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Places, Earth |
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State Parks, Historic Sites, and Museums need your help.Places Earth recently encountered closed state parks in Arizona and California is threatening to close all state parks. The story is similar throughout the country. Places Earth urges everyone to support these vital and important public resources any way you can. Please find a worthy local or distant historic site or museum that is in financial danger and donate your treasure, time, and talent. Write to your governor and other elected officials telling them to find a way to keep these parks open. It will be your loss. Public Service Announcement |
| Back | San Mateo County Main Page |
Pigeon Point Light Station State Historic Park
All photographs taken by Kenneth A. Larson. All rights reserved. © 2008 - 2010.| The Pigeon Point Lighthouse is 115 feet, the tallest operating lighthouse on the west coast. Pigeon Point was originally named Whale Point but the name was changed to honor the sail ship Carrier Pigeon which went aground here on June 6, 1853 on her maiden voyage. As more ships ran aground at the point, it became clear that a lighthouse was required. The fog signal was first heard on November 15, 1872 and the site still holds an annual lighting celebration on the Saturday closest to that date. |
| The lighthouse is topped by a first order Fresnel lens, the most powerful of its time. The 4-ton lens is sixteen feet tall and contains 1,008 hand made brass framed prisms to focus the light into an intense beam that could reach far out to sea. The twenty four nine-and-a-half foot tall panels of prisms form a six foot diameter unit that rotates every ten seconds using a clockwork type mechanism. The light station is still an active U.S. Coast Guard aid to navigation using a 24 inch Aero Beacon The fog signal has been replaced (1976) by modern aids to navigation. Four-and-a-half foot thick walls rest on an eight foot foundation. The light station is on the National Register of Historic Places. |
| ALso operating at the site is Pigeon Point Lighthouse Hostel. |
| The lighthouse is currently closed to the public following an incident in December 2001 when a section of the exterior cornice broke away. The grounds remain open but the lighthouse may still be viewed from the grounds. For current updates, call the park hotline at 650-879-2120. The Museum and Gift Shop remain open. |
| Whale watching is popular at the point as the California Grey Whales migrate in the spring and fall. Blue and humpback can sometimes be seen further offshore. Birding is also popular here. |
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Pigeon Point Light Station State Historic Park c/o Año Nuevo State Reserve New Years Creek road Pescadero, CA 94060 650-879-2120 Grounds open 8-sunset. |
 Looking southwest from the parking area. |
 Looking southwest from the parking area. |
 North side. |
 North side. |
 Northwest side. |
 Northwest side. |
 Southwest side. |
 Southwest side. |
 Southwest side. |
 Note the cables tieing together the damaged parts. |
 West side. |
 West side. |
 West side. |
 West side. |
 West side. |
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| What is now the Museum was the second Fog Signal Building, built by the U. S. Lighthouse Service in 1899 to replace the original 1871 buildng. The first signal was steam-generated from a wood boiler and took 45 minutes to build enough pressure and sounded like a ship's whistle which caused confusion. The wistle was replaced by a compressed air siren in 1911. The second horn ran on a gasoline engine. A two-tone diaphone replaced the air siren in 1935 and lasted until the mid-1960s when it was replaced by a smaller single-note signal mounted on the tower below the lower window on the west side. | |
 Gull standing on the roof. |
 Brick chimney. |
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| San Mateo County Main Page |
This page last updated: Wednesday, 22-Apr-2009 10:10:34 CDT
| Note: This is not the official site for any of the places shown in Places Earth. Places Earth is not responsible for accuracy of the information. Hours of operations, prices, exhibits, and sometimes locations are subject to change without notice. |
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This web site started because of my love for Architecture and interest in History. This web site is for your benefit and I make no profit on it. I don't allow paid advertising. This site is supported primarily from my regular paycheck as a Set Designer and there haven' been many this year. My wife sells Gold Canyon products at www.valleygirlcandles.com and I sell art at www.klimages.com. A non-tax deductable donation to help cover the cost of operating this web site may be made to Kesign Design Consulting through PayPal ... | ||
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This site maintained by Kenneth A. Larson. Copyright © 2004 - 2010, Kenneth A. Larson. All Rights Reserved. Website content including photographic and graphic images may not be redistributed for use on another website. |
| This site is a non-commercial alternative to my commercial design portfolio site. This site's only purpose is for your enjoyment. There is no advertising and I make no profit. If you are in the need of a designer, please check my commercial site www.kesigndesign.com. |
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