Fort Washington Light is a lighthouse located on the banks of the Potomac River on the grounds of its namesake fort. There has been a lighthouse on the location since 1857; the current light was converted from a fog bell tower in 1901.

Fort Washington Light
Circa 1913 Wooden Fort Washington Light (USCG photo) with 1857 Cast Iron Light Pole in front
Map
LocationFort Washington Park, Prince George's County, US
Coordinates38°42′43″N 77°02′13″W / 38.712°N 77.037°W / 38.712; -77.037
Tower
Constructed1882 Edit this on Wikidata
Constructionwood (housing) Edit this on Wikidata
Automated1954 Edit this on Wikidata
Height8.5 m (28 ft) Edit this on Wikidata
Shapepyramid Edit this on Wikidata
Light
First lit1901 Edit this on Wikidata
Focal height28 ft (8.5 m) Edit this on Wikidata
Lenssixth order Fresnel lens Edit this on Wikidata
Range8 nmi (15 km; 9.2 mi) Edit this on Wikidata
CharacteristicFl R 6s Edit this on Wikidata

History

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1857 Cast Iron Light Pole at Fort Washington - emplaced near the shore

Fort Washington projects into the Potomac River where the river turns north, and in 1856 Jefferson Davis, in his capacity of Secretary of War, authorized the construction of a lighthouse on the fort property, to be maintained by post personnel. Minimal funds were appropriated, and a temporary cast iron tower was constructed the following year. Almost immediately this light was found inadequate and in 1870 a 16-foot (4.9 m) replacement tower was constructed in Baltimore and erected on a site closer to the water. This tower had a sixth-order Fresnel lens.

In 1882 a wooden fog bell tower was erected, and in the following years a keeper's house and various other structures sprang up around the old tower, largely obscuring it. In 1900 a request was made to build a third, taller tower, and as a temporary expedient, a light was added to the fog bell tower, sitting on a platform attached near the top. The replacement light tower was never built, and the converted fog bell tower continues in service. Over the years the 1870 tower, the keeper's house, and the surrounding buildings were all demolished. The tower is readily visible to visitors to the park in which it stands, though it is closed to public access.

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References

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  • Fort Washington Lighthouse - from Lighthousefriends.com
  • de Gast, Robert (1973). The Lighthouses of the Chesapeake. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. ISBN 9780801815485. pp. 50–53
  • "Historic Light Station Information and Photography: Maryland" (PDF). United States Coast Guard Historian's Office.
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