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The Point Judith Light is located on the west side of the entrance to Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island as well as the north side of the eastern entrance to Block Island Sound. The confluence of two waterways make this area busy with water traffic and the waters around Point Judith are very cold and dangerous. Historically, even with active lighthouses, there have been many shipwrecks off these coasts.
Three light structures have been built on this site. The original 35-foot tower, built in 1810, was destroyed by a hurricane in 1815. It was replaced in 1816, by a 35-foot stone tower with a revolving light and ten lamps. The present octagonal granite tower was built in 1856. It is 51 feet high which, with the height of its land foundation, places the focal point of the lens 65 feet above sea level. The upper half of the tower is painted brown and the lower half white to make the light structure a more effective daymark for maritime traffic. In 1871, ship captains asked that Point Judith's fog signal be changed from a horn to whistle. This change distinguished the Point Judith light from the Beavertail Lighthouse, which used a siren to announce fog. A whistle could also be heard more distinctly over the sounds of the surf in the area. Point Judith Light was automated in 1954.
[edit] References
- Crompton, Samuel Willard. "The Lighthouse Book." Barnes and Noble Books, New York, 1999. ISBN 0-7607-1135-6.
[edit] External links
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