Point Retreat Light

Point Retreat Light
Point Retreat Light Station in 2001
Map
LocationAdmiralty Island
Lynn Canal
Alaska
United States
Coordinates58°24′41″N 134°57′18″W / 58.41147°N 134.95502°W / 58.41147; -134.95502
Tower
Constructed1904 (first)
Foundationconcrete
Constructionreinforced concrete tower
Automated1973
Height25 feet (7.6 m)
Shapesquare tower with balcony and lantern on fog signal building
Markingsart deco archirecture,
white tower, black lantern
Power sourcesolar power Edit this on Wikidata
OperatorUnited States Coast Guard[1] [2]
HeritageNational Register of Historic Places listed place Edit this on Wikidata
Light
First lit1923
Focal height63 feet (19 m)
LensFirst order bivalve Fresnel lens (original), 300 mm lens (current)
Range9 nautical miles (17 km; 10 mi)
CharacteristicFl W 6s.
Point Retreat Light Station
Alaska Heritage Resources Survey
Nearest cityJuneau, Alaska
Area1 acre (0.40 ha)
Built1924
ArchitectU.S. Lighthouse Service
Architectural styleModerne
MPSLight Stations of the United States MPS
NRHP reference No.03000529[3]
AHRS No.JUN-00084
Added to NRHPJune 19, 2003

Point Retreat Light is a lighthouse located on the Mansfield Peninsula at the northern tip of Admiralty Island in southeastern Alaska, United States. It provides aid in navigation through the Lynn Canal.

Naming

Point Retreat was named by Joseph Whidbey on July 19, 1794, because of his need to retreat from local Tlingit.[4]

History

Point Retreat was set aside as a 1,505-acre (609 ha) lighthouse reserve in 1901 by executive order of President William McKinley, but the point had to wait for its lighthouse due to inadequate funding. Point Retreat was first lit in 1904 and displayed a fixed white light. The first Point Retreat Lighthouse was a six-foot-tall hexagonal wooden tower, topped by a hexagonal lantern room. In 1917, Point Retreat was stripped of its personnel and downgraded to a minor light until 1924, when a new combination lighthouse and fog signal was built. The lantern was removed in the 1950s and a solar-powered 300 mm lens was installed on a post attached to the tower. In 1973 the light was again unmanned and downgraded to a minor light again.

In 2003 the light was added to the National Register of Historic Places.[3][5]

  • USCG archive photo
    USCG archive photo
  • without lantern – USCG archive photo
    without lantern – USCG archive photo
  • in 2011
    in 2011

See also

References

  1. ^ Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of Alaska". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  2. ^ Alaska Historic Light Station Information & Photography United States Coast Guard. Retrieved 8 June 2016
  3. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  4. ^ Wagner, Henry (1937). The Cartography of the Northwest Coast of America to the Year 1800. Berkeley: University of California Press. p. 385.
  5. ^ David Benton (May 1, 2003). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Point Retreat Light Station / Point Retreat Lighthouse AHRS Site No. JUN-00084". National Park Service. and accompanying photos
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