Bird Island Light
About this property
Bird Island Light is a historic lighthouse at the entrance to Sippican Harbor in Marion, Massachusetts. Built in 1819, its tower is a well-preserved example of an early 19th-century masonry lighthouse. The tower and the island on which it stands were added to the National Register of Historic Places as Bird Island Light on September 28, 1987. Sippican Harbor is a deep inlet off Buzzards Bay on the south coast of Massachusetts, which is bracketed by Converse Point on the west and Butler Point on the east, both part of the town of Marion. About 0.5 miles (0.80 km) south of Butler Point lies Bird Island, a 3-acre (1.2 ha) point of land that mostly serves as a bird nesting site. The Bird Island lighthouse stands near the island's center. It is a circular masonry structure about 25 feet (7.6 m), with its light at 37 feet (11 m) above sea level. The tower is topped by a cast iron lantern house, with an outside railing and conical roof with ventilator. The tower was built when the light was first established in 1819, and was accompanied by an attached stone keeper's dwelling. Three months after it was first lit, with William Moore as the keeper, it was badly damaged by a storm. It was again severely damaged on September 8, 1869, and, again, repaired. It was deactivated by the USCG in 1933. All of the buildings except the tower were destroyed in the New England Hurricane of 1938. In 1940 the island passed into private hands and was acquired by the Town of Marion in 1966. The light was briefly lit in 1976 after undergoing restoration by the local historical society. The Bird Island Preservation Society was formed in 1994 and on July 4, 1997, the light was relit as a private aid to navigation. The island, but not the tower, is open to visitors except during the May through August nesting season of the endangered roseate tern. National Register of Historic Places listings in Plymouth County, Massachusetts
Location
Categories
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.
Everything a full report reveals about Bird Island Light
This page lists Bird Island Light. A full Aubrey report for an address near it pulls together this listing alongside battlefield records, land patents, and every other historical record within a chosen radius:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Questions about this property
When was Bird Island Light listed on the National Register?
Bird Island Light was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 27, 1987.
What type of historic resource is Bird Island Light?
Bird Island Light is classified as a structure in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for Bird Island Light?
The period of significance for Bird Island Light is recorded as the industrial era.
Can I research the history near Bird Island Light?
Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near Bird Island Light will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
More in Plymouth County
Historic places, battles, and census history across Plymouth County.
Explore PlymouthCounty ›More historic places in Massachusetts
Browse all historic places in Massachusetts.
View Massachusettshistoric sites ›Massachusetts history
Colonial settlement, territorial period, and statehood narrative.
Massachusettshistory ›Research the history near this site
An Aubrey US report for an address near Bird Island Light will include this listing alongside battlefield records and other historical sources within your chosen radius.