LIGHTHOUSES OF FLORIDA

In order to view the lighthouses, please click on the highlighted names of each one listed below. Click on image to enlarge and use your browser back arrow to return to this page.


KEY WEST LIGHTHOUSE
The current lighthouse at Key West is the second, built in 1848. The first, built in 1825, was destroyed by a violent hurricane in 1848. The current lighthouse was discontinued in 1969 due to the changing shoreline of Key West, and was later restored and relighted for private aid.


"KEY WEST LIGHTHOUSE"

JUPITER INLET LIGHTHOUSE
The 105-foot tower was built in 1860. Ravaged by the civil war, and later a hurricane , the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse has withstood many challenges through the years. The sixteen year old son of the keeper nightly rotated the massive lens by hand following the hurricane as the lighthouse swayed one and a half feet out of plum. Today, its Fresnel lens burns bright and beautiful, although the bull's eye exploded during a storm, and the keeper recovered the broken pieces and had them cemented and wired together with brass moldings.


"JUPITER INLET LIGHTHOUSE"

PONCE DE LEON INLET LIGHTHOUSE
The 168 foot lighthouse was completed in 1887, and served mariners well until 1970. It was then replaced by a aerobeacon in a steel tower near Smyrna Beach, but high rise construction threatened to block the view from sea, and the Ponce De Leon Lighthouse was recommissioned at that time.


"PONCE DE LEON INLET LIGHTHOUSE"


ST AUGUSTINE LIGHTHOUSE
In 1824, the St. Augustine Lighthouse became Florida's first official lighthouse. It's daymark, black and white spiral stripes and red latern stands 165 feet above sea level. 219 spiral steps to reach the latern and enjoy the panoramic view from the top. It's nightmark, or signature, is a 30-second fixed flash, and can be seen from 19 to 26 nautical miles. Its beam is powered by a 1000 watt bulb. The historical lens consists of 370 hand-cut prisms. In 1986, a rifle shot damaged 22 of the prisms, however, the damage was repaired by holographic technology. The lighthouse remains an active aid to navigators.


"ST AUGUSTINE LIGHTHOUSE"