Lighthouse Tours

Beavertail Lighthouse was established in 1749 at Beavertail Point, located at the southern tip of Conanicut Island. After lights in Boston Harbor and Nantucket’s Brant Point, Beavertail was only the third light built in the American colonies.

Located just under the Mt. Hope Bridge, on the mainland of Bristol, this privately-owned brick lighthouse was established in 1855. Use of the light was discontinued in 1927 as proximity to the bridge made it obsolete as a navigational aide.

Castle Hill Light is a granite structure established in 1890 and was automated in 1957. Located at the westernmost point of Newport and at the entrance to East Passage of Narragansett Bay, it is reachable by strolling the grounds of the Castle Hill Inn and Resort.

Located at the northern tip of Conanicut Island, this wood-framed, gothic revival light was established in 1886 and is best viewed by boat. The lighthouse appears in scenes from the 2012 movie Moonrise Kingdom.

Conimicut Light was first established as a in 1868. Early lighthouse keepers faced a treacherous one-mile crossing from nearby Nyatt Point Light to maintain the granite lighthouse. The stone structure was torn down in 1882, a “spark-plug” style with cast iron plates replaced the original. It was the last station in R.I. to be electrified in 1960. Soon after automation in 1963, the structure was boarded up for many years. Periodical maintenance was completed over the years, but by 2005 the Conimicut Lighthouse was transferred to the City of Warwick and the Conimicut Lighthouse Foundation was formed. A major grant from the Department of Transportation helped restore it to the structure we see today.

Sitting on a former Civil War military base called Ft. Greble, the present light built in 1857 was abandoned and vandalized after it was discontinued in 1979. Replaced by a buoy, the Dutch Island Lighthouse Society refurbished the light through fundraising. Relit in 2007, it is continuously powered by a solar powered battery.

At the entrance to Newport Harbor sat the Gull Rocks Light. Originally a wooden A-Frame design, the light’s original signals comprised two gliding lanterns on rails in windows on both the East and West peaks of the building. Established in 1887, it was replaced by a skeleton tower in 1928, and then demolished in 1970 for construction of the Newport Bridge.

The “spark plug” or “coffee pot towers” design of this lighthouse served as the standard from the 1870s-1900s. Modeled after the Plum Beach Lighthouse, it is a cast iron caisson filled with concrete. It replaced a lightship and was completed by 1901 and automated in 1964. With the establishment of the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act (NHLPA) in 2000, the light was sold to private owners in 2006.

Established in 1854, discontinued in 1927 and then relit for Private Aide, Lime Rock Light is now called the Ida Lewis Yacht Club. Idawalley Zaradia Lewis was one of America’s most famous lighthouse keepers. It had been recorded that she single-handedly saved at least 18 (but possibly as many as 35) lives.

As commerce grew on the Providence River in the early 1800’s, establishment of a light at Nyatt Point Shoals helped guide transports in and out of the narrow river shoals towards the Narragansett Bay. The original light was established in 1828. The present light was built in 1856. The Conimicut Light protected the entrance to the river further south, and, though the Nayatt Point light was discontinued in 1868, the keepers continued to live at Nayatt Point and row the mile to tend the Conimicut Light.

In 1824, a light at the entrance to Newport Harbor at Goat Island was established. As ships continued to run aground, the present light was constructed further out on a breakwater. The original structure was later moved to Prudence Island in 1852. Years passed and Goat Island’s usage transformed from a fort to torpedo station, to barracks, to condos and, now, to the Hyatt Regency Hotel. Automated in 1963, it continues to aid navigation and is managed by the American Lighthouse Foundation.

Situated in the West Passage of Narragansett Bay, the Plum Beach Lighthouse has survived myriad obstacles. During the construction of this “spark plug” lighthouse in 1899, it was struck by a loose barge; a tidal wave overcame it during one of Rhode Island’s worst hurricanes; a legal battle over ownership tested its legacy; and, finally, it was left exposed to years of guano and elements, before Plum Beach Light was saved by the Friends of Plum Beach Lighthouse. Established in 1899, the light stands proudly near the Jamestown Verrazzano Bridge and, earlier in the 20th century, was a popular destination for local swimmers, who raised money in annual swims to support maintenance of the beacon. The light was decommissioned in 1941.

