Narragansett Bay, RI
Built 1899
53 feet high; 54 feet above water.
This Narragansett Bay beacon shines brightly today because a band of local preservationists
refused to give up. Few lighthouses have been so close to the edge of oblivion.
Jeremy’s Lighthouse Guide 24
Plum Beach Light was built in 1899 to help mariners through the busy west passage
of the bay. The contractor complained that the area was "the stormiest place we
have ever worked."
On September 21, 1938, it was becoming obvious that a major storm was on the
way, so the two keepers secured all the windows and doors in the tower. The men
were eventually forced to take refuge in the fourth level of the lighthouse, only
to see wrecked boats and buildings sweeping past them. The keepers went to the
fog bell room and lashed themselves to a pipe. It wasn't until the next morning
that the men could get a clear picture of how lucky they were to be alive. The
hurricane of 1938 did great damage to the entire structure.
In 1941 the completion of the first bridge between North Kingstown and Jamestown
made Plum Beach Light obsolete. In the late 1980s Shirley Silvia and other local
residents founded the Friends of Plum Beach Lighthouse. In October 1999 the Rhode
Island Department of Environmental Management transferred the structure to the
Friends.
Restoration began in June 2003. An astonishing 52 tons of pigeon guano was removed
from inside the tower. A work crew under Keith Lescarbeau of Abcore removed a
half-inch layer of rust from the outside of the caisson foundation. The lighthouse
has been repainted in its original color scheme.
The Coast Guard approved the return of a light to the lighthouse, once again
making it an active aid to navigation. Plum Beach Light can be seen distantly
from shore and as you're driving over the Jamestown-Verrazzano Bridge, but it
is best viewed by boat.
To learn more about Friends of Plum Beach Lighthouse: visit their web site
More more HISTORY of this lighthouse click here
Copyright 2004 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.
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