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Managing Organization:
U.S. Coast Guard
Notes:
When the current tower was completed, the 1831 tower remained for several years. Eventually it was replaced by an iron tower that served as a fog signal house. Today only the base of the original tower remains.
Tower Height: 50
Height of Focal Plane: 59
Characteristic and Range: Two white flashes every 10 seconds.
Description of Tower: Conical granite tower with black cast iron lantern.
This light is operational
Other Buildings?
None.
Earlier Towers?
1820: First tower; 1831: 48-foot stone tower.
Date Established: 1820
Date Present Tower Built: 1872
Date Automated: 1963
Optics: 1855: Fourth order Fresnel lens (now at Peabody-Essex Museum in Salem, MA); later DCB-224; 2002: VRB-25.
Fog Signal: 1859: Fog bell; 1872: Daboll fog trumpet; now automated horn with two blasts every 30 seconds.
Current Use: Active aid to navigation.
Open To Public? No.
Directions:
Whaleback Ledge Light can be seen from a number of locations in Portsmouth and Kittery. One of the best views is from Kittery's Fort Foster. From US Route 1 North: Turn right on ME 103 (Walker Street). Turn left at Wentworth Avenue. Turn right at Whipple Road and drive past the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. Continue as Route 103 becomes Pepperell Road, then Tenney Hill Road. Turn right at Gerrish Island Lane. Drive over a concrete bridge. Bear right at Pocahontas Road to the Fort Foster entrance. Fort Foster is open all year, 10 am to 8 pm. There are parking fees in the summer. The lighthouse can also be seen from Fort Stark at the end of Wild Rose Lane, off Route 1B, in New Castle, NH. Whaleback Ledge Light is also visible from tour boats leaving Portsmouth. The Isles of Shoals Stemship Company runs a variety of cruises from May to October; call (603) 431-5500 or (800) 441-4620 for information. Portsmouth Harbor Cruises also has tours that pass the lighthouse; call (603) 436-8084. And the Seacoast NH Trolley provides narrated tours of the area, including vantage points providing views of Whaleback Ledge Light. Call (603) 431-6975 or (800) 828-3672 for information.
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places
Keepers: Samuel E. Hascall (Haskell) (1831-1839); John L. Locke (1839); Zachariah Chickering (1839-?); Allen Porter (?); Jedediah Rand (1849-1853?); Reuben Leavitt (1853-1859); O. N. Tucker (1859-1860); G. A. Abbott (1860-1861); Joel P. Reynolds (1861-1864); Edward Parks (assistant, 1863-1864); Nathaniel P. Campbell (1864); Ambrose Card (assistant, then keeper 1864); Gilbert Amee (assistant 1864, then keeper 1864-1869); Mrs. (?) Amee (assistant, 1864-1867); Isaac W. Chauncy (assistant, 1867-1868); J. W. Vamey (?) (1869-1871); Ferdinand Barr (assistant 1868-1871, became keeper 3/22/1871, drowned on duty 6/18/1871); Emily F. Barr (assistant, 1871); William Caswell (1871-1872); Frank P. Caswell (assistant, 1871-1872); Chandler Martin (1872-1878); George R. Frost (assistant, 1872-1873); Frank L. Chauncey (assistant, 1873 and 1876-1877); John L. A. Martin (assistant 1874-1876); Leander White (1879 - c. 1886); Walter S. Ames (1891-?); Arnold B. White (c. 1935-1941); W. A. Alley (c. 1935); Maynard F. Farnsworth (c. 1935-1940s, became Coast Guard officer in charge 1941); Charles U. Gardner (relief keeper, c, 1942-1943); Francis D. Hickey (Coast Guard, c. 1956-1957)
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