Stonington Harbor Lighthouse
About this property
The Stonington Harbor Light is a historic lighthouse built in 1840 and located on the east side of Stonington Harbor in the Borough of Stonington, Connecticut. It is a well-preserved example of a mid-19th century stone lighthouse. The light was taken out of service in 1889 and the building has served as a museum for the Stonington Historical Society since 1925. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. The Stonington Harbor Light is located at the southern end of Stonington Point, marking the eastern side of Stonington Harbor. The light station consists of the tower and keeper's house; both are built out of large granite blocks, and the keeper's house has a wood-framed ell attached. The tower is an octagonal stone structure 35 feet (11 m) in height and 10 feet (3.0 m) in diameter, with a circular glass lantern house on top. The house is 1½ stories and about 30 feet (9.1 m) square. The federal government built a lighthouse on Windmill Point in Stonington Harbor in 1823; it was housed in a small granite lighthouse and was known by the same name. However, erosion led to its being torn down and its materials reused in the construction of this lighthouse. The light was originally lit by an oil lamp and broadcast by eight parabolic reflectors. This technology was already obsolete at the time of the lighthouse's construction, and it was replaced by a sixth-order Fresnel lens in 1856. In the 1880s, the Stonington Breakwater Light was constructed farther out in the harbor, and the Stonington Harbor Light was decommissioned in 1889. The site is now the home of the Stonington Historical Society which uses the building as The Old Lighthouse Museum. Holdings in the museum document the area's long and distinguished cultural and nautical history, and exhibits include the 1856 Fresnel lens. National Register of Historic Places listings in New London County, Connecticut Crompton, Samuel Willard. "The Lighthouse Book." Barnes and Noble Books, New York, 1999. ISBN 0-7607-1135-6. lighthousefriends.com: Inventory of Historic Light Stations Old Lighthouse Museum - Stonington Historical Society
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Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).
Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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Questions about this property
When was Stonington Harbor Lighthouse listed on the National Register?
Stonington Harbor Lighthouse was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on January 1, 1976.
What type of historic resource is Stonington Harbor Lighthouse?
Stonington Harbor Lighthouse is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for Stonington Harbor Lighthouse?
The period of significance for Stonington Harbor Lighthouse is recorded as the industrial era.
Can I research the history near Stonington Harbor Lighthouse?
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