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First lit in February of 1891, California’s Roe Island Lighthouse has been lost to the dusty pages of time.

The Roe Island Lighthouse was built at the east end of Suisun Bay, across the Sacramento River from Port Chicago on a low marshy area.

We have been unable to locate any real information on the station such as recorded memories of keepers, photographs of keepers, etc. Although we do know that one of Alaska’s most notable keepers, Ted Pederson, did serve at the lighthouse.

One of the interesting things about this lighthouse was its outhouse which had running water supplied from a tank on the roof.

During World War II trains delivered ammunition to ships at the Port Chicago Navy Depot which was near the Roe Island Lighthouse. On July 17, 1944 a terrific explosion at the Depot destroyed many of the ships and killed over 300 men.

The explosion also badly damaged the lighthouse. Shortly thereafter the Roe Island Lighthouse was discontinued and declared excess property. It was sold to a private family who used it as a cottage for a number of years. Unfortunately, a fire that was reportedly attributed to vandals, later destroyed it.

This story appeared in the May 2001 edition of Lighthouse Digest Magazine. For subscription information about the print edition, click here.

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