The Isles of Shoals Light, also known as "White Island Light", on White Island, in the

Isles of Shoals The Isles of Shoals are a group of small islands and tidal ledges situated approximately off the east coast of the United States, straddling the border of the states of Maine and New Hampshire. They have been occupied for more than 400 years, fi ...

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the nor ...

, was first built in 1821. The present structure was built in 1865. The lighthouse and the island are protected by the state as White Island State Historic Site.

History

Captain Samuel Haley began keeping a lantern lit in 1790, but the first lighthouse was not built until 1821, following the 1813 wreck of the ''Sagunte''. Following his defeat for Governor of New Hampshire in 1839, Thomas B. Laighton became keeper of the light. Five years earlier he had purchased Appledore, Smuttynose, Malaga, and Cedar Islands, on the

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and ...

side of the Isles of Shoals, from Captain Haley. Laighton later built a hotel on Smuttynose. The lighthouse was rebuilt during the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

with granite walls two feet thick. It was automated in 1987, but fell into disrepair and was rescued by the efforts of The Lighthouse Kids, a group of schoolchildren who pressured the New Hampshire legislature to provide $125,000 to repair the building. Shortly thereafter, the federal government provided $250,000 for further restoration. The lighthouse was seriously damaged during the Patriot's Day Storm in 2007. Waves washed completely over the island, destroying the solar panels, foghorn, and the covered walk between the lighthouse and the keeper's house. In 2008, the Coast Guard installed one of the first VLB-44 LED light units in the United States.

References

{{Authority control Lighthouses completed in 1821 Lighthouses in New Hampshire Transportation buildings and structures in Rockingham County, New Hampshire Rye, New Hampshire