Fort Jefferson Lighthouse, Dry Tortugas NP, FL - Philatelic Photographs on Waymarking.com

The Dry Tortugas is a group of small islands, coral reefs and shoals favored by nesting sea turtles, migratory birds and, from time to time, pirates. They are located about 70 miles west of Key West, Florida in the Gulf of Mexico. They were given the name Las Tortugas by Ponce de Leon in 1513, a name that translates to “The Turtles” in English. Because there is no source of fresh water on any of the islands, they eventually became known as the Dry Tortugas.

The island cluster became part of the United States when it acquired Florida from Spain in accordance with the terms of the Adams-Onís Treaty of 1819. Soon thereafter, a surveying team led by Naval Commander (and US stamp subject) Matthew C. Perry recommended that lighthouses be built at several key positions along the Florida keys as an aid to navigation. One of these key positions was the Dry Tortugas. The recommended lighthouse was completed in 1826 on Garden Key, the most centrally located of the Dry Tortugas. It served to mark both the islands as well as the harbor on Garden Key.

Also around this time, the United States Government found itself in possession of an enormous amount of coastline and precious little in the way of defense. A series of fortifications was envisioned at various strategic spots along the entire coastline from Maine to Louisiana. Once again, the Dry Tortugas was chosen as one of these strategic spots. The fortification to be built here, named Fort Jefferson, was to be located on Garden Key where the lighthouse stood. It was the largest of the planned fortifications.

Construction on the fort began in 1846. Difficulty in transporting men and material to the remote location coupled with frequent outbreaks of disease and damaging tropical storms (and small interruptions like the Civil War) caused construction to drag on for decades. Eventually, advancements in military technology and strategy rendered the fort obsolete and it was never completed.

The lighthouse on Garden Key didn’t fare well either. By mid-century, mariners complained that the light (now surrounded by the walls of Fort Jefferson) was neither tall enough nor bright enough to serve sufficient warning. This led to the construction of a new lighthouse on Loggerhead Key, the westernmost and most dangerous (to mariners) of the Dry Tortugas. The new lighthouse was completed in 1858 and operates till this day.

The lighthouse on Garden Key continued in operation marking the harbor until it was severely damaged by a hurricane in 1873. In 1875 a new structure made of boilerplate was built atop bastion C of Fort Jefferson to serve as the harbor light. This is the lighthouse shown on the stamp. The previous masonry structure was subsequently torn down. The current light continued in operation until deactivated in 1924.

The never quite completed Fort Jefferson served as a coaling station during the Spanish American War but has seen little official activity since then. It was designated as Fort Jefferson National Monument in 1935 due to its historical significance. Later, the area was expanded and designated Dry Tortugas National Park in 1992 to preserve the fort as well as the surrounding marine ecology.

The stamp was one of a set of five stamps showing lighthouses of the Gulf Coast. Each stamp shows a lighthouse located in each of the five states that border the Gulf of Mexico.

Stamp Issuing Country: United States Date of Issue: 23-July-2009 Denomination: 44 cents Color: multicolored Stamp Type: Single Stamp Relevant Web Site: [Web Link]

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