Grounds Tour of Nobska Point Light
- Jeanette Robinson
- Apr 3, 2025
- 2 min read
If you stay at Frederick William House any point in the year, please take the time to drive or ride 4 miles to Nobska Point Light. The views are incredible, and after your little tour, visit the beach and stroll downtown Woods Hole and grab a bite to eat at Landfall or get a small bite at Pie in the Sky. There are many more I am not mentioning here that are excellent. Just let your nose do the shopping for you you down town. The infamous WHOI is down town as well, and the mini Awuarium…all part of WHOI. There are tours of both Nobska Light and WHOI. Yiu will need to call ahead to secure your spot.
Nobska Light is set at the very southwestern tip of Cape Cod, separated from the shore by Nobska Road. The light station includes four buildings: the tower, the keeper's house, a radio beacon house, and a small oil house. The tower has a brick interior and a metal exterior, formed out of four rings of iron paneling, and rises to a height of 40 feet (12 m). The first three panels each have a single sash window with an Italianate surround, while the fourth level sports four porthole windows. The tower is topped by a ten-sided lantern house with an iron balcony and railing encircling it. A wood frame entry vestibule with gable roof projects toward the keeper's house. The oil house is a small brick structure with a gable roof, while the radio beacon house is a larger brick structure, also with a gable roof.[5]
The light station was established in 1828, with the original light mounted on top of the keeper's house. In 1876 the present tower was built, along with one portion of the keeper's house and the oil house. The keeper's house was built in two stages, and was built to house both a keeper and an assistant. It is a 1+1⁄2-story Cape style wood-frame house, whose older section was built in 1876; the other half was built in 1905. A central single-story cross-gable wing extends toward the tower, with enclosed porches on either side.[5]
In 1937, a 125-foot steel radiobeacon tower was installed and the reed horn fog signal replaced with a diaphragm over the next decade. In 1939 the United States Coast Guard replaced the U.S. Lighthouse Service as the agency responsible for maintaining the light but a civilian light keeper remained on site until November 1973 and was replaced by the Coast Guard. Before Joseph Hindley retired, he may have been the last civilian light keeper in New England.[6][7]
In 1985 the lighthouse was automated and the last keeper retired. His house was converted into the residence for the Commanding Officer of United States Coast GuardSector Southeastern New England. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987.[1] In 2012, the house was deemed in need of serious maintenance and was discontinued as a residence.
Reference: Wikipedia.org
Comments