LIGHTHOUSES
ONE ISLAND, FIVE LIGHTHOUSES. They’ve guided mariners since the age of sail, through the whaling era and in times of war and peace. The five lighthouses of Martha’s Vineyard have been rebuilt, moved, manned, unmanned, oil-lit and automated. It hasn’t been an easy couple of centuries. And yet they still shine. Tours are available at some locations. GAY HEAD LIGHT President John Adams commissioned the first lighthouse at this location in 1799. Built in 1856, today’s red brick lighthouse is located on the Gay Head Cliffs in Aquinnah off Lighthouse Road. After a fundraising effort in 2015, the lighthouse was moved back 129 feet to a safer location away from the eroding cliffs. If you walk the grounds, you can see a stone circle marking the former location of the lighthouse. While the lighthouse is now closed for the season for tours, a visit to the grounds and to take in the view is well worth the drive. The one-way trip takes approximately an hour by bus or 1/2 hour by car from down-Island towns, so allow at least 3 hours to go out, experience the cliffs and return. Back down-Island, you can view the original 1854 Fresnel lens, designed in France and used in the lighthouse for almost 100 years, prominently displayed at the Martha's Vineyard Museum's Vineyard Haven campus.
PETER SIMON
GAY HEAD CLIFFS, AQUINNAH, OFF LIGHTHOUSE ROAD
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Welcome To Martha's Vineyard
