Hooper Island Light

The Hooper Island Light is a lighthouse in the Chesapeake Bay, west of Middle Hooper Island in Maryland.[2][3][4]

Hooper Island Light
Location4 mi west of Middle Hooper Island in the Chesapeake Bay
Coordinates38°15′22.5″N 76°14′59.3″W
Tower
Constructed1902
FoundationPneumatic caisson
Constructioniron
Automated1961
Height10.5 m (34 ft) Edit this on Wikidata
Shaperound "sparkplug" tower
MarkingsWhite on brown base
HeritageNational Register of Historic Places listed place Edit this on Wikidata
Fog signalHorn, 1 every 30 seconds Operated continuously from Sept. 15 to June 1
Light
First lit1902
Focal height63 feet (19 m)
Lensfourth-order Fresnel lens (original), solar-powered (current)
Range9 nautical miles (17 km; 10 mi)
CharacteristicFlashing White, 6 seconds
Hooper Island Light Station
Nearest cityHooperville, Maryland
Arealess than one acre
MPSLight Stations of the United States MPS
NRHP reference No.02001426[1]
Added to NRHPDecember 2, 2002

History

The initial request of a light at this site was made in 1897, but construction was delayed until 1901 after the Variety Iron Works Company failed to deliver materials in time. Unlike earlier caisson lights in the bay, the foundation was placed using the pneumatic process, in which the caisson is kept under pressure to expel water, and the interior is excavated to bring the cylinder down to the desired depth.[3]

The tower is taller than other Maryland sparkplug lights because of the provision for a watch room as well as a lantern atop the tower, the only example in the state. A fog bell was originally housed on the lower gallery but was later moved to the watch room level, a backup to the fog horn added in the 1930s. The characteristic was changed several times through the years, with different patterns of flashes and eclipses.[5]

Along with many other Chesapeake Bay lights, automation came in the early 1960s. In 1976 the original fourth-order Fresnel lens was stolen, and it was replaced with a solar-power lamp.[3]

The lighthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 2, 2002, as Hooper Island Light Station. The structure was officially turned over to the U.S. Lighthouse Society in June 2009, but the light remains active.

Located in the northeast corner of a U.S. Navy "danger zone", overnight occupation of the lighthouse is prohibited, per agreement between the GSA and the U.S. Navy's Naval Air Systems Command.[6]

Auction

In 2022, the General Services Administration announced that the lighthouse was put up for auction with a minimum bidding price of $15,000.[2][6] Will Powell a GSA spokesman, explained the difficulties of auctioning off the property to include no docking facility for boats, as well as no water, sewage, electricity or gas.[6] According to Powell, an additional challenge to a prospective bidder is the requirement to maintain the lighthouse in accordance with specific rules governing structures on the National Register of Historic Places.[6]

The lighthouse sold for $192,000 on September 22, 2022.

Notes
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. Light List, Volume II, Atlantic Coast, Shrewsbury River, New Jersey to Little River, South Carolina (PDF). Light List. United States Coast Guard. 2012. p. 72.
  3. "Historic Light Station Information and Photography: Maryland" (PDF). United States Coast Guard Historian's Office.
  4. Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of the United States: Maryland". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
  5. Ralph E. Eshelman (August 2002). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Hooper Island Light Station" (PDF). Maryland Historical Trust. Retrieved 2016-03-01.
  6. Silverman, Ellie. "A Chesapeake Bay lighthouse is up for auction. So far, no one has bid on it". The Washington Post. Retrieved 4 September 2022.

References
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