Massachusetts is the beautiful home to much of America’s unique history and important architecture. The state’s coast is scattered with some of the country’s most breath-taking and fascinating lighthouses. These structures not only have intriguing stories of their own, but provide visitors with an amazing view of the ocean and coastline. To understand the grandeur and mystery of an historical lighthouse, one must visit the Massachusetts’ landmarks in person and experience the beauty.
The very first lighthouse built in America resides in Boston and is also the only lighthouse today which still has an official “keeper”. In 1715, the Massachusetts General Court passed the Boston Light Bill, declaring the need for a beacon to be erected in the harbor. It was then built on Beacon Island and ordered to stay lit from sunset to sunrise, everyday.
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The whaling industry was booming in Martha’s Vineyard in the late 1700s and a lighthouse was needed to guide in all the busy harbor traffic. The federal government bought a piece of land for $80 from a Mr. Seth Vincent and then built a two-story house on pilings a short distance from shore. The keeper had to row himself in and out whenever he wanted to come to land. Later, a wooden walkway was built from the shore to the lighthouse and it became a popular spot for whaling vessel sailors to walk with their girlfriends before heading off to sea again.
The Duxbury Pier Lighthouse is nicknamed the Bug by locals, because of its odd, squat shape. A tubby, coffeepot-shaped building, this lighthouse was the first offshore cast-iron beacon to be built.
