Lighthouses have been guiding the way for ships into Florida since the first one was built and lit in St. Augustine in 1824. Besides the value they provide along the 1,350 miles of coastline, lighthouses also serve as symbols of strength and safety as well as beacons of hope.
Along a 75-mile stretch of US 98 in the Florida panhandle, three lighthouses stand tall, each with their own story to tell.
St. Marks Lighthouse
The drive to the St. Marks Lighthouse is scenic to say the least. After entering the St. Marks Wildlife Refuge, it’s another seven miles to the lighthouse itself. The slow drive takes you through pine flatwoods, tidal pools and marshes and if you look closely, you might just see alligators, birds and other wildlife, or a buoy washed in by a recent hurricane.
The lighthouse sits at the end of the road, at the mouth of the St. Marks River. The first structure, a hollow-walled tower built in 1830, was not accepted by the customs inspector and a second tower was built, this time with solid walls. But there were problems with the solid walls. Moisture could not evaporate and, as a result, cracks started forming as the structure settled. A tidal surge in 1837 caused even more problems. An inspector at the time determined the lighthouse was in “wretched condition” and had to be rebuilt immediately. Rebuilt again, with hollow walls, the lighthouse has guided ships and boaters to the entrance of the river for more than 180 years. It stands 88 feet tall and includes 85 steps from the base to the top. Seventy-two of those steps are wooden, the last 13 are iron.
The St. Marks Lighthouse was decommissioned by the Coast Guard and its ownership transferred to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service in 2013. Its Fourth Order Fresnel lens was removed and sent to the Ponce de Leon Inlet Lighthouse Preservation Association for cleaning and preserving. It is now in the Visitor Center at the refuge.
We hoped our visit would allow us the opportunity to climb the steps of the lighthouse and lookout over the river. However, we were greeted by volunteers with the Friends of St. Marks Wildlife Refuge who informed us the lighthouse is closed to visitors while money is being raised for its preservation. Once the money is raised and the work completed, the lighthouse will open again for tours.
Crooked River Lighthouse, Carrabelle
A little more than an hour west on 98 is the Crooked River Lighthouse in Carrabelle. Built in 1895, its purpose was to provide guidance for timber ships and fishermen through the pass between Dog and St. George Islands. The 103-foot iron and steel structure was built on the mainland as a replacement to the three lighthouses that once stood on Dog Island.
The lighthouse was lit with what was believed to be the first bivalve fourth order lens installed in the United States at the time. It remained in the lighthouse until 1976 due to mercury leakage and is now in the Coast Guard’s district offices in New Orleans. Crooked River was decommissioned in 1995, just shy of its 100th anniversary. The lighthouse stood neglected for several years until ownership was transferred to the City of Carrabelle in 2001 and then leased to the Carrabelle Lighthouse Association. The lighthouse reopened in 2009, about 14 years after it was shut down.
A Keeper’s House Museum, an original outbuilding, a playground and the lighthouse all make up the Crooked River Lighthouse Park. The museum is open Wednesday through Sunday from noon to 5:00 PM and, weather permitting, tower climbs are available for a small charge.
Cape St. George Light, St. George Island
The first lighthouse was built in 1833 on the western tip of St. George Island. Three others followed it, including the current lighthouse, completed in 2008, which sits at the end of the four-mile bridge onto St. George Island, in the center of town. The fact it was rebuilt is a testament to the community. In 1995, Hurricane Opal wreaked havoc, washing the lighthouse from its foundation, and leaving other buildings in ruins. As the tower began to lean over the years, the community stepped up efforts to “Save the Light.” Before they could decide whether to move it to a new location or shore it up where it was standing, the lighthouse collapsed into the Gulf of Mexico. Pieces of the lighthouse were salvaged, as well as 22,000 bricks. Those bricks are now visible inside the current lighthouse. With the original plans for the 1852 structure from the National Archives in Washington, D.C., the lighthouse was rebuilt in its current location.
The lighthouse contains 92 wooden spiral steps and an eight-rung metal ladder at the top. A small scuttle hole of 24” x 21” permits passage to the lens. Once at the top, the view is breathtaking, from the island itself to the waters of the Gulf of Mexico to St. George Sound and Apalachicola Bay.
A complete history of all four structures can be found inside the Lighthouse Keeper’s House, which serves as a museum and a gift shop. There is a small fee to climb the lighthouse, but it is worth it. The climb is easy until the metal ladder. The opening to get to the top can be challenging to navigate.
With only 30 remaining lighthouses today, lighthouses are a big part of the history of Florida. Some are now in the hands of local preservation societies and rely on funding to keep them maintained and open to the public. You, too, can celebrate all things Florida by making plans to visit one of Florida’s remaining lighthouses.