Digest>Archives> January 2001

Pigeon Point and Its Relighting

By Gary Martin

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Pigeon Point Lighthouse sits on rocky point the juts seaward midway between Half Moon Bay and Santa Cruz, California, about 50 miles south of San Francisco. Originally, the site was called Whale Point since a Portuguese whaling station operated there in the 1850’s to hunt whales on their annual migration from Baja California to the Arctic. The location got its current name following the 1853 wreck of the clipper Carrier Pigeon which grounded on the rocks just off shore, broke up, and sank on her maiden voyage from Boston to San Francisco. In memory of that wreck, the area was subsequently renamed Pigeon Point.

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During the Lighthouse Service’s construction of west coast lighthouses during the second half of the 19th century, Pigeon Point first got a fog whistle in 1871. However, it was not until 1872 that the light in the 115-foot tall brick tower was lit for the first time. The conical brick tower has walls about 4 feet thick at the base tapering to about 2 feet at the top and is unique in that it has structurally connected inner and outer walls. The lighthouse survived, undamaged from the major earthquakes that shook this part of California in 1906 and again in 1989.

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The relighting event celebrated the 128th anniversary of the Pigeon Point Lighthouse. According to Docent Coordinator Nelson Morosini, the event was expected to attract about 2,000 people. He was right. As early as 1 PM people started arriving and by mid afternoon the entire access loop road was parked solidly with cars along the seaward side of the road.

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Toward sunset there was a continuous line of photographers with their cameras set up on tripods across the small ridge that runs across the lighthouse grounds. Cameras ranged from the simple point-and-shoot to sophisticated professional 35 mm SLR’s and professional digital cameras. The numbers of people coming onto the lighthouse grounds continued to swell as darkness deepened toward the lighting time of Pigeon Point’s massive ten foot tall and 6 feet in diameter First Order lens. The bluffs along Hwy 1 were also lined with cars of people watching from further away.

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When 6 PM finally arrived and the giant Fresnel lens was lit, with its beams radiating in every direction from its 24 bulls-eye prisms, there was what seemed to be a simultaneous exclamation from everyone in the crowd. For the first five minutes, the giant lens was stationary to the delight of the photographers present in the crowd. Cameras were in constant use, the tower of the lighthouse was somewhat illuminated by the continuous flash coming from some of the point-and-shoot cameras. When the lens was lit, traffic on Hwy 1 had literally come to a standstill with cars stopping to watch. After five minutes, the rotation of the giant lens was started, which continued for the balance of the 6-8 PM lighting period. The slow, majestic rotation of the lens gave beams that swept the hills behind the lighthouse and out to sea.

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Having missed being able to attend this event the last several years, I was thrilled to be there for this, the 128th anniversary. The beauty of a lighted and rotating First Order Fresnel lens is certainly enough to make one want to turn back the clocks to a time when it was in regular use! While perhaps not as reliable as the rotating aero-beacon now in service on a platform outside of the lantern room, the Fresnel lens , when in operation, has what is certainly a magical beauty that makes it a true maritime treasure.

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Having been there for this awesome relighting is something that I’ll never forget. I sincerely hope that someday, you will also be able to attend this annual relighting of the magnificent First Order lens at California’s Pigeon Point Lighthouse.

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This story appeared in the January 2001 edition of Lighthouse Digest Magazine. The print edition contains more stories than our internet edition, and each story generally contains more photographs - often many more - in the print edition. For subscription information about the print edition, click here.

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