The Mary Island Light Station is a lighthouse located on the northeastern part of Mary Island in southeastern Alaska, United States.

Mary Island Light
Mary Island Light in 1937
Map
LocationMary Island
Revillagigedo Channel
Alaska
United States
Coordinates55°5′56″N 131°10′58″W / 55.09889°N 131.18278°W / 55.09889; -131.18278
Tower
Constructed1903 (first)
Foundationconcrete
Constructionreinforced concrete
Automated1969
Height61 feet (19 m)
Shapesquare tower at corner of dwelling
Markingsart deco architecture
white tower
OperatorUnited States Coast Guard[1] [2]
HeritageNational Register of Historic Places listed place Edit this on Wikidata
Light
First lit1937 (current)
Focal height76 feet (23 m)
LensFourth order Fresnel lens (original), 250 mm lens (current)
Range6 nautical miles (11 km; 6.9 mi)
CharacteristicFl W 6s.
obscured from 341° to 150°.
Mary Island Light Station
Alaska Heritage Resources Survey
Nearest cityKetchikan, Alaska
Area9.8 acres (4.0 ha)
Built1937
ArchitectUS Lighthouse Service; D.A. Chase; Edwin Laird
Architectural styleModerne
MPSLight Stations of the United States MPS
NRHP reference No.05000645[3]
AHRS No.KET-024
Added to NRHPJuly 8, 2005

History

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Original 1903 Lighthouse – USCG archive photo

Mary Island Light Station was opened in 1903, and was one of a series of staffed lights established by the U.S. Government to guide ships through the treacherous waters of Southeast Alaska's Inside Passage. In 1937, a concrete lighthouse and fog signal building replaced the original wood tower. Situated behind the light were two lightkeeper houses which housed the Coast Guard Lightkeepers. One of the houses burned down in 1965(?); the other house was moved off the island to nearby Ketchikan, Alaska.

In 1969 the station was automated and the radio beacon was removed. No other buildings and structures at the station stand today, other than an outhouse.

Actually, the northern of the two keepers dwellings was moved in 1964. The southern dwelling was used by the 4 man crew until the station was decommissioned in 1969, and in 1970 the dwelling was moved.

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as Mary Island Light Station in 2005.[3][4]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of Alaska". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved 2016-06-07.
  2. ^ Alaska Historic Light Station Information & Photography United States Coast Guard. Retrieved 7 June 2016
  3. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  4. ^ Robert M. Weaver (February 27, 2003). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Mary Island Light Station / Mary Island Lighthouse (AHRS Site No. KET-024)". National Park Service. and accompanying photos
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