Tybee Island Lighthouse, Georgia
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History of Tybee Island Lighthouse, Georgia
After the founding of Savannah in 1732, General Edward Oglethorpe ordered that navigational aid be placed at the mouth of the Savannah River. Four years later, 1 90-foot cedar and brick day mark was constructed on Tybee Island. After a succession of replacement markers, one of America’s earliest lighthouses, a brick sentinel, was originally lighted by whale oil candles in 1773.
On December 3, 1861, a Confederate raiding party removed the lens and set fire to the tower, destroying the stairway and lantern. After the war, repair team found damage so great that it was necessary to completely rebuild the upper portion of the tower. Renovations raised the focal plane of the new first order lens to 144 feet above sea level. The beacon was relit on October 1, 1867.
In 1871 heavy gales struck the island and cracked the tower walls. The Lighthouse Board recommended complete replacement of the station. Congress ignored the recommendations, however, and the Board had to settle for basic repairs. Storms shook the tower again in 1878, and, in 1886, an earthquake broke the lens and lengthened the existing cracks. In 1997 the Tybee Island Historical Society, led by restoration expert Cullen Chambers, began serious renovation work on the old tower. An outpouring of support from private citizens throughout the country has ensured the survival of the historic sentinel.
If you enjoyed reading this little bit of lighthouse history, taken from THE OFFICIAL COLLECTORS GUIDE HARBOUR LIGHTS, click on this link to purchase the book.