A few months ago, my family traveled down Washington State's Pacific Coast with the intent to visit as many lighthouses as possible. The second lighthouse we visited on our trip was Destruction Island Lighthouse. This lighthouse is located three miles off the mainland out in the Pacific Ocean. Scenic view points along Highway 101 allowed us to view this lighthouse from a distance.
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| Destruction Island Lighthouse |
Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra was the first known explorer to reach Destruction Island in 1775. This Spanish explorer named the island the "Isle of Sorrow" because of the massacre several of his men received when they went on land for supplies.
The crew of Captain Charles William Barkley experienced a similar fate in 1787 when they were exploring the coast line and river north of the island. Captain Barkley named the river "Destruction." The name was later switched to the island and the river returned to the original name given by the Indians.
A request for a lighthouse on Destruction Island was made in 1882 by the Lighthouse board. They were eventually granted $85,000 for the building of a first-order light and fog signal. Building started in August of 1888. However, the lighthouse was not built soon enough. On August 10, 1888, the Cassandra Adams, headed from San Francisco to Tacoma, was overcome by dense fog and hit a reef close to the island. The crew was unable to see the island until it was too late. The ship was soon destroyed by the sea.
In November of 1890, the lighthouse was ready for operation. It was typically manned by a head light keeper and two assistants. If the light keepers had families, their families also joined them on the island. In 1939, the U.S. Coast Guard assumed control of all Lighthouse Service lighthouses. The lighthouse was operated by service men for several weeks at a time.
In 1963, the U.S. Coast Guard proposed shutting the lighthouse down. Mariners protested against it, however, and the light remained lit. The lighthouse became automated in 1968 and the last light keeper left the island in the early 1970's. The old lens was replace with a solar-powered electronic beacon in 1995. The lens, along with an emergency back up lens, was moved to the Maritime Museum in Westport, WA.
Finally, in April 1998, the U.S Coast Guard turned off the Destruction Island Lighthouse beam. It became the first lighthouse along Washington State's Pacific Coast to not longer be useful for navigational purposes.
For more information about Destruction Island Lighthouse, visit...
Lighthouse Friends
Maritime Heritage
Life at Destruction Island Lighthouse
History Link
