Pumpkin Island Lighthouse

Pumpkin Island Lighthouse is a historic lighthouse located just off Deer Isle, Maine. The lighthouse was established in 1854 and it stands at the northwestern entrance to Eggemoggin Reach.

The United States Coast Survey suggested that a lighthouse be built on Pumpkin Island in 1852. It was important to make Eggemoggin Reach more navigatable because it was used by all traders and coasting vessels to and from eastward. A lighthouse, which would increase navigational capabilities at night, would benefit the area substantially.

Congress provided funding for the Pumpkin Island Lighthouse in 1852, but purchasing the island was difficult. John Chester Tibbetts, the island’s owner, eventually decided to give up the island for the development of the lighthouse. Tibbetts was a captain and he would become the lighthouse’s first keeper.

Pumpkin Island Lighthouse was built in 1854 and measures 22 feet from base to light. In excellent weather, the lighthouse’s fifth-order Fresnel lens could be visible from nine nautical miles distant. It was first lit on January 1, 1855. The tower has two windows and is connected to the keeper’s home by a frame workroom to the south. The keepers’ home is a single-story wood-frame clapboarded construction with three bays. A tiny brick oil house is a short distance away, and near the north end of the island’s boat slip is a wood-frame boathouse, erected in 1885 and extended in 1906. Over the next two decades, a number of repairs and additions were made.

The light was turned off in 1933 and decommissioned. It was then sold to a private owner. Since then, the island and its structures have remained in private ownership. The tower remains along with the other structures. The lighthouse can be best seen from the water, but there is a small landing at the end of Eggemoggin Rd on Little Deer Isle that offers nice views.

Looking to explore more great lighthouses located in DownEast/Acadia? Check out these 23 Spectacular Lighthouses in DownEast Acadia Maine to Visit!