Monhegan Island Light

Flashing white every 15 seconds, and visible for nearly 20 nautical miles, is the second highest Maine lighthouse, the Monhegan Island Light.

Located 10 miles offshore - on the stunningly beautiful Monhegan Island...

This beacon of light has been a welcoming landmark for sea captains since 1824, when the original light tower was built to guide transatlantic ships as they made passage toward the Maine coast.

Today, close to two centuries later, a granite block tower still stands on the same spot, stately as ever, guiding thousands of vessels as they traverse the waters of Muscongus Bay and the Atlantic Ocean.

But...

If you are planning a visit, there is only one way to get to the Monhegan Island Light, and that is by boat.

Ferries depart to Monhegan Island, Maine, seasonally, from Boothbay Harbor and New Harbor, offering remarkable glimpses of local sea life, as porpoises and whales play amongst the lobstermen pulling their traps.

For heartier folks who wish the head to Monhegan Island at other times of the year, the Monhegan Boat Line, departing from Port Clyde with Laura B and the Elizabeth Ann, makes daily, year round trips.

Once on the island of Monhegan, the lighthouse will not be hard to find - you need only to follow the road to its highest point - 178 feet above sea level!

Monhegan Island Light Museum

The Monhegan Light Station is located, very appropriately, at 1 Lighthouse Hill, Monhegan Island, Maine. Although the tower is not open to the public, the lighthouse grounds, and the keeper's house that is home to The Monhegan Museum, are accessible from...

11:30 to 3:30, July 1 to August 31
1:30 to 3:30, June 23 to June 30, and September 1 to September 30
For schedule verification you may wish to contact the Monhegan Historical and Cultural Museum Association at 207-596-7003.

Representing the history of Monhegan Island, the museum displays a number of unique cultural, artistic, industrial, natural, and social exhibits, preserved and documented by many dedicated volunteers.

Along with the original keeper's house and catwalk leading to the tower, the light station grounds include a 1998 replicated assistant keeper's house with an adjacent storage building, a cistern, an oil house (circa 1893), a garage, a storage building, and a chicken coup.

You may also be interested in:
Monhegan Boat Line, Monhegan Island Hotels, Monhegan Island Maine

Brief History of Monhegan Island Lighthouse

Established on July 2, 1824, when Thomas B. Seavey and his family moved into the keeper's house at the light station, the Monhegan Island Light has seen many changes and renovations...

1850 - The current tower was built, replacing the original which had been heavily damaged by storms.

1855 - The large bell that now sits on the grounds of the light station, and made famous in "Bronze Age", a James Wyeth painting, was cast by Henry N. Hooper and Co. The bell was originally used as a signal bell at the Manana Fog Signal Station on neighboring Manara Island. Even today, so that mariners can hear it better, a foghorn remains on Manana Island rather than on Monhegan Island.

1959 - The Monhegan Island Light was fully automated.

1962 - The federal government divested three dozen navigational properties along the coast of Maine. With the exception of the light tower, the Monhegan Associates obtained the light station property.

1970 - An outbuilding was renovated to display materials relevant to the history of ice cutting on Monhegan, Island. A year later an outbuilding replicating a fish house was converted.

1980 - The lighthouse and museum buildings were placed on the National Registry of Historic Places.

1995 - The tower became solar-powered.

1998 - In June, the he light tower was deeded to the Monhegan Museum Associates.

1998 - July 5th marks the opening of the buildings constructed as replicas of the original assistant light keeper's house, now used as an art museum, and the accompanying storage shed.

If you visit the Monhegan Island Light and Museum I know they would welcome any donation you make to helping them with the upkeep of this beautiful, historical property. Enjoy your trip!