Screwpiles: The Forgotten Lighthouses

The Title for Our Book Could Have Been I Didn’t Know That!

Sharing an Appreciation for Nineteenth-Century Science . . .

While doing our research, we were struck again and again by the advanced science that went into building lighthouses. From the 1850s to the 1930s, technology advanced rapidly, resulting in a steady improvement in navigational aids. Maps and charts were increasingly accurate and readily available. Plans developed by lighthouse engineers were highly detailed, requiring exacting specifications. There was a steady development of new lamps that yielded much brighter, more reliable lights while reducing the consumption of expensive fuel oil. The adoption of Fresnel lens technology—starting with the reorganization of the Lighthouse Establishment in 1851—resulted in more effective, more reliable lighthouses, ranging from the first-order coastal lights to the sixth-order river and harbor lights.

Jordan’s Point beacon fog bell tower, 1883 National Archives RG 26

Tybee Island Lighthouse first-order Fresnel lens, Henry-Lepaute, 1886 Photograph by Larry Saint

Deep Water Shoals window and door cornice details, 1867 National Archives RG 26

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