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Discovering Maine’s Lighthouses and Harbors
Summer 2012
Directions: From Route 1, turn south onto Route 186 at West Gouldsboro, toward Schoodic Point. Turn off Route 186 at the marked road leading to Acadia National Park, Schoodic Peninsula (between Birch Harbor and Winter Harbor). The park’s perimeter road is a one-way loop and the lighthouse/ island can be seen from that road. Excursion and tour boats from Bar Harbor offer closer views for better photography.
Egg Rock Light Built on a rocky ledge in 1875, this light was intended to mark the entrance to Frenchman Bay. Egg Rock Light consists of a brick tower in the center of a one-and-a-halfstory wood keeper’s house; the design was intended to conserve space. The lighthouse originally held a fifth-order Fresnel lens. In 1876 the building was damaged by a March gale which moved the bell tower 30 feet. Following similar damage in an 1887 blizzard, a new skeletal bell tower was constructed and later replaced by a steamdriven fog horn. In 1902, Egg Rock Light was upgraded with installation of a new fourth-order lens; the characteristic was changed from fixed red to flashing white. The grounding of the battleship Massachusetts in 1903 prompted addition of a new fog horn to the station in 1904. However, Joseph Pulitzer, who owned a nearby estate, protested that noise from the new horn disturbed his quietude; the signal then was turned to face away from his property and remains so directed. The light was automated and Coast Guard keepers removed in 1976. Rotating aerobeacons were installed following removal of the lighthouse lantern. This change gave Egg Rock Light a decidedly homely appearance; it was labeled by many as the least attractive lighthouse in Maine. In 1986, responding to complaints, the Coast Guard installed a new aluminum lantern, 190mm optic and railing around the lantern deck perimeter to improve the appearance of the lighthouse. A boathouse, oil house and generator house still remain on the property. Egg Rock Light Station, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, consists
Egg Rock Light
BOB TRAPANI JR. PHOTO
of a frame dwelling with a lantern on its roof, built in 1875, and a brick fog signal building, built in 1904. The dwelling has received significant repairs in recent years including a new roof and windows, along with new storm shutters. Almost all excursion boats from Bar Harbor pass this lighthouse each day as do whale watches leaving the harbor. The light also may be seen from the Loop Road in Acadia National Park, the Shore Path in Bar Harbor and from other high viewpoints on Mt. Desert. The lighthouse is now maintained by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. The Loop Road in Acadia National park offers distant views of this light from several scenic overlooks on the eastern side of the park.
wood-framed lighthouse and new one-and-ahalf-story dwelling. The lantern held a fifthorder Fresnel lens; a stone oil house was added in 1905. In 1934 the keeper was removed from Prospect Harbor light and the Fresnel lens removed in 1951, replaced by an automatic modern optic. The lighthouse is now on the grounds of a Navy Special Operations Command installation which is off limits to the public. The tower is licensed to the American Lighthouse Foundation. The light may be easily seen from across the harbor and may also be photographed from just outside the base entrance. Walking along the rocks at the water’s edge affords excellent views; there is a scheduled open house each spring.
Prospect Harbor Point Light
Directions: From Route 1, take either Route 186 or 195 to Prospect Harbor. Turn at the sign to Corea at the intersection of these two routes. FR 605 (Lighthouse Point Road) is about 0.2 mile — Route 195 bears left to Corea, but continue straight on FR 605 to the restricted U.S. Navy communications station. The light is easily photographed from the shoreline. Alternatively, across the harbor the light can be seen and photographed from a turnout on the shoulder of Route 186. •
The small town of Prospect Harbor boasted a large fishing fleet in the 19th century, prompting construction of a lighthouse in 1850 to mark the east side of the inner harbor entrance. Deactivated in 1859, the light was reactivated by the Lighthouse Board in 1870. The initial granite lighthouse attached to a keeper’s house was replaced in 1891 with the present 38-foot