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| Cuttyhunk Light Station |
First Lit: 1823; Rebuilt: 1860, 1891; Deactivated: 1947
at Position: N 41° 24.8', W 70° 57' Nautical Chart
Cuttyhunk Island in the chain of Elizabeth Islands off Cape Cod
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- Existing oil house -
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Notes: (1) Cuttyhunk Lighthouse was built at southwestern end of the Cuttyhunk Island to mark Sow and Pigs Reef and guide ships entering Buzzards Bay. Cuttyhunk Light is located between Buzzards Bay and Vineyard Sound which were America’s busiest waters in 1800’s for maritime commerce and New Bedford Whaling. After exploring and naming Cape Cod on May 15 and trading with the Aquinnah Indians of Martha’s Vineyard on May 24, Captain Bartholomew Gosnold founded the first English colony on Cuttyhunk Island on May 28, 1602. Cuttyhunk Island is one of ten islands within a 15-mile long archipelago named the Elizabeth Islands by Bartholomew Gosnold.
Nautical Chart of Buzzards Bay Entrance, Massachusetts for informational purpose only Not to be used for Navigation Due to a fresh water pond, Bartholomew Gosnold built the first house and fort erected in New England on Cuttyhunk Island as a base to explore and trade with the Indians in the region. The first English settlement in the New World existed for 22 days as the settlers returned to England with Gosnold after the Wampanoag Indians became hostile. After the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812, the Sounds of Cape Cod became the busiest waters in America with coastal trading, fishing, and whaling vessels sailing through Vineyard and Nantucket Sounds to save time navigating to the ports in Buzzards Bay and southern states. A early beacon (1765?) may have been erected on Cuttyhunk Island to mark the hazardous Sow and Pigs Reef extending 1.75-miles offshore. In 1823, a 25-feet high rubble-stone Tower was built exhibiting a Fixed White light 48-feet above sea level to aid shipping entering Buzzards Bay. Coastal navigation in the region was heavy as the Lightkeeper recorded 12,603 vessels had passed by Cuttyhunk Light in 1830. Clearly, Cuttyhunk Lighthouse was poorly constructed since the tower was encased in brick twice. The Keeper’s house was also poorly constructed as a inspection report noted the leaky tower and the “wood work of the keeper’s house is rotten” in 1842. In 1857, the Lighthouse was refitted with a Fifth-order Fresnel lens and the deteriorating lighthouse was replaced by a Lantern on a square tower built on top of a new 2-story Keeper’s house in 1860. By 1881, the Light Station needed to be rebuilt due to severe deterioration. In 1891, a separate 45-feet high white conical wooden shingled Tower and new Keeper’s House were built to replace the aging 1860 Lighthouse. In 1902, a large round stone Tower monument with a set of circular steps and a look-out deck was erected where the first New England fort was built to commemorate three hundred years anniversary of Gosnold’s landing on Cuttyhunk Island.
In 1944, Cuttyhunk Light Station was severely damaged by the 30-feet high tidal surges of The Great Atlantic Hurricane of September 15, 1944. The Hurricane directly hit the island and changed its land-form. Cuttyhunk Lighthouse was demolished after it was decommissioned by the Coast Guard in 1947 and replaced by a skeleton tower (see Note 2). In commemoration of the 400th anniversary of the landing of explorer Bartholomew Gosnold on Cuttyhunk Island, the Historical Society is exhibiting the Legacy of Gosnold’s Landing at the seasonal museum from June 29 to September 2, 2002. For more information, visit: (2) In 1947, Cuttyhunk Lighthouse was demolished and replaced by a skeleton tower. Aid No. 15615/J0482 at Position: N 41° 24.8', W 70° 57'
Visiting the former Lighthouse site is a long strenuous hike. Only the ruins of the Tower and Keeper’s house foundations remain as well as a stone oil house without its door and roof. Today, Cuttyhunk is a mecca of week-end yachts and sport fishermen. The island has breathtaking scenery, a wildlife preserve, and a museum with a main exhibition commemorating the 400th anniversary of the exploration of southeastern Massachusetts in 1602 by the English explorer, Bartholomew Gosnold, during the Summer of 2002.
Cuttyhunk Boat Lines, Inc.
Pier 3 / Fisherman’s Wharf New Bedford, MA 02740 508-992-1432 eMail: Alert2@Cuttyhunk.com Alert II Ferry from New Bedford to Cuttyhunk Island.
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Copyright ©2000 to 2003 by Debbie Dolphin.
Document Updated: Monday, December 22, 2003, 07:32:00pm Eastern Standard Time (-5GMT)
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