Random Walks in Time: Pensacola Lighthouse

Pensacola Lighthouse from the beach

My Dad was in the Navy when I was growing up, and we moved all over the country in those first years, literally from sea to shining sea. Some of my first memories are of the sounds of Newport, Rhode Island: The sirens that sounded nothing like those on Dragnet (but sound like those in England); and the foghorn: BAAAHHHHHHH-rummmmmmmm; silence; BAAAHHHHHHH-rummmmmmmm..... The foghorn works with a lighthouse to mark rocks/reefs/shoals and safe entrance to the harbor.

Lighthouses have always proved interesting to me. At once utilitarian in function and aesthetic in design. The sweeping beam that shows this navigational point to mariners for miles out to sea. The earliest lighthouses were platforms upon which fires were built and lit at night. The Argand lamp brought a smokeless light that could be placed in an enclosed tower, powered by whale oil. Thorium lantern mantles provided a much brighter source of light. Steam driven magnetos allowed electricity to be used to power carbon arc lamps. The sun valve (which turned off gas flow during the day) and associated technology allowed the use of gas as a light source, until electric light technology became the standard. Lights were rotated using multiple light sources and a clockwork system. If the clockwork system failed, the works had to be turned by hand.

The first Pensacola Lighthouses

View next to Carriage House

The current Pensacola Lighthouse is the third example of a navigational light placed near this point. The first Pensacola Light was a lightship, the Aurora Borealis, and was placed on the harbor side of Santa Rosa Island. Although protected from the rough sea, it was often difficult to see from outside of the bay.

The second lighthouse was a 40 foot tower built on a 40 foot bluff at the mouth of the harbor, just west of Fort Barrancas and about a half mile east of the current lighthouse. This building was entirely white and had 10 whale oil lamps in two clusters of five rotated by a clockwork and strengthened by a 14-inch reflector. An advantage of this light was that ships could follow the beam to enter the harbor, which was not possible with the placement of the light ship. Despite the higher position, views of the tower could still be blocked by trees close to the tower and those on Santa Rosa Island. This first light would appear very stocky, 30 feet wide at the base, 15 feet wide at the top and 40 feet tall.

The third and current lighthouse

Lamp and lens - see the rainbow?

The current lighthouse was built in 1858 on the north side of the harbor entrance and entered service on 01 January 1859. This tower is 150 feet tall on the side of a 40 foot bluff currently located on Naval Air Station Pensacola. The light is 190 feet above sea level, which provides a considerable boost in visibility distance. The lighthouse placement allows it to serve as the rear range light for the harbor entrance. Range lights work in pairs, front and rear. The rear light is always placed higher than the front light. When the two lights form a vertical pair, the observer is on the navigation line. If the front appears to the left of the rear, then the observer is right of the range line; if the front appears to the right of the rear, then the observer is left of range line.

Lens detail

The first lens for this light was a first order Fresnel lens. These lenses had a large aperture and short focal length, this lens allows for more light to be collected from oblique sources. These lights project a beam over a much broader distance. The lens is divided into concentric annular sections. A first order lens has a focal length of 920 mm and height of 2.59 meters.

When the US Civil War broke out in 1861, the harbor and the adjoining Navy Yard became a military target. Union forces withdrew from Fort Barrancas and Fort McRee to Fort Pickens on Santa Rosa Island, leaving most of the harbor defenses and the Navy Yard in Confederate hands. An artillery battle between Confederates in Ft. Barrancas and Ft. McRee on Perdido Key and the Union forces in Ft. Pickens on Santa Rosa Island broke out on 22 November 1861. Shore batteries around the lighthouse became targets for Ft. Pickens. During this time, the tower suffered about 6 hits. Fortunately, none of the damage threatened the structural integrity of the tower. The Confederates evacuated Pensacola in May 1862. When Union forces came back to the tower, they found that the Confederates took the Fresnel lens with them. On 20 December 1862, Union forces placed a fourth-order Fresnel lens in the tower, putting the tower back into service.

Entrance to Pensacola Bay

At the end of the war, the original Fresnel lens was recovered and put back into place in 1869. The lightkeeper's residence was also built in 1869. The daymark (paint scheme) of the tower was originally completely white, making it difficult to distinguish against a cloudy sky. During the 1869 upgrades, the daymark was changed so that the lower third of the tower was left white to contrast it with nearby trees and the upper two-thirds of the tower was painted black to stand out against the sky. Electricity was installed in the light tower in 1939, which eliminated the need to rewind the clockwork by hand every 4 1/2 hours.

Fort Pickens on Santa Rosa Island

The light signature of this lighthouse is one white flash every 20 seconds. The beam is very strong, being visible for 27 miles out to sea. The lens continues to rotate during the day, even though the light is not powered. This is necessary because the lens can focus a beam of light onto the wall of the lighthouse, creating a spot hot enough to damage the metal and masonry of the light room. If the lighthouse loses electricity, the lens has to be moved by hand every few minutes to prevent this.

Stairs going down --- gives me the willies

The first lighthouse tower was constructed under the supervision of the Department of Treasury's Lighthouse Establishment (1791-1851). The US Lighthouse Board of the Department of Treasury (1852-1910) was in charge during the construction of the second tower. A more civilian Lighthouse Service within the Department of Commerce. The Lighthouse Service was merged with the US Coast Guard in 1939 and light keepers were able to choose to remain civilians or join the Coast Guard. The last civilian lightkeeper at Pensacola retired in 1953. The Coast Guard operated the lighthouse from that point. Automation reduced staffing needs in 1965.

End of Santa Rosa Island

The lighthouse was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. By the 1980s, the site was in disrepair and a push to dismantle the outbuildings and perhaps the tower was increasing. The tower was seen as a potential hazard to jets flying out of NAS Pensacola. Push-back from a preservation movement saved the Keeper's House and outbuildings from destruction. In 1996, Coast Guard Auxiliary 17 started conducting tours of the lighthouse. These were discontinued in 2007 due to liability concerns, and the grounds closed to the public. The spiral staircase can be treacherous, with a railing only on the outside edge of the staircase. The inside edge is unlined. During the 177 stair climb, downstairs traffic has the right of way. It is best for upstairs traffic to move toward the inside and hold onto a step at about eye-level, unless you can step into one of the deep window wells to let traffic pass.

In 2008, the Coast Guard allowed tours to resume under the supervision of the Pensacola Lighthouse Association. Renovations continue on site. The guide at the top of the tower was very well informed and helpful. A small entry fee is charged to the site: $6.00 per adult when we went there. The site is becoming increasingly popular, and there are a variety of tours with limited openings available at night, during Blue Angels practices and for Ghost tours. Looking for a good place to propose? This might be it. Check the beach to see if someone has stomped out your message already, might save you some time and effort.

Getting There

The Pensacola Lighthouse is on the grounds of Naval Air Station Pensacola. You will be required to present a valid picture ID for every adult in the vehicle and perhaps allow a search of the vehicle. Have the IDs ready when you pull up to the gate. The way is well marked, just follow the signs. It is easy to see from the Museum of Naval Aviation.

Street Address: 2081 Radford Blvd, Pensacola, FL 32508

Waypoint: Latitude 30.3461433 degrees N ; Longitude 87.3104028 degrees W