Brenton Reef Light

The Brenton Reef Light was a Texas tower lighthouse at the entrance to Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island, United States, south of Beavertail Point. Erected to replace a lightship in 1962, it was decommissioned in 1989 due to its deteriorating condition.

Brenton Reef Light
LocationNarragansett, Rhode Island, U.S.
Coordinates41°25′35″N 71°23′22″W
Year first lit1962
Deactivated1989
Foundationsteel tower
Tower shapesquare platform with tower at one corner
Tower height87 feet (27 m)
Original lensCrouse Hinds DCE-36 airways beacon
Range22 nautical miles; 40 kilometres (25 mi)
Characteristicwhite, two flashes every 10 seconds

History
Brenton Reef Light Vessel, circa 1889

This offshore station was marked by a succession of lightships beginning in 1853, with new vessels being assigned to the station in 1856, 1897, and 1935. In the early 1960s the United States Coast Guard initiated a program to replace these lightships with large steel towers, commonly known as Texas towers. Brenton Reef was selected for such replacement, but a somewhat smaller facility was constructed instead. This light was originally a manned station, with living quarters and galley, as well as engine room to supply power to the light and living quarters. It was connected to the Beavertail Light by submarine cables and maintained by Coast Guardsmen out of the Newport, Rhode Island station, and was converted to fully automatic operation during its active lifetime. At its activation in 1962, it became the second such light tower on the east coast.

These towers deteriorated relatively quickly, and in 1983 the Coast Guard first suggested decommissioning it. It was retained, however, due to the proximity of the America's Cup races. In 1989 the Coast Guard announced that the light was to be removed, and in 1992 it was dismantled. The following year the pieces were sunk off Long Island as part of an artificial reef. A lighted buoy replaced the tower at a position somewhat further south, where it remains at present.

Keepers[1]

Lightship LV-14 (1853–1856)
Keeper Years
David C. Champlin 1853
John Heath 1853–1854
Edward E. Taylor 1854
Samuel Dunn 1854
Josiah K. Pitman 1854–1861

Lightship LV-11 (1856–1897)
Keeper Years
Josiah K. Pitman 1854–1861
Joseph Sherman 1861–1865
George Bardick 1865
Charles D. Marsh 1865–1866
George Williams 1866–1868
Clarke Bardick 1868–1871
Charles D. Marsh 1871–1886
David H. Caulkins 1886–1888
Edward Fogarty 1888–1898

Lightship LV-39 (1897–1935)
Keeper Years
Edward Fogarty 1888–1898
Charles A. Hawkins 1898–1917
Karl M. Larsen 1917–1919
Fred J. Worth 1919
Martin Berg 1919–1922
Harold White 1922–1923
Theodor Anderson 1923–1927
Charles Steijen 1927
Theodor Anderson 1927
John B. Kelly 1927
Frederic Sundloff 1927–1929
August E. Gustafson 1929-?
Unknown 1929–1939

Lightship LV-102/WAL 525 (1945–1962)
Keeper Years
Unknown 1929–1939
Norman Gray, Master 1939–?
Unknown 1959–1961 William Dougue
Edward Godlewski 1961–1963

Lighthouse (1962–1989)
Keeper Years
Edward Godlewski 1961–1963
Unknown 1963–1989

References
  1. "Brenton Reef Lightship Keepers". rhodeislandlighthousehistory.info. Retrieved 2015-08-29.
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