The Deepwater Shoals Light was a

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Ligh ...

located in the

James River The James River is a river in Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows from the confluence of the Cowpasture and Jackson Rivers in Botetourt County U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowli ...

upstream from

Newport News, Virginia Newport News () is an Independent city (United States), independent city in southeastern Virginia, United States. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 186,247. Located in the Hampton Roads region, it is the List of c ...

History

This light was erected in 1855 to mark the western edge of the channel. Ice damaged the light in the following year, and again in 1867; in the latter case the light had to be rebuilt completely, at which time the light was upgraded to a sixth-order Fresnel from the previous masthead light. During the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

the light was extinguished by confederate forces; relit in 1862, the Lighthouse Board reconsidered and removed the lighting apparatus to

Fort Monroe Fort Monroe is a former military installation in Hampton, Virginia, at Old Point Comfort, the southern tip of the Virginia Peninsula, United States. It is currently managed by partnership between the Fort Monroe Authority for the Commonwealth o ...

for safekeeping. Decommissioning came in 1936, and the house was torn down in 1966. A steel tower light has been erected on the old iron foundation.

Notes

References

*
Deepwater Shoals Light
from the Chesapeake Chapter of the United States Lighthouse Society * Lighthouses in Virginia Lighthouses completed in 1855 James River (Virginia) Lighthouses in the Chesapeake Bay {{US-lighthouse-stub