Chatham Lighthouse

Here is the Chatham, Mass. lighthouse with the sun setting behind it. This particular tower was built in 1877, but a light, and at one time, twin lights, stood here in Chatham, the first as early as 1808.

The lighthouse overlooks what has always been some of the most dangerous waters in the world, with currents and shoals that have taken the lives of many sailors.

Cape Cod’s first lighthouse was Highland Light up Truro, but Chatham was next, with twin towers two distinguish it from Highland.

By the summer of 1841, the towers were replaced with two new brick towers, and 30 years later in the 1870s, the other great Cape danger, erosion, was threatening to drop the towers into the ocean as the over 200-foot distance between the lights and the bluff dwindled to a mere 48 feet. The south tower did eventually tumble into the ocean in 1879. Two new towers were built to replace them in 1877, this time cast-iron.

In 1923, the north light was moved up to Eastham, and from then on, Chatham Light has been a single sentinel. The light was automated in 1982, but remains an active Coast Guard station, and is not open to the public except when open house dates are scheduled.

For more interesting information on the Chatham Lighthouse, have a look at this website, and here’s another one.