Maryland Point Lighthouse

Home/
Mid-Atlantic/
Potomac River/
Maryland Point

Home
Regions
Site Index
Links
About The Site

Maryland Point sketch

Maryland Point lighthouse was built in 1892 to mark a narrow channel on the Potomac across from Fairview Beach, VA. Vessels with drafts greater than 10 feet were in danger of grounding if the channel was not properly traversed. $50,000 was appropriated for the lighthouse. The station was a hexagonal screwpile housing a fourth-order lens 42 feet high.

In 1951, when nearby Matthias Point light was automated, Keeper John C. Lewis of Maryland Point was made responsible for both lights. In 1954, Maryland Point was automated. The light was dismantled in 1963 and an automated beacon placed on the site.

References (see links)

Forgotten Beacons, Hornberger and Turbyville pp. 74, 88
The Lighthouses of the Chesapeake, de Gast p. 157
Lighting the Bay: Tales of Chesapeake Lighthouses, Vojtech p. 177

Directions: The lighthouse site is on the Potomac River between Fairview Beach, VA and Caledon Natural Area State Park. To get to Fairview Beach, take US 301 south from Maryland across the Potomac to Dahlgren, VA. From US 301, go west on VA 206 (Dahlgren Dr.), then north on Caledon Road (VA 218), and then right on Fairview Drive. You will pass Caledon Natural Area State Park on VA 218 on the way to Fairview Beach.

According to the Lighthouse Directory (see links) the site is also visible from Wellington Beach, MD. To get to Wellington Beach, take US 301 south from Washington DC, and in La Plata, MD, turn right (west) on MD-6. Take MD-6 past the town of Welcome, and turn left onto Durham Church Road, which becomes MD-425 (Ironsides Road). Turn left on MD-6 (Port Tobacco Road) (MD-6 loops around - taking MD-425 cuts across the loop.) Turn right on Holly Springs Road, then right on Riverside Road (MD-224), and left on Wellington Blvd. (September 2006)