“The lighthouse stands on the edge of the known and the unknown, casting its beacon of light into the darkness.”
Jonathan Lockwood Hule
While
driving around rural south New Jersey, I found that there was a
lighthouse not far from where we were crabbing in picturesque
Southern Bayshore, Cumberland County. Since Joe and I both love
lighthouses, we knew we had to go. After driving for miles through
small towns and then through wide open salt marshes, we saw the East
Point Lighthouse off in a distance. The red roof made it really made
it stand out in the marshland. What a lovely sight to see.
We
pulled into the near deserted parking lot and parked. From the
parking lot you can see the Delaware Bay and the top of the
lighthouse. When we got out of the car, we got a whiff of the salt
air and felt a nice breeze coming from the bay. We walked down the
path and read the placards giving some information on lighthouses and
this lighthouse’s history.
We
walked to the front of the lighthouse and noticed it was built in a
Cape Cod design. This two and a half story brick lighthouse sits on
3.6 acres and is painted white with black shutters and has an
octagonal light tower attached on top. I read there is a full
basement as well that gets flooded often as you could imagine being
so close to sea level. We knew it wouldn’t be open that day since
we came in the middle of the week but we still had to come. We loved
walking around this historic place. What a gorgeous lighthouse.
East
Point Lighthouse is the second oldest lighthouse in New Jersey with
only Sandy Hook lighthouse being older. It was built in 1849 to help
mark the Maurice River on the eastern shore which is on the northern
side of the Delaware Bay not far from the Atlantic Ocean. This
lighthouse helped to serve the commercial oyster fishermen operations
and other boating traffic in the area.
The
original name of the lighthouse was the Maurice River Lighthouse.
There have been 10 lighthouse keepers since it was built to maintain
and protect this remote lighthouse. A blinking red beacon stands 40
feet above sea level shines at night. The red light can be seen for
8.1 miles. It was automated in 1911.
This
light was deactivated from 1941 – 1980. It stayed dark during WWII
and fell into disrepair in the years that followed. Vandals set a
fire that destroyed the light room and some of the interior in 1971.
Since then, the interior has been renovated and new period antiques
have been added to the museum. The Coast Guard reactivated this
beautiful lighthouse in 1980 making it the only “on shore”
lighthouse on the Delaware Bay. It was added to the National
Register of Historic Places on August 25, 1995.
We
walked the grounds and loved how they had picnic tables scattered on
the grassy lawn. There is also a gift shop which was not open the
day we were there but is open from the spring to autumn every weekend
from 11 am to 4 pm. The lighthouse is open from January through April
on the first and third weekends from 11 – 4. It is open to the
public from Spring through Autumn starting in May every Saturday and
Sunday from 1:00 to 4:00.
After
wandering the lighthouse property, we walked to the waterline and
noticed the huge sand filled “geotubes” that rest on the beach.
These were place in November 2019 to protect the lighthouse from
flooding. Since the 1940’s ¾ of the beach front has been lost
through erosion. The state of New Jersey had hoped that would help
protect the lighthouse and it has some but more needs to happen since
this lighthouse is so close to the water. It was beautiful looking
out over the bay and watching the active sea gulls swooping down. It
must be beautiful here at sunset.
It
costs $8 for an adult to go into the lighthouse, $4 for students, and
11 and under are free. If you have never seen this lighthouse, it is
a must to go see it. Maybe next time we will make it there when it
is open.
Till
next time. Bye for now.
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