Washington's Historic Lighthouses
These Lighthouses Offer Beautiful Scenery and History
Lighthouses throughout the coast of Washington are loaded with charm, history and iconic architecture. Join in the interest by visiting these popular five.
Lighthouses used to be a mainstay along the Washington coast, signaling boats to keep their distance from the shoreline and telling captains where their ships were. Over the years, as many of them fell into disrepair, an interest evolved and many have since been restored and opened to the public. There are 24 of them in Washington, three of which are all but gone, and many difficult to reach. These five Washington lighthouses are easy to reach, easy to visit and many have been restored.
Built in 1905, this lighthouse is 38 feet tall and built in a Victorian style. It is unique in that it has wood-frame construction while most lighthouses are built from stone or brick. When electricity came in 1927, they replaced the original oil lantern with an electric light. There was also a windmill and two keepers' quarters on the 2.6-acre property. The lighthouse remains a fully functional navigation aid. It is maintained by the Mukilteo Historical Society. The lighthouse is located at 608 Front Street. For more information, call (425)513-9602.
This historic lighthouse boasts views of downtown Seattle, as it juts out into the Puget Sound just south of Elliot Bay. A temporary lantern was placed on the point in 1887, and the lighthouse was completed and lit in 1913. The original lantern was stolen in 1970, but turned up a few years later after a woman asked a Seattle antique dealer about it and returned it to the Coast Guard. Tours of this lighthouse are available, but the grounds are not open to the public. For more information, call (206)217-6124.
Located on Whidbey Island in the Puget Sound, Admiralty Head has views of the Olympic mountains, ferries gliding across the sound and Orca whales, on occasion. In 1958, the government purchased 10 acres of land and started to build the structure. In 1861, a whale-oil lamp lit the lighthouse for the first time. In 1903, the lighthouse was replaced with a new one, Spanish-style with 18-inch thick brick walls. This lighthouse sat empty for many years, falling into disrepair until the mid-1950s when it was purchased by the Washington State Parks Department. It has been open to the public ever since. Tours are available by calling (360)240-5584, and the grounds are open from March through December.
This lighthouse, which sits at Westport on Grays Harbor, is Washington's tallest lighthouse. There is a viewing platform for visitors and the lighthouse participates in the U.S. Lighthouse Society's passport program, which means that visitors can get a special passport stamp when they visit. The nearby Westport Maritime Museum offers rotating exhibits and a gift shop. The lighthouse and museum are open from April to September daily, in October and November, February and March for limited weekend hours and closed in December and January. For more information, call (360)268-0078.
The North Head Lighthouse is just north of Cape Disappointment, where another lighthouse sits. The tower is brick with a cement plaster overlay and their first Fresnel lens was used in 1898. The lighthouse shone a fixed white light, to distinguish itself from the nearby Cape Disappointment lighthouse, which shone a red and white flashing light. The historic lenses from the lighthouses have been preserved and are on display at different regional museums, but the restored lighthouse and grounds are open to the public as part of the Cape Disappointment State Park. Part of the original keepers' quarters are available for overnight stays. For more information, call (360)642-3078.
