Musselbed Shoal Lighthouse

New England Lighthouse Wallpaper Guide to

Musselbed Shoal Light Station

First Lit: Aug 1, 1873; Rebuilt: 1879; Deactivated: August 1938
at Position: N 41° 38.2', W 71° 15.6'
Channel leading from Narragansett Bay to Mount Hope Bay
Offshore from Portsmouth, Rhode Island

Public Access:

Characteristic:

Original optic:

Day-mark:

Tower Height:

Fog signal:

First Keeper:

Current Use:

None (3)

F R [Fixed Red]

Sixth-order 270 deg Fresnel lens (2); Present optic: none (3)

White Wood Hexagonal Tower with Black Lantern

? feet; Height of focal plane: 35 feet; Range: 7.5 miles

none; 1873 - Bell, sounding every 20 seconds

Dennis Shea, Aug 5, 1873

Demolished in 1939 (3)

Notes:
(1) The Lighthouse was built to mark the dangerous Musselbed Shoals in the channel from Narragansett Bay to Mount Hope Bay.

      In 1873, a hexagonal tower attached to the Keeper’s house was built exhibiting a fixed red light illuminated by Sixth-order Fresnel lens 35 feet above sea level to further aid ships navigating the narrow Strait between Narragansett Bay and Mount Hope Bay.

      The Lighthouse was plagued by ice and a ice floe during the winter of 1875 moved the Light Station four feet. In 1879, a small one-room house with a Light on its gable and a Fog Bell on the roof was built to replace the ice damaged Lighthouse. Two years later, a new granite pier was constructed.

      In 1920, ice destroyed blocks of the foundation and a inspector recommended a new Light station to replace the “mere shanty.” A new Lighthouse and four-room dwelling was built that sustained leaks until 1938 when the ceiling caved in.

      The damaged Lighthouse was decommissioned in August 1938 and the Great Hurricane of September 21, 1938 further destroyed the structure. The remaining building was demolished and replaced by a steel skeleton Light tower in 1939.

(2) 1907 Optic: Sixth-order Fresnel lens
     1939 Optic: Fourth-order Fresnel lens

(3) Replaced by a Skeleton Tower:

Musselbed Shoals Light 6A:
Aid No. 18150/J0572 at Position: N 41° 38.2', W 71° 15.6' Nautical Chart

Characteristic:

Day-mark:

Tower Height:

Current Use:

Fl R 6s [Flashing Red every 6 seconds]

TR on Skeleton Tower on Granite base

?; Height of focal plane: 26 feet; Range: 6 nautical miles

Active aid to navigation, U.S. Coast Guard

And Musselbed Shoals Directional Light:
Aid No. 18160 at Position: N 41° 38.2', W 71° 15.6'

Characteristic:

Range:

Current Use:

F W (R&G Sectors)
[Fixed White with Red & Green Sectors)]

Wht- 6 n mi; Red- 7 n mi; Grn- 7 nautical miles

Active aid to navigation, U.S. Coast Guard

Although the modern Light may be viewed from the Prudence Island Ferry, Inc., it is not considered to be a scenic Lighthouse location.