Thomas Point Shoals Light Station - Highland Beach, MD
Posted by: Don.Morfe
N 38° 54.450 W 076° 27.636
18S E 373356 N 4307525
This lighthouse was the last of the manned screwpile lighthouses in Chesapeake Bay. The first lighthouse at Thomas Point shoals was constructed in 1825 on land at the end of the Thomas Point peninsula. It became fully automated in September of 1986.
Waymark Code: WM164EB
Location: Maryland, United States
Date Posted: 05/02/2022
Views: 1
National Register of Historic Places Inventory--Nomination Form
The original light is intact, and the building has sustained only minor alterations. This lighthouse was the last of the manned screwpile lighthouses in Chesapeake Bay. The screwpile type lighthouse was initially designed and built in 1838 by Alexander Mitchell, an English engineer. Ten years later, this design was first built in the United States on Brandywine Shoal in the Delaware Bay. The screwpile method of anchoring a lighthouse incorporated pilings tipped with two blades arranged in a screw fashion. The method was simple, effective, inexpensive, and appropriate for the often shallow, muddy, or sandy bottom of the Chesapeake Bay. Between 1854 and 1908, 42 screwpile lighthouses were constructed on the Bay. All the structures were basically alike, tending to vary only in size, number of pilings, type of bracing, and style of superstructure. The first lighthouse at Thomas Point shoals was constructed in 1825 on land at the end of the Thomas Point peninsula which before severe erosion extended much further into the bay. Due to its faulty construction, this lighthouse was rebuilt in 1838 by Winslow Lewis. After 44 years, complaints were made that the location of the lighthouse made it of little use at night and in foggy weather. While a new caisson-type lighthouse was considered, a less expensive screwpile lighthouse was selected. The present screwpile lighthouse at Thomas Point was built on five acres of land in the Bay conveyed by the State of Maryland on October 28, 1874. It became fully automated in September of 1986.
Street address: Chesapeake Bay off of Thomas Point Park Highland Beach, MD United States 21403
County / Borough / Parish: Anne Arundel County
Year listed: 1975
Historic (Areas of) Significance: Event, Architecture/Engineering
Periods of significance: 1875-1899
Historic function: Transportation
Current function: Transportation
Privately owned?: no
Primary Web Site: [Web Link]
Secondary Website 1: [Web Link]
Season start / Season finish: Not listed
Hours of operation: Not listed
Secondary Website 2: Not listed
National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed
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Visit Instructions:
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