North Head Light
 | |
  | |
| Location | Ilwaco, Washington |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 46°17′56″N 124°04′41″W / 46.2989°N 124.0781°WCoordinates: 46°17′56″N 124°04′41″W / 46.2989°N 124.0781°W |
| Year first lit | 1898 |
| Automated | 1961 |
| Foundation | Surface |
| Tower shape | Conical |
| Height | 65 feet (20 m) |
| Original lens | First order Fresnel lens |
North Head Lighthouse in Ilwaco, Washington, lies near the mouth of the Columbia River, approximately two miles north of Cape Disappointment.
History
The Cape Disappointment Lighthouse, installed in 1856, was obscured to ships approaching from the north by the headland extending southwest from the light. To correct this, a lighthouse was built at North Head, which faces the ocean directly and would be clearly visible to ships traveling from the north. The 65-foot (20 m) tower stood on a 130-foot (40 m) cliff. The lens was the first-order lens from Cape Disappointment, and was first lit in 1898. In 1935, the first-order lens was replaced by a fourth-order lens. That lens was eventually replaced by an aerobeacon in the 1950s, and later by a modern optic mounted outside the tower. The light was automated in 1961.[1][2] Today the lighthouse is part of Cape Disappointment State Park.[3][4]
References
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to North Head Lighthouse. |
- ↑ "Historic Light Station Information & Photography: Washington". U.S. Coast Guard. Retrieved April 17, 2015.
- ↑ "13th Coast Guard District Lighthouses". 13th Coast Guard District. January 1996. Retrieved April 17, 2015.
- ↑ "North Head, WA". Lighthousefriends. Retrieved April 17, 2015.
- ↑ "History". Keepers of the North Head Lighthouse. Retrieved April 17, 2015.
More reading
Sharlene and Ted Nelson (1998). Umbrella Guide to Washington Lighthouses. Epicenter Press. ISBN 9780945397700.
