Ladies Delight Light

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The Ladies Delight Light is a small lighthouse on Lake Cobbosseecontee, Maine. It was constructed in 1908. The tower is 25 feet tall, and is equipped with a 75-watt light bulb further intensified by a lens from a ship's anchor light.

The lighthouse was designed by Frank Morse, a Boston marine architect. The small island on which it was constructed, Ladies Delight, is formed by the central part of a large reef; the lighthouse was built to keep a passenger launch at the south end of the lake from running aground in the area. The Cobbosseecontee Yacht Club erected the tower with the help of two oxen. Due to the size of their barge, they could only transport one at a time. They took the first one to the island, and then returned to shore for the second. In the interval the first ox grew lonely, and began swimming back to the mainland as the workers returned with its partner. Finally, both oxen were succesfully transported, and the lighthouse was built over the course of the summer.

Members of the yacht club have always maintained the lighthouse. Originally its light was provided by kerosene lanterns; a volunteer keeper went out each evening to trim the wicks, clean the globes, and light the beacon. A reflector in the light was rotated by a system of weights from a grandfather clock. A wind-powered generator powered the light for a while in the 1930's; currently, power is provided by cable from Manchester. The lantern has been blown off the tower twice; sometime in the 1990's the original iron one was replaced by one made of wood. As of 2006 there was an osprey nest in the top of the tower.