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Managing Organization:
U.S. Coast Guard
Notes:
The location of the lighthouse, Wigwam Point, is so named because it was a popular gathering place for local Native Americans. The lighthouse is at the mouth of the Annisquam River near dangerous Squam Bar.
Tower Height: 41
Height of Focal Plane: 45
Characteristic and Range: Flashing white every 7.5 seconds, with red sector.
Description of Tower: White cylindrical brick tower with black cast iron lantern.
This light is operational
Other Buildings?
1801 1.5 story wood frame keeper's house, stone oil house, garage.
Earlier Towers?
1801: 32-foot wooden tower; 1851: 40-foot octagonal wooden tower.
Date Established: 1801
Date Present Tower Built: 1897
Date Automated: 1974
Optics: 1856: Fifth order Fresnel lens; 1988: 190 mm.
Fog Signal: Now automated horn with two blasts every 60 seconds.
Current Use: Active aid to navigation, Coast Guard housing.
Open To Public? Grounds only.
Directions:
North or south on MA 127: Turn onto Leonard Street (next to the white Annisquam Village Church). Turn right at a large “Norwood Heights” sign. Follow the road across an intersection, past a “dead end” sign. Continue toward the water, following as the road turns to the right, all the way to the lighthouse, a short distance before the end of the road. When leaving, follow the one-way signs to a stop sign and turn right to return to Leonard Street. The keeper’s house serves as a residence for a Coast Guard family. Please do not disturb the occupants. There are limited, short term (15 minutes) visitors’ parking spaces at the station. The station can also be viewed from Wingaersheek Beach in Gloucester. There is a substantial parking fee at the beach in the summer for non-residents of Gloucester. Harbor Tours, Inc., offers a daily lighthouse cruise, July to Labor Day at 2:30 pm, leaving from Gloucester's Harbor Loop. Call (978) 283-1979 or email sjd@gis.net for details. Also, the Thacher Island Association of Rockport, Massachusetts, offers occasional lighthouse cruises; call (978) 546-7697.
Mapquest URL: Click here to get a map to this lighthouse!
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places
Keepers: George Day (1801-1850); William Dade (1850-1853); Dominicus Poole (1853-?); Dennison Hooper (1872-1894); John Davis (c. 1900-1936); Per Frederick Tornberg (1936-?); Howard Ball (c. 1950); Roy S. Pittsley (Coast Guard, ?-c.1965); Armand E. Houde (Coast Guard, September 1965 to December 1967)
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