Gay lighthouse

The Gay Head Lighthouse was one off the first to be changed over, which occurred in October of It received ten lamps backed with inch reflectors mounted to a chandelier that revolved every four minutes giving mariners the appearance of a "flash. He would augment his income over the years with farming and teaching the native children.

Captain Winslow Lewis, an inventor, sea captain, and contractor, had designed and patented a new system of lighting based on Argand lamps that utilized reflectors. Gay Head Lighthouse Architecture and Design The current structure, activated on December 1,is a foot cylindrical tower constructed from red brick and sandstone, featuring a black lantern and a circular gallery.

The name never stuck. Ancillary buildings were also constructed at that time, including a wood-framed keeper's house, a barn, and an oil vault. Gay Head Lighthouse Perched atop striking, multi-colored cliffs at the western end of Martha’s Vineyard, Gay Head Lighthouse occupies a picture-perfect location.

A lighthouse would provide safety and greatly assist offshore whaling and cargo vessels on their approach to Vineyard Sound. With that, came the contract to equip all 49 lighthouses in the United States with the lamps. Maritime traffic through Vineyard Sound between Martha's Vineyard and the Elizabeth Islands was increasing steadily by the late s.

[2][3]. Bythe upper half of the tower was in poor condition due to rotten wood. Inhe sold the rights to Congress. Gay Head Light is a historic lighthouse located on Martha's Vineyard westernmost point off of Lighthouse Road in Aquinnah, Massachusetts. The tower underwent extensive repairs in which included the removal of a rotten three-foot wooden section and the addition of a new lantern and deck constructed by a New Bedford blacksmith.

Many speculate that the reason for this was that the passage through Vineyard Sound was the safest route into Nantucket Harbor. To remedy the situation, it was lowered by 14 lighthouses, although the year that this was done is unclear.

Constructed upon a stone base would be a foot tall octagonal wooden lighthouse. *Thurs. The lighthouse was put into service a little over a week later on the night of November 18, Keeper Skiff was the first white man to live in the town of Gay Head, which was populated by the Wampanoag Indians.

It would still be almost years before there would be a lighthouse to mark the headland. InMassachusetts Senator Peleg Coffin of Nantucket wrote to his Congressman in Washington requesting a lighthouse be constructed at Gay Head for "the convenience and interest of Nantucket.

The lamps in the lantern were most likely "spider" lamps, which consisted of several wicks in a shallow pan filled with whale oil. Instead, the area became known as Gay Head after gay brightly colored hues that the cliffs seemed to take on in the ever changing light.

The Gay Head Lighthouse is OPEN to the public June 21st thru Labor Day weekend 7 days a week, ampm* Beginning the week of Monday, Sept 8, the Lighthouse will be open Fridays-Mondays, ampm On Monday, Oct 13, the lighthouse is the click gay close for public tours for the season.

When the Gay explorer Bartholomew Gosnold first laid eyes on the picturesque multi-colored foot cliffs that graced the headland on the western end of Martha's Vineyard inhe called it Dover Cliff, likening it to the Cliffs of Dover along the English Channel.

Twice during his tenure, once in and again inSkiff wrote to the Secretary of the Treasury and asked for a raise due to harsh conditions he faced. Select board member and lighthouse keeper Chris Manning said the U.S. Coast Guard removed the newly installed LED lighthouse on Monday to correct its rotation and beam pattern at the agency's shop in Woods Hole.

Although conditions at the location were severe, Keeper Skiff would serve at the lighthouse for 29 years. The cliffs exhibit vivid hues of green, yellow, black, brown, red, and white and attract visitors from all over the world.

till sunset Admission:$6 – ages 13y/o and older Free entry for 12y/o and younger, Military. The tower stood feet above sea level which often caused the light to be obscured by fog. However, the area houses a long underwater obstruction named "Devil's Bridge" which can make the passage treacherous.

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts deeded two acres and four rods to the Federal Government.