Tower of london lighthouse7/29/2023 ![]() By 1799, despite frequent repairs, the New London Lighthouse had become structurally deficient with a 10-foot crack in the stone descending from the lantern. In 1791, President Washington signed a contract authorizing a quarterly $360 stipend to supply New London’s lamps with the spermaceti oil needed for continuous operation. When the Lighthouse Board was established in 1789, the lighthouse was ceded to the federal government. The colony was responsible for raising funds for the lighthouse’s maintenance and operation, causing multiple tax increases on coastal shipping. The 64-foot-tall, hammer-dressed stone tower with a wooden lantern was officially lit on November 7, 1761. In 1759, New London resident Nathaniel Shaw sold a portion of his land to the local government for the site of the new light and lottery tickets were offered to raise the £715 needed for construction. By the late 1750s the need for an official beacon had grown and the colonial legislature of Connecticut hired a committee to raise funds and build the new station. ![]() Its history as a vitally important navigational aid, in addition to its unchanged design, has made the New London Harbor Light an important element of the Connecticut shoreline for more than two centuries.Īs early as the 1730s, a light was established in New London as a military aid to warn against enemy fleets. New London Harbor Light, which is today the oldest and tallest in Connecticut, was originally a beacon on the west side of the Thames River, marking the entrance to the Long Island Sound. New London’s deep natural harbor, rough waters, and eventual status as America’s third busiest whaling port in the early nineteenth century created the need for a local lighthouse. The New London Harbor Light station was established in 1761 as one of the first lighthouses to help mariners navigate the rocky shores of New England.
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