List of lighthouses in Maine

This is a list of all lighthouses in the U.S. state of Maine as identified by the United States Coast Guard.^[1] There are fifty-seven active lights in the state, two of which are maintained as private aids; nine are standing but inactive, and three have been destroyed, one of which has been replaced by a skeleton tower. This includes two stations which originally featured twin towers; in both cases both towers survive but only one of each pair is active.

The Portland Head Light, first lit in 1791, is the oldest light in the state and was the first US lighthouse completed after independence from Britain.^[2][3] The last lighthouse in the state, the second Whitlocks Mill Light, was first lit in 1910; it is also the most northerly light in the state and therefore on the US Atlantic Coast.^[4] The West Quoddy Head Light sits on the easternmost point of the continental United States.^[5] The tallest tower is that of Boon Island Light at 137 ft (42 m),^[6] though the Seguin Light focal plane, at 180 ft (55 m), is the highest in the state.^[2]

Lighthouse preservation in Maine has been facilitated by the Maine Lights Program, which arose in the aftermath of the Rockland-based Island Institute's successful but protracted negotiations to acquire the keeper's house of the Heron Neck Light Station.^[7] A program for facilitating transfers was proposed by Peter Ralston of the institute,^[8] and legislation was first introduced by George J. Mitchell; a subsequent bill submitted by Olympia Snowe in 1995 met with greater success and was signed into law late in 1996 as part of the coast guard authorization act.^[7] Under the program, thirty-six light stations were offered to qualified preservation and historical groups and local governments; applications for transfer were reviewed by a board set up at the state level, headed by Richard I. Rybacki, a retired USCG rear admiral.^[7] Four lights were to be transferred to the US Fish and Wildlife; twenty-eight other lights were transferred in the summer of 1998.^[7] Prior to this program, some lights in the state had already been sold to individuals following deactivation in the 1930s. The most notable of these is the Tenants Harbor Light, which was purchased by Andrew Wyeth in 1978.^[9]

If not otherwise noted, focal height and coordinates are taken from the United States Coast Guard Light List,^[10] while location and dates of activation, automation, and deactivation are taken from the United States Coast Guard Historical information site for lighthouses.^[1]

