Bridgeport Harbor Light
Early picture postcard of the lighthouse
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 Connecticut
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| Location | Bridgeport Entrance Channel Bridgeport Connecticut United States |
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| Coordinates | 41°09′24.2″N 73°10′47.3″W / 41.156722°N 73.179806°WCoordinates: 41°09′24.2″N 73°10′47.3″W / 41.156722°N 73.179806°W |
| Year first constructed | 1851 (first) 1871 (second rebuilt) 1953 (third) |
| Year first lit | n/a (current) |
| Deactivated | 1953 (second) |
| Foundation | iron screw piles base (first) concrete base (third and current) |
| Construction | wooden tower (first and second) metal skeletal tower (third and current) |
| Tower shape | octagonal prism tower atop keeper's house (first and second) square pyramidal skeletal tower (thirsd) square parallelepiped skeletal tower with light (current) |
| Height | 52 feet (16 m) (third and current) |
| Focal height | 57 feet (17 m) (current) |
| Light source | solar power |
| Characteristic | Q G (current) F R (first) |
| Admiralty number | J0830 |
| ARLHS number | USA-086 |
| USCG number | 1-24615 |
| Managing agent | United States Coast Guard |
The Bridgeport Harbor Light, later the Bridgeport Harbor Lighthouse, was a lighthouse in Bridgeport, Connecticut, United States. It is located on the west side of the Bridgeport Harbor entrance and the north side of Long Island Sound. Originally constructed in 1851 and rebuilt in 1871 with a dwelling, it had a red-fixed light throughout its service life. The builder and first keeper of the light was Abraham A. McNeil who is also credited as improvising the first light for the Bridgeport Harbor in 1844. By 1953, the lighthouse was in poor condition and the United States Coast Guard opted to build a skeleton tower in its place. In the 2014 edition of the Light List Volume 1, the skeleton tower is marked as "Light 13A" with a height of 57 feet (17 m) and a visual marker of a square green dayboard with a green reflective border. The lighthouse was sold and an attempt was made to move it to serve as a monument for Connecticut's maritime history, but it was later decided to scrap the structure. The lighthouse caught fire and was destroyed during the dismantling in 1953.
According to Waldo's History of Bridgeport and Vicinity, Volume 1, Abraham A. McNeil first set a light atop a mast to mark the Bridgeport Harbor in 1844. The next day Captain John Brooks Jr. set up his own improvised light with another boat. Constructed in 1851, the first Bridgeport Harbor Light was an octagonal tower on a box-like structure stood on iron piles. The exact details of its construction are not recorded and there is no complete description, but it is known to have had a fixed red light. Waldo identifies Abraham A. McNeil as the builder of the light. The light had no keeper's quarters and was only accessible by boat. By 1870, a new lighthouse was needed, partly because of the increased maritime traffic.
Completed in 1871, the rebuilt light had a dwelling with the attached tower containing a fourth-order Fresnel lens. It retained the original fixed red light, but also included a fog bell. In 1900, the lighthouse was identified in the Light List as having a red screw-pile structure, a white tower and dwelling with a slate-gray Mansard roof topped with a black lantern. The lighthouse had a fog signal that sounded every 15 seconds and was operated by machinery. Although the focal height of the light is unlisted, the center of the light stood 34 ft (10 m) above the ground.
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