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Mona Island Light, also known as Faro de la Isla de la Mona, is a historic lighthouse located on the island of Mona, Puerto Rico, in the Mona Passage between Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. It is the only lighthouse built of iron and steel in Puerto Rico. While some sources reported that the structure was designed by Gustav Eiffel, who also designed the Eiffel Tower in Paris, recent studies have shown that the tower was designed around 1885 by Spanish engineer Rafael Ravena.
It is the first of two lighthouses built by the U.S government in Puerto Rico.
It was first lit in 1900 and automated in 1973. In 1976, the light was deactivated and replaced by a modern beacon. The structure has deteriorated severely since deactivation. The lighthouse is listed in " Frommer's 500 Places to See Before They Disappear" and '' Lighthouse Digest'' magazine described the condition of the lighthouse as dire: "This lighthouse has to be among the most endangered in the U.S. – along with being one of the most isolated – rusting away in the tropical heat and humidity."
Railroads of Puerto Rico / Ferrocarriles de Puerto Rico.
(English-Spanish version)
It is the first of two lighthouses built by the U.S government in Puerto Rico.
It was first lit in 1900 and automated in 1973. In 1976, the light was deactivated and replaced by a modern beacon. The structure has deteriorated severely since deactivation. The lighthouse is listed in " Frommer's 500 Places to See Before They Disappear" and '' Lighthouse Digest'' magazine described the condition of the lighthouse as dire: "This lighthouse has to be among the most endangered in the U.S. – along with being one of the most isolated – rusting away in the tropical heat and humidity."
History
Two sets of plans were drawn up between 1885–1886 by Spanish engineer Rafael Ravena, working for the Spanish government, for a lighthouse on the eastern side of Mona Island to help markMona Passage
The Mona Passage ( es, Canal de la Mona) is a strait that separates the islands of Hispaniola and Puerto Rico. The Mona Passage connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Caribbean Sea and is an important shipping route between the Atlantic and the Panama ...
, which runs between Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic. One set of plans called for a massive masonry structure with twenty five rooms for three keepers, families and supplies and a light with a range of 22 miles. However this was not the design that was finally used, probably due to the very porous and brittle sandstone conditions of Mona Island.
The second set of plans called for an iron tower with a separate living quarters for one keeper and his family. This plan was approved in 1887, and work on the station started in the early 1890s. The lighthouse's materials were fabricated in France by Duclos & Cie. The U.S. government continued its construction after the Spanish–American War in 1898.
Railway
The long narrow-gaugeMona Island Tramway
The Mona Island Tramway ( Spanish: ''Tranvía de la Isla de Mona'') was a long narrow-gauge industrial railway with a gauge of on Mona Island, part of the municipality of Mayagüez, Puerto Rico. It was laid in the 1890s to transport building ...
had a gauge of . Its 231 ft long incline ran from the beach to a cave. Goods were carried through the cave, and then hauled by a stubborn donkey on a canopy-covered wagon along a 6000 ft long track to the lighthouse.Roger W. AponteRailroads of Puerto Rico / Ferrocarriles de Puerto Rico.
(English-Spanish version)
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
The lighthouse, as "Faro de la Isla de la Mona", was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1981.See also
* List of lighthouses in Puerto RicoReferences
External links
* {{Authority control Historic American Engineering Record in Puerto Rico Historic district contributing properties in Puerto Rico Lighthouses completed in 1900 Lighthouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Puerto Rico National Register of Historic Places in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico