Notes:
(1) Palmers Island Light was built on the northeastern end of Palmers Island to mark the west side of the entrance to New Bedford Harbor.

      I.W.P. Lewis, Civil Engineer to the U.S. Light-house Survey, reported “This island lies directly within the entrance to New Bedford Harbor. A single lamp beacon place upon it would add materially to the facilities requires on entering this important harbor” in the 1843 survey of the coastal Lighthouses.

      In 1849, a 24-feet high rubblestone Lighthouse was built on the northern point of Palmer’s Island in the Acushnet River on the west side of the entrance to New Bedford Harbor.  The Fixed White Light was First Lit on August 30, 1849 by Light-Keeper William Sherman.


      Interestingly, Palmers Island Lighthouse was built when New Bedford became the whaling center of the nation at the time when American Whaling began to decline due to over hunting.  1846 was the peak year for the whaling industry as noted by a total fleet of 735 whaling vessels.

      American Whaling Industry began to gradually decline in 1849 yet New Bedford’s whaling fleet peaked at 329 ships employing 10,000 men in 1857 because New Bedford Whalers went on long voyages of 2 to 3 years and traveled as far as the southern Pacific and the Antarctic.  Expensive Sperm Oil was replaced by kerosene (discovered in 1852) and petroleum (discovered in 1859).  By 1870, widespread use of Kerosene and Petroleum caused the rapid decline of New Bedford’s whaling industry.

      In 1853, Palmer’s Island Lighthouse was engraved on the revised and current Seal of the City of New Bedford with the with the motto, Lucem Diffundens, which means Diffusing Light, or the Lighthouse as saying “I am diffusing light.”

      A hotel and dance hall was built on the southern side of Palmer’s Island in the 1860’s for guests arriving by steamer and returning whalers. An amusement park was built after the hotel was closed about 1890.  After a few years, the park failed and the hotel was destroyed by fire in 1905.

      From 1888 to 1891, a rear Range Light with a Fix Red Light was built on the nearby Fairhaven Bridge and was aligned with Palmer’s Island Light to help mariners avoid Butlers Flats, a dangerous shoal 4,224-feet offshore from Clarks Point on the west side of New Bedford Channel entering the Acushnet River and New Bedford Harbor.


      In 1900, a pyramidal wooden Fog tower was erected for a new fog bell and striking machinery.  In 1901, 75 tons of rip-rap stones were placed on the beach to protect the Light Station from storms.  The Fog bell was relocated to a structure attached to the Lighthouse and a oil house was built in 1905.


      Perhaps, Palmer’s Island Light is best known for the heroism of Light-keeper Captain Arthur A. Small and his wife, Mabel during the Great Hurricane of September 21, 1938.  During the darkening storm, Keeper Arthur Small attempted to light the Lighthouse after leaving his wife safely in the oil house on the highest ground.  Keeper Small was injured by debris in a large wave as he waded though 3-feet deep flooded island to the Tower.

      Upon seeing her injured husband, Mabel Small tried to launch the boat to rescue him as another wave destroyed the boathouse.  Keeper Small was knocked unconscious, awoke in shock, and he somehow managed to swim the Lighthouse and kept the light operating throughout the rest of storm.  Mabel Small was swept away and her body was later found and identified in Fairhaven.  Harold D. King, Commissioner of the Bureau of Lighthouses, later announced Keeper Small’s actions were “one of the most outstanding cases of loyalty and devotion.”

      In 1962, the Lighthouse was decommissioned after a massive hurricane seawall was built to protect New Bedford Harbor.  Palmer’s Island Lighthouse was replaced by New Bedford East Barrier Light (Q R, 48-ft above sea level with a visible range of 5 nautical miles) and New Bedford West Barrier Light (Q G, 48-ft above sea level with a visible range of 8 nautical miles and a Fog Horn, 1-sec Blast every 10-seconds).

      The 3.5-mile long massive stone Hurricane Barrier, completed in 1966, protects the fishing fleet in the inner harbor as well as 1,400 acres of New Bedford waterfront. Two 40.5-ton navigation gates can seal the 150-foot long opening.  Unfortunately, Palmer’s Island and the Lighthouse became more easily accessible to vandals and the Tower was burned by arsonists, gutting the interior woodwork and destroying the lantern room in 1966.

      After years of neglect, vandalism, and several changes of private ownership, Palmer’s Island Lighthouse was renovated and the Lantern Room rebuilt in 1999.  A solar-powered beacon with a 250mm acrylic lens was installed for the relighting ceremony on August 30, 1999 for honoring the city’s past as the whaling capital of the nation.

(2) Restored and Relighted August 30, 1999 -- 150 years after the first lighting!

(3) Directions from Route 3 S, south of Boston, MA:
     After MA-3 S becomes US-1 S, take exit 4 onto MA-24 S toward Brockton (23.9-mi).  Drive to exit 12 onto MA-140 S toward Lakeville/New Bedford (18.2-mi), take exit 2E onto I-195 E toward Cape Cod (1.4-mi), and drive to exit 15 onto MA-18 S toward Downtown.

     MA-18 S becomes the John F. Kennedy Memorial Highway (1.7-mi).  Turn Left onto Cove Street (0.0-mi), Turn Left onto Morton Ct. (0.1-mi), and Turn Right onto Gifford Street.  Drive to the Parking lot at the end of Gifford Street and walk to the Lighthouse at low tide.  The Tower is only open by special arrangement to the public.