Whaleback Light


Whaleback Light is a historic lighthouse marking the mouth of the Piscataqua River in Kittery, Maine. It is located on a rocky outcrop offshore southwest of Fort Foster and south of Wood Island in Kittery. The present tower was built in 1872. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988.

History

The station was established in 1830 for $20,000. The tower was upgraded in 1855 with a new lantern and a fourth order Fresnel lens. A fog bell and tower were installed in 1863. In 1869, storms had caused cracks in the tower and foundation causing a new tower to be built in 1872. This tower, still standing today, was constructed with dovetailed granite blocks alongside the original tower, which was removed in 1880. The light is above mean sea level, and the tower, also housed the keeper's living quarters and a storage area.
The light was automated in 1963. At some point the fog bell was replaced with a horn and in 1991, the volume of the horn was reduced because it was damaging the integrity of the structure.
In 2007, under the National Lighthouse Preservation Act of 2000, Whaleback lighthouse was made available to a suitable new steward. The American Lighthouse Foundation and its chapter Friends of Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouses submitted an application and in November 2008, became the new owners.
The light exhibits two white flashes every 10 seconds. From 2009–2021, this was produced by a modern VLB-44 LED. Due to public outcry, in 2022 the Coast Guard replaced the VLB-44 with a VRB-25, similar to what the lighthouse had used prior to 2009.

Keepers

Source:
  • Samuel E. Haskell
  • Joseph L. Locke
  • Zachariah Chickering
  • John Kennard
  • Joseph D. Currier
  • Eliphalet Grover
  • J. Prentiss Locke
  • Richard R. Lock
  • Jedediah Rand
  • Reuben T. Leavitt
  • Oliver P. Tucker
  • Gustavus A. Abbott
  • Joel P. Reynolds
  • Edward Parks
  • Nathaniel P. Campbell
  • Ambrose Card
  • Gilbert Amee
  • Mrs. M. M. Amee
  • Isaac W. Chauncy
  • James W. Verney
  • Ferdinand Barr
  • Emily F. Barr
  • William H. Caswell
  • Frank P. Caswell
  • Chandler Martin
  • George R. Frost
  • Frank L. Chauncey
  • John L. A. Martin
  • Leander White
  • John W. Lewis
  • Brackett Lewis
  • Ellison C. White
  • James M. Haley
  • Daniel Stevens
  • John W. Robinson
  • James Haley
  • Walter S. Amee
  • Wallace S, Chase
  • Alvah J. Tobey
  • Joseph A. Pruett
  • John W. Wetzel
  • John P. Brooks
  • Arnold B. White
  • W. A. Alley
  • Maynard F. Farnsworth
  • Charles U. Gardner
  • Morgan W. Willis
  • Francis D. Hickey
  • Robert Brann
  • Stephen H. Rogers
  • James Pope