Lighthouses

Name	Location	Coordinates	Image	Focal Height	Year built[note 1]	Year automated	Year deactivated	Status
Avery Rock Light	Machias Bay, Machias	44°39′14″N 67°20′38″W / 44.654°N 67.344°W[11]		56 ft (17 m)[11]	1875	1926	1946	demolished in storm
Baker Island Light	Mt. Desert Island	44°14′17″N 68°11′56″W / 44.2381°N 68.1990°W		105 ft (32 m)	1828/1855	1966		active
Bass Harbor Head Light	Mount Desert Island	44°13′18″N 68°20′14″W / 44.2218°N 68.3373°W		56 ft (17 m)	1858	1974		active
Bear Island Light	Bear Island	44°17′02″N 68°16′12″W / 44.2838°N 68.270°W		33 ft (10 m)	1839/1889	1989[note 2]		active; private aid[note 2]
Blue Hill Bay Light	Green Island in Blue Hill Bay	44°14′56″N 68°29′52″W / 44.2489°N 68.4977°W[12]			1857		1935	inactive; light moved to adjacent skeleton tower
Boon Island Light	York	43°07′17″N 70°28′35″W / 43.1214°N 70.4764°W		137 ft (42 m)	1811/1855	1980		active
Browns Head Light	NW end of Vinalhaven Island	44°06′42″N 68°54′34″W / 44.1118°N 68.9095°W		39 ft (12 m)	1832/1857	1987		active
Burnt Coat Harbor Light	Hockamock Head on Swan's Island	44°08′03″N 68°26′50″W / 44.1341°N 68.4472°W		75 ft (23 m)	1872	1975		active
Burnt Island Light	Boothbay	43°49′31″N 69°38′25″W / 43.8252°N 69.6402°W		61 ft (19 m)	1821	1981		active
Cape Elizabeth Lights	Cape Elizabeth at Casco Bay entrance	43°33′58″N 70°12′00″W / 43.5661°N 70.2001°W (east tower) 43°33′51″N 70°12′09″W / 43.5642°N 70.2025°W (west tower)[note 3]		129 ft (39 m)	1828/1874	1963	1924 (west tower)	East tower active; west tower inactive
Cape Neddick Light	Cape Neddick, York	43°09′55″N 70°36′28″W / 43.1652°N 70.6078°W		88 ft (27 m)	1879	1987		active
Crabtree Ledge Light	Crabtree Neck in Frenchman Bay	44°28′12″N 68°12′11″W / 44.470°N 68.203°W[13]		37 ft (11 m)[14]	1890		1933	destroyed by storm in 1950[14]
The Cuckolds Light	Boothbay approach	43°46′46″N 69°39′00″W / 43.7795°N 69.6500°W		59 ft (18 m)	1907	1975		active
Curtis Island Light	Camden	44°12′05″N 69°02′56″W / 44.2014°N 69.0489°W		52 ft (16 m)	1835/1896	1972		active
Deer Island Thorofare Light	Mark Island SSW of Stonington	44°08′04″N 68°42′12″W / 44.1344°N 68.7033°W		52 ft (16 m)	1857	1958		active
Dice Head Light	Castine	44°22′58″N 68°49′07″W / 44.3827°N 68.8186°W		134 ft (41 m)	1829	1937[note 4][15]		active
Doubling Point Range Front Light	Arrowsic Island in the Kennebec River	43°52′58″N 69°47′45″W / 43.8828°N 69.7957°W		18 ft (5.5 m)	1898	1980		active
Doubling Point Range Rear Light	Arrowsic Island in the Kennebec River	43°53′05″N 69°47′45″W / 43.8848°N 69.7957°W		33 ft (10 m)	1898	1980		active
Doubling Point Light	Kennebec River SW of Bath	43°52′57″N 69°48′24″W / 43.8825°N 69.8068°W		23 ft (7.0 m)	1899	1988		active
Eagle Island Light	Penobscot Bay	44°13′03″N 68°46′04″W / 44.2176°N 68.7678°W		23 ft (7.0 m)	1838/1858	1963		active
Egg Rock Light	entrance to Frenchman Bay near Winter Harbor	44°21′14″N 68°08′18″W / 44.3539°N 68.1383°W		64 ft (20 m)	1875	1976		active
Fort Point Light	entrance to Penobscot River	44°28′02″N 68°48′42″W / 44.4671°N 68.8117°W		88 ft (27 m)	1837/1857	1988		active
Franklin Island Light	Muscongus Bay	43°53′32″N 69°22′29″W / 43.8921°N 69.3746°W		57 ft (17 m)	1805/1855	1967		active
Goat Island Light	Cape Porpoise	43°21′28″N 70°25′30″W / 43.3579°N 70.4251°W		38 ft (12 m)	1835/1859	1990		active
Goose Rocks Light	North Haven	44°08′07″N 68°49′51″W / 44.1354°N 68.8307°W		51 ft (16 m)	1890	1963		active
Great Duck Island Light	Blue Hill Bay approaches	44°08′31″N 68°14′45″W / 44.1420°N 68.2458°W		67 ft (20 m)	1890	1986		active
Grindel Point Light	Islesboro	44°16′53″N 68°56′35″W / 44.2814°N 68.9431°W		67 ft (20 m)	1850/1874	1934[note 5][16]		active
Halfway Rock Light	Casco Bay	43°39′21″N 70°02′12″W / 43.6558°N 70.0368°W		76 ft (23 m)	1871	1975		active
Hendricks Head Light	Sheepscot River entrance	43°49′21″N 69°41′23″W / 43.8226°N 69.6897°W		43 ft (13 m)	1829/1875	1951[note 6][17]		active
Heron Neck Light	Green's Island SW of Vinalhaven	44°01′30″N 68°51′44″W / 44.0251°N 68.8622°W		92 ft (28 m)	1854	1982		active
Indian Island Light	Entrance to Rockport harbor	44°09′56″N 69°03′40″W / 44.1655°N 69.0610°W[18]			1850/1875		1934	inactive
Isle Au Haut Light	Robinson Point on Isle au Haut	44°03′53″N 68°39′05″W / 44.0647°N 68.6514°W		48 ft (15 m)	1907	1934		active
Kennebunk Pier Light	Kennebunkport north pier			11 ft (3.4 m)	<1857		>1857	inactive
Libby Island Light	Machias Bay entrance	44°34′06″N 67°22′03″W / 44.5683°N 67.3674°W		91 ft (28 m)	1822/1848	1974		active
