Long Point Lighthouse

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About The Site

Long Point sketch

Long Point Light is situated at the very tip of Cape Cod. By 1818, a settlement began to develop at Long Point, based upon fishing and salt manufacture. As the importance of Provincetown grew, it was decided that a lighthouse was needed to mark the entrance to the harbor.

The original structure was constructed in 1826, and lamp first lit in 1827. The site consisted of a keeper's house with a lantern room on the roof. The original oil lamp was upgraded in 1856 to a sixth-order Fresnel lens.

The settlement at Long Point consisted of over two hundred people at its height. The settlement was centered around the lighthouse, and also consisted of a school and windmills for pumping seawater in salt production. The settlement largely disappeared during the 1850's, primarily due to the discovery of salt deposits near Syracuse, NY.

During the Civil War, a pair of forts were built at Long Point. Dubbed "Fort Useless" and "Fort Harmless" (or "Fort Ridiculous", depending on the source) by the locals, the forts never fired a shot in anger.

The original station was increasingly threatened by erosion - pilings which supported the structure and protected it were decaying. In 1875, the original structure was replaced with a new keeper's house and 38-foot brick tower (originally painted brown - it has since been repainted white) with a fifth-order Fresnel lens.

In 1952, the site was automated. In 1982, the site received a 300 mm optic and solar panels to power the station. The keeper's house and fog building were razed. Only the tower and oil house remain. The light remains an active aid to navigation. The Cape Cod Chapter of the American Lighthouse Foundation (ALF) is licensed by the Coast Guard to perform maintenance. In 2006, the light received a fresh coat of paint from volunteers of the ALF.

References (see links)

Lighthouses of Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket - Their History and Lore, Clark pp. 66-70
The Lighthouses of New England, Snow pp. 246-248, 253
Massachusetts Lighthouses - A Pictorial Guide, Thompson p. 77
Lighthouses and Life Saving Stations Along the Massachusetts Coast, Claflin pp. 51-52
New England Lighthouses, Roberts and Jones pp. 69
Lighthouse Digest December 2006

Select an image to enlarge

From the Tip of Cape Cod

An old wreck near Long Point. Pilgrim's Monument is off to the right.

Directions: The lighthouse is not open to the public, but the surrounding grounds are open. Follow State Route 6 to Provincetown. The light can be seen from a distance from the Pilgrim's Monument or Macmillan's Wharf.

Flyers in Provincetown offers a boat shuttle to Provincetown. For more information, visit their website (see links).

For more information on the American Lighthouse Foundation, visit their website (see links).

To walk to the light - either go into Provincetown and drive to the end of Commercial Street, or drive to the end of 6 and backtrack briefly on Route 6A. Either route will take you to the Pilgrim's Landing area. From here, cross the breakwall and turn left. The lighthouse is at the very end of the Cape. The walk is difficult. The breakwall is uneven and half a mile long. The walk from the end of the breakwall to the light is about an hour over sand. Plan your walk during low tide. At higher tides, the breakwall and some of the ground you will need to cross may be underwater. (The entire round trip journey to both Wood End and Long Point on foot is approximately four hours.) (January 2007)