Cleveland Ledge, eight miles southwest of the entrance to the Cape Cod Canal, is named for President Grover Cleveland, who frequently visited the area to fish. The decision to build a lighthouse here was part of a plan to convert the aids to navigation in Buzzards Bay from their original purpose of serving local navigation to the new purpose of guiding major shipping traffic through the  Cape Cod Canal , which opened in 1914.

On October 7, 1940, the caisson that would serve as the lighthouse’s foundation was towed to the ledge from New London, Connecticut. The 52-foot high caisson was sunk in 21 feet of water, then filled with stone and concrete. On top of the caisson, a two-story building was constructed to house resident keepers, surmounted by a 50-foot reinforced concrete light tower. The sleek architecture of the structure is classified as Art Moderne, a trendy style in the 1930s and ‘40s. The new lighthouse was completed and commissioned on June 1, 1943.

On September 14, 1944, a hurricane battered the area. When the storm hit, a crew comprised of nine men (and a dog) under the command of Lt. Olie P. Swenson were in the lighthouse. During the height of the storm, at about 12:30 a.m., a crash brough the entire crew running to an engine room in the lighthouse’s base. A skylight had partially dislodged, and seawater was flooding the engine room. The men grabbed buckets and began bailing frantically. The water rose to within two inches of the tops of batteries that provided power for the light, but a barricade made of planks and mattresses stopped the water level from rising any higher.

A damaged boat, hanging on davits nearly 40 feet above the sea, indicated how high the waves had reached during the storm. The telephone and radio were dead, but the light had continued to flash through the hurricane.

In 1978, the light was automated, after the laying of an underwater cable to supply power. The Coast Guard crew was reassigned in September 1978, and the lighthouse was sealed off.

The lighthouse remains an active aid to navigation, with a modern 190 millimeter optic displaying a white flash every 10 seconds, and an automated fog horn sounding every 15 seconds. It can be seen distantly from shore but is much better viewed by boat.

For much more on this lighthouse visit Lighthouse.cc

Copyright 2005 by Jeremy D'Entremont,New England Lighthouses
Photos are the property of the author and may not be used without permission.
Photos above from Jeremy D'Entremont.