Pomham Rocks Light was named after a Narragansett Tribal Sachem who was killed in King Philip’s War in 1676. Established in 1870, it was constructed on a tiny islet 800 feet from the shoreline of Riverside, on the eastern side of the Providence River. Built on a granite foundation, the wooden structure includes a mansard roof and a hexagonal light tower. Discontinued in 1974, the property was sold to what is now ExxonMobil, with the intention “to preserve the continuity of the waterfront area.” ExxonMobil eventually leased the lighthouse to the American Lighthouse Foundation for free. In 2005, the Friends of Pomham Lighthouse was established and ExxonMobil gifted $25,000 to the lighthouse foundation towards the restoration of the structure.

Poplar Point Light was established in 1831 to light the entrance of Wickford Harbor, an active port in 19th century trade. Its design included an octagonal wooden tower, topped by a deck and covered in copper. It also included an octagonal iron lantern. Poplar Point Light lived out its usefulness in 1882, when a better location for a beacon was identified, and a new light constructed 200 yards offshore. Privately owned since 1894, Poplar Point Light remains Rhode Island’s oldest, unaltered lighthouse in its original location, and the oldest freestanding wooden lighthouse in the nation.

This granite structure with a “birdcage lantern” now serves Prudence Island, but was originally located off the northern tip of Goat island in Newport Harbor in 1823. It was moved to Prudence Island’s Sandy Point in 1852. A one-mile walk from the Bristol/Prudence Island ferry landing, Prudence Island Light is the oldest lighthouse in Rhode Island. After its automation in 1972, both Coast Guard and island residents performed upkeep of the light. The Prudence Island Conservancy has maintained the light since 1987 and the U.S. Coast Guard granted the lighthouse’s license to the Conservancy in 2001.

Rose Island was purposed for the military as Fort Hamilton in 1798. Though never fully utilized, it did serve as weapons storage through the 20th century. Established in 1870, the Rose Island Lighthouse sits south of the base of the Pell Bridge in Newport Harbor. The design is very similar to the Pomham Rocks Light: a wooden structure with a mansard roof and a hexagonal light tower. The Newport Bridge was completed in 1969 and the lighthouse was decommissioned in 1971. Vandalism was rampant on the island afterwards. By 1985, the Rose Island Foundation took possession and restored it to its 1915 splendor. It was opened to the public in 1992 and relit as a private aid to navigation a year later. Accessible by boat, Rose Island Lighthouse has accommodations to stay overnight or longer if you choose to be a lighthouse keeper.

A narrow sharp bend in the shipping channel of the Providence River necessitated the construction of the Sabin Point Light as a navigational aide in 1872. Built with the same design as the Pomham Rocks and Rose Island lights, it was a wooden structure with mansard roof and a hexagonal light tower referred to as “second empire styling.” During the hurricane of ’38, the keeper and his wife were each swept away and survived under different circumstances, but Mrs. Whitford was able to keep the light tended throughout the night. Located offshore from Riverside, R.I., Sabin Point Light was automated in 1956, and was deactivated in 1968. The East Providence Firefighters lit and burned the structure on July 4, 1968 after plans were made to dredge and widen the narrow channel.

A narrow channel between Warwick Neck and Patience Island in the West Passage of Narragansett Bay created the need for a beacon. The original lighthouse was established on Warwick Neck in 1826. Its design was a bit unusual, in that the base was squared, but the top had octagonal cuts. Due to its exposure to wind and sea, the land was eroding, requiring the old light to be demolished and a new cast iron tower, the last of its kind in New England, to be erected in 1932. Erosion continued to be its worst enemy and after the ’38 Hurricane the tower was rolled back another 50 feet. In 1963, the last civilian keeper retired but the tower continued to be overseen by the U.S. Coast Guard. Still used for Coast Guard housing, it is not accessible to the public and is best seen by boat.

Wickford Harbor Light was established on Old Gay Rock in 1882 to replace the Poplar Point Light 200 yards nearer to the shoreline. Its gothic revival house and square tower design were replicated again for the Conanicut Island Light a few years later. After the retirement of its last keeper in 1930, the lighthouse was destroyed. It was replaced with a small automatic tower and a skeleton tower now stands on a pile of rocks. In 1939, the lighthouse service was taken over by the U.S. Coast Guard, which was the case for many other lighthouses, both in Rhode Island and across the nation.