Seventy-five years ago today, the Gazette reported that the new Edgartown Lighthouse was lit for the first time. The cast iron tower dates to 1875 and was floated to Edgartown by barge from Ipswich in 1939 to replace the original wooden lighthouse that had fallen into disrepair.
The town is the new owner of the old lighthouse, which has been perched a quarter mile out on the outer Edgartown harbor since 1939. The U.S. General Services Administration announced the transfer in ownership last week.
The Edgartown lighthouse, having outlived its mission as a beacon for ships, is on the verge of its next chapter as a town-owned landmark.
Edgartown selectmen signed off Monday on the town’s application to take stewardship of the 1875 lighthouse perched a quarter-mile out in Edgartown harbor.
In May, the town learned that the U.S. General Services Administration, the current owners of the lighthouse, would look for a new owner for the lighthouse, which was deemed no longer critical to the U.S. Coast Guard.
The Edgartown lighthouse could have ended up in Arkansas. But the 1875 lighthouse will likely stay at its perch a quarter-mile out in Edgartown harbor, as the Edgartown selectmen signed off Monday on the town’s application to take stewardship of the icon.
In May, the town learned that the U.S. General Services Administration, the current owners of the lighthouse, would look for a new owner for the lighthouse, which was deemed no longer critical to the U.S. Coast Guard.
The Edgartown Lighthouse, the prominent beacon overlooking the outer Edgartown harbor that has long been a symbol of the town, is going to be put up to bid by the federal government, with the town and the Martha’s Vineyard Museum expressing interest in taking stewardship of the landmark.
It rained in Vineyard Haven and in Oak Bluffs on Saturday. But in Edgartown the skies held out for a 1 p.m. service at the Edgartown Lighthouse. More than 60 people came together at the foot of the beacon, under dark and threatening skies for the Children’s Memorial, a remembrance. They came to hear stories, music and commemorate a lost child in their lives.