Little River Light	mouth of Little River SE of Cutler	44°39′03″N 67°11′32″W / 44.6509°N 67.1921°W		56 ft (17 m)	1846/1876	1974[note 7][1]		active
Lubec Channel Light	Lubec Channel S of Lubec	44°50′32″N 66°58′36″W / 44.8421°N 66.9766°W		53 ft (16 m)	1890	1968		active
Marshall Point Light	Port Clyde harbor entrance	43°55′03″N 69°15′41″W / 43.9174°N 69.2613°W		30 ft (9.1 m)	1832/1857	1980		active
Matinicus Rock Light	Matinicus Rock S of Matinicus Island	43°47′01″N 68°51′18″W / 43.7835°N 68.8550°W		90 ft (27 m)	1827/1857	1983		active; reduced from two towers to one in 1924[1]
Monhegan Island Light	Monhegan Island	43°45′53″N 69°18′57″W / 43.7648°N 69.3158°W		178 ft (54 m)	1824/1850	1959		active
Moose Peak Light	Mistake Island E of Great Wass Island	44°28′29″N 67°31′55″W / 44.4746°N 67.5320°W		72 ft (22 m)	1827/1851	1972		active
Mount Desert Light	south of Mount Desert Island	43°58′07″N 68°07′42″W / 43.9686°N 68.1283°W		75 ft (23 m)	1830/1847	1977		active
Narraguagus Light	Pond Island in Narraguagus Bay	44°27′22″N 67°49′52″W / 44.456°N 67.8312°W[19]		54 ft (16 m)[20]	1853		1934	inactive
Nash Island Light	southeast mouth of Pleasant Bay	44°27′51″N 67°44′50″W / 44.4643°N 67.7473°W[21]		51 ft (16 m)[22]	1838/1874	1958	1982	inactive
Owls Head Light	Owls Head in Penobscot Bay	44°05′32″N 69°02′38″W / 44.0922°N 69.0440°W		100 ft (30 m)	1826	1989		active
Pemaquid Point Light	Bristol	43°50′12″N 69°30′21″W / 43.8368°N 69.5058°W		79 ft (24 m)	1827/1835	1934		active
Perkins Island Light	Perkins Island in the Kennebec River	43°47′12″N 69°47′07″W / 43.7868°N 69.7852°W		41 ft (12 m)	1898	1959		active
Petit Manan Light	off Petit Manan Point S of Milbridge	44°22′03″N 67°51′52″W / 44.3676°N 67.8644°W		123 ft (37 m)	1817/1855	1972		active
Pond Island Light	Pond Island at entrance to the Kennebec River	43°44′24″N 69°46′13″W / 43.7400°N 69.7703°W		52 ft (16 m)	1821/1855	1963		active
Portland Breakwater Light	South Portland	43°39′20″N 70°14′06″W / 43.6555°N 70.2349°W		30 ft (9.1 m)	1855/1875	1934[note 8]		active; private aid[note 8]
Portland Head Light	Cape Elizabeth	43°37′23″N 70°12′28″W / 43.6231°N 70.2079°W		101 ft (31 m)	1791	1989		active
Prospect Harbor Point Light	Prospect Harbor	44°24′12″N 68°00′47″W / 44.4034°N 68.0130°W		42 ft (13 m)	1850/1891	1951		active
Pumpkin Island Light	N entrance to Eggemoggin Reach in Penobscot Bay	44°18′33″N 68°44′34″W / 44.3092°N 68.7428°W[23]			1854		1933	inactive
Ram Island Ledge Light	Casco Bay	43°37′53″N 70°11′15″W / 43.6315°N 70.1874°W		77 ft (23 m)	1905	1959		active
Ram Island Light	Ram Island S of Boothbay Harbor	43°48′14″N 69°35′57″W / 43.8038°N 69.5992°W		36 ft (11 m)	1883	1965		active
Rockland Harbor Breakwater Light	Rockland	44°06′14″N 69°04′39″W / 44.1040°N 69.0775°W		39 ft (12 m)	1827/1902	1964		active
Saddleback Ledge Light	Isle au Haut Bay, 3 miles west of Isle au Haut	44°00′52″N 68°43′35″W / 44.0144°N 68.7264°W		54 ft (16 m)	1839	1954		active
Saint Croix River Light	St. Croix River SE of Calais	45°07′42″N 67°08′02″W / 45.1282°N 67.1338°W		77 ft (23 m)[24]	1857/1901		1957	supplanted by skeleton tower; burned down in 1976
Seguin Light	Georgetown	43°42′27″N 69°45′29″W / 43.7075°N 69.7580°W		180 ft (55 m)	1795/1857	1985		active
Spring Point Ledge Light	South Portland	43°39′08″N 70°13′26″W / 43.6521°N 70.2239°W		54 ft (16 m)	1897	1934		active
Squirrel Point Light	Arrowsic Island on the Kennebec River	43°48′59″N 69°48′09″W / 43.8165°N 69.8024°W		25 ft (7.6 m)	1898	1979		active
Tenants Harbor Light	Southern Island	43°57′40″N 69°11′05″W / 43.9611°N 69.1848°W[25]		27 ft (8.2 m)[26]	1857		1933	inactive
Two Bush Island Light	W of Penobscot Bay entrance	43°57′51″N 69°04′26″W / 43.9642°N 69.0739°W		65 ft (20 m)	1897	1964		active
West Quoddy Head Light	Lubec	44°48′54″N 66°57′03″W / 44.8151°N 66.9507°W		83 ft (25 m)	1808/1858	1988		active
Whaleback Light	Portsmouth Harbor	43°03′32″N 70°41′47″W / 43.0588°N 70.6963°W		59 ft (18 m)	1820/1872	1963		active
Whitehead Light	Whitehead Island at Penobscot Bay entrance	43°58′43″N 69°07′27″W / 43.9787°N 69.1243°W		75 ft (23 m)	1807/1852	1982		active
Whitlocks Mill Light	south bank St. Croix River E of Calais	45°09′45″N 67°13′39″W / 45.1626°N 67.2274°W		32 ft (9.8 m)	1892/1910	1969		active
Winter Harbor Light	Mark Island in Winter Harbor	44°21′41″N 68°05′15″W / 44.3614°N 68.0876°W[27]		37 ft (11 m)[27]	1856		1933	inactive
Wood Island Light	Biddeford Pool	43°27′25″N 70°19′45″W / 43.4569°N 70.3291°W		71 ft (22 m)	1808/1858	1986		active

