The Five Finger Islands Light is 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 on a small island that lies between

Stephens Passage Stephens Passage is a channel in the Alexander Archipelago in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of Alaska. It runs between Admiralty Island to the west and the Alaska mainland and Douglas Island to the east, and is about 170 km (10 ...

and

Frederick Sound Frederick Sound (also called Prince Frederick Sound or Prince Frederick's Sound) is a passage of water in the Alexander Archipelago in Southeast Alaska that separates Kupreanof Island to the south from Admiralty Island in the north. Frederick S ...

southeastern Alaska Southeast Alaska, often abbreviated to southeast or southeastern, and sometimes called the Alaska(n) panhandle, is the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Alaska, bordered to the east and north by the northern half of the Canadian provin ...

. It and Sentinel