| Location | West of Fort Howard (North Point) on the north shore of the Patapsco River |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 39°11′50″N 76°26′54″W / 39.1971°N 76.4482°W |
| Tower | |
| Foundation | stone |
| Construction | brick |
| Automated | 1929 |
| Height | 15 feet (4.6 m) |
| Shape | square tower |
| Heritage | National Register of Historic Places listed place  |
| Light | |
| First lit | 1886 |
| Focal height | 4.5 m (15 ft) |
| Characteristic | Fixed red (originally white) |
Cut-Off Channel Range Front Light Station | |
| Nearest city | Fort Howard, Maryland |
| Area | less than one acre |
| Built | 1886 |
| MPS | Light Stations of the United States MPS |
| NRHP reference No. | 02001415[1] |
| Added to NRHP | December 2, 2002 |
History
editWork on the upper range lights commenced in 1885 and was completed in time to allow activation in January 1886. An initial plan to reuse the west North Point Range Light was discarded in favor of a tiny brick structure constructed on the foundation of the old light. The keeper's house was built on the shore, and a long wooden bridge allowed access to the light itself. Initially a locomotive headlight was installed to show a fixed white light.[2]
Three years after improvements to the keeper's house were made in 1890, the bridge to the light was destroyed by a storm. Rather than rebuild it, the headlight was moved to the exterior of the light, and the keeper took up residence in the light itself. The light was electrified and automated in 1929. Although there are some claims that the light was rebuilt in 1938, this is believed to be a misunderstanding based on discrepancies in the reported height of the light over the years.
Notes
edit- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
- ^ Ralph E. Eshelman (March 1996). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Cut-off Channel Range Front Light Station" (PDF). Maryland Historical Trust. Retrieved 2016-03-01.
References
edit- "Historic Light Station Information and Photography: Maryland" (PDF). United States Coast Guard Historian's Office.
- Craighill Range Lighthouses, from the Chesapeake Chapter of the United States Lighthouse Society
- Craighill Channel Upper Front Lighthouse at lighthousefriends.org
External links
edit- http://www.craighillrange.org
- Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of the United States: Maryland". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
- Chesapeake Bay Lighthouse Project - Craighill Channel Range Lights
- Cut-off Channel Range Front Light Station, Baltimore County, at Maryland Historical Trust