Notes

1. If there is a second date, it represents the date the most recent tower was lit.
2. Inactive 1981-1989.
3. estimated from Google Maps
4. Inactive 1937-2007; during this period the light was displayed on a skeleton tower.
5. Inactive 1934-1987; during this period the light was displayed on a skeleton tower.
6. Inactive 1934-1951.
7. Inactive 1975-2001; during this period the light was displayed on a skeleton tower.
8. Inactive 1942-2002.

References

1. "Historic Light Station Information and Photography: Maine". United States Coast Guard Historian's Office.
2. "Lighthouses of the United States: Southern Maine". Russ Rowlett.
3. "Portland Head Light". Lighthouse Friends.
4. "Whitlocks Mill Light". LighthouseFriends.
5. "West Quoddy Head Light: History". Jeremy D'Entremont.
6. "Boon Island Light: History". Jeremy D'Entremont.
7. "Maine Lights Program: Overview and Conclusions" (PDF). Island Institute. January 2000.
8. "Legendary Lighthouses: Maine Lights Program". PBS. Retrieved 27 August 2012.
9. "Tenants Harbor Light: History". Jeremy D'Entremont.
10. Light List, Volume I, Atlantic Coast, St. Croix River, Maine to Shrewsbury River, New Jersey (PDF). Light List. United States Coast Guard. 2012.
11. "Avery Rock Light". Jeremy D'Entremont.
12. Taken from NOAA chart 13316
13. "Crabtree Ledge Light". Jeremy D'Entremont.
14. "Crabtree Ledge Light: History". Jeremy D'Entremont.
15. "Dice Head Light: History". Jeremy D'Entremont.
16. "Grindel Point Light". LighthouseFriends.
17. "Hendricks Head Light". LighthouseFriends.
18. "Indian Island Light". LighthouseFriends.
19. "Narraguagus (Pond Island) Light". Lighthouse Friends.
20. "Narraguagus (Pond Island) Light: History". Jeremy D'Entremont.
21. "Nash Island Light". Lighthouse Friends.
22. "Nash Island Light". Jeremy D'Entremont.
23. "Pumpkin Island Light". Lighthouse Friends.
24. "St. Croix River Light". Jeremy D'Entremont.
25. "Tenants Harbor, ME". LighthouseFriends.
26. "Tenants Harbor Light". Jeremy D'Entremont.
27. "Winter Harbor, ME". Lighthouse Friends.