Marshall Point Light

Marshall Point Light

Location	Port Clyde, Maine
Coordinates	43°55′2.718″N 69°15′40.568″W
Tower
Constructed	1832
Foundation	Granite blocks
Construction	Granite and brick
Automated	1971
Height	9 m (30 ft)
Shape	Cylindrical
Markings	White with black lantern
Heritage	National Register of Historic Places listed place
Fog signal	1898: Bell 1969: Horn, 1 every 10s
Light
First lit	1858
Focal height	30 feet (9.1 m)
Lens	5th order Fresnel lens (original), 12 inches (300 mm) (current)
Range	13 nautical miles (24 km; 15 mi)
Characteristic	fixed white
Marshall Point Light Station
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. Historic district
Nearest city	Port Clyde, Maine
Area	5 acres (2.0 ha)
Built	1857
Architect	US Army Corps of Engineers
MPS	Light Stations of Maine MPS
NRHP reference No.	87002262[1]
Added to NRHP	March 23, 1988

Marshall Point Light Station is a lighthouse at the entrance of Port Clyde Harbor in Port Clyde, Maine. The light station was established in 1832.^[2][3]

History

Marshall Point Light Station was established in 1832 to assist boats entering and leaving Port Clyde Harbor. Four acres of land previously owned by Samuel Marshall were purchased for $120.^[4] The land was named for an early settler who had a homestead, John Marshall.^[4] The original lighthouse was a 20-foot (6.1 m) tower lit by seven lard oil lamps with 14-inch reflectors.^[2]

The original tower was replaced with the present lighthouse in 1857. The lighthouse is a 31-foot-tall (9.4 m) white brick tower on a granite foundation. The tower was originally lit with a fifth-order Fresnel lens. A raised wooden walkway connects the tower to land.^[2]

In 1895, the original keeper's house was destroyed by lightning. A Colonial Revival style house was built to replace it. An oil house and a bell tower with a 1,000-pound (450 kg) bell were added in 1898. All the following keepers lived in the new house, including Charles Clement who was the keeper from 1874 to 1919.^[4] The bell was replaced with a fog horn in 1969.^[2]

The lighthouse was automated in 1980 and the original Fresnel lens was replaced with a modern 12-inch (300 mm) optic.^[5] The original lens is at the Maine Lighthouse Museum in Rockland. In 1986, the St. George Historical Society restored the keeper's house and established the Marshall Point Lighthouse Museum there, presenting the histories of Marshall Point Light and other nearby lighthouses.^[5] The light station was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.^[1]

The lighthouse appeared in the 1994 film Forrest Gump.^[6]

The light station was transferred to the town of St. George in 1998 under the Maine Lights Program. The fog signal has been dismantled but the bell remains on display.^[2][7]

• 
  Marshall Point Light before 1895 with original keeper's house
• 
  The light and access bridge
• 
  View from the access bridge

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Knox County, Maine
• List of maritime museums in the United States

References

1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
2. "Historic Light Station Information and Photography: Massachusetts". United States Coast Guard Historian's Office. 2009-08-08. Archived from the original on 2017-05-01.
3. Light List, Volume I, Atlantic Coast, St. Croix River, Maine to Shrewsbury River, New Jersey (PDF). Light List. United States Coast Guard. 2009. p. 42.
4. "Marshall Point Lighthouse & Museum". Marshall Point Lighthouse & Museum. Retrieved 2022-02-17.
5. Jones, Ray; Bruce Roberts; Steve Torres (2005). New England Lighthouses: Maine to Long Island Sound. Globe Pequot. p. 42. ISBN 0-7627-3041-2.^{[permanent dead link‍]}
6. Curtis, Wayne; Tom Seymour (2006). Maine: A Guide to Unique Places. Globe Pequot. pp. 97–98. ISBN 0-7627-4053-1. Archived from the original on 2014-10-29. Retrieved 2021-12-12.
7. Twin Lights Publishers; Jean Patey (2004). New England's Lighthouses: A Photographic Portrait. Twin Lights Publishers. p. 8. ISBN 1-885435-50-9.^{[permanent dead link‍]}

External links

• Marshall Point Lighthouse Website Archived 2013-10-29 at the Wayback Machine