Notes:
(1) Halfway Rock Lighthouse was built on Halfway Rock to mark the hazardous ledges in the region.

      Halfway Rock is a wave swept 480-feet long rock ledge in Casco Bay 4.3-miles southwest of Bailey Island, 3.5-miles southeast of Jewell Island, and 10-miles northeast of Portland Head Light.  Halfway Rock and the surrounding smaller reefs were a navigational hazard to vessels en route to Portland Harbor and the cause of numerous shipwrecks over the years.  At the time, bustling Portland Harbor was exporting Maine Lumber and importing Caribbean molasses and sugar.

      The need for a Lighthouse had been proposed in the early 1830s yet Congress appropriated $50,000 for a Granite Tower in 1869.  Construction was delayed by two major storms and shortage of funds.  The 76-feet high Tower’s construction was identical to Minots Ledge outside Boston Harbor using interlocking dovetailed Granite Blocks.

      The Lighthouse was First Lit in 1871 exhibiting a Fixed White light with a Red Flash every minute illuminated by a Third-order Fresnel Lens.  The Tower contained four levels with a Kitchen on the first level, the living quarters of the Head Keeper on the second level, the living quarters of the assistant Keepers on the third level, and Watch-room on the fourth level.

      Halfway Rock Lighthouse was completed during the period when Portland Harbor was also Canada’s Winter Port (l853-1930) and exporting primarily Canadian grain to Europe.

      Halfway Rock Lighthouse was an extremely strenuous position for Keepers who needed to row 10-miles to Portland for supplies.  Rough seas or ice frequently made this task difficult or impossible.  A buoy tender from South Portland delivered supplies each week after the Coast Guard received responsibility for maintaining Lighthouses in 1939.

      In 1887, a 43-feet high pyramidal skeleton bell tower was bolted to the rock containing a 1,000 pound Fog Bell with striking machinery. The bell tower was connected to the lighthouse by a raised walkway.  A new boathouse was built with a Keeper’s quarters on the second floor in 1888.  In 1905, the Fog Bell was replaced by a Daboll trumpet powered by diesel engines.

      In 1960, the Coast Guard constructed a new Keeper’s house and boathouse.  A helicopter landing pad was added in 1961. In 1975, the Light was automated using a DCB 224 Aerobeacon.

(2) Operates continuously. Emergency light of reduced intensity when main light is extinguished.

1871 Characteristic: Fixed White Light varied by a Red Flash every 60 seconds

(3) 1975 Optic: The original Fresnel lens was replaced by an automated DCB 224 Aerobeacon.
The Third-order Fresnel Lens was relocated to the U.S. Coast Guard Academy Museum,
New London, Connecticut.

(4) 1887 Fog Signal: 1,000 pound fog bell and striking machinery every 10 seconds
     1905 Fog Signal: Daboll trumpet operated by diesel engine

(5) Long Reach Cruises schedules several different Lighthouse cruises.  For information and reservations, call 1-888-538-6786.

You can charter a trip to area lighthouses:
    Devil's Den Charters
    Sea Escape Cottages & Charters

Distant Views of Halfway Rock Light can be seen from the mainland using binoculars:
    10 miles Northeast of Portland Head Light
    5 miles Southwest of Lands End (end of Rt 24), Bailey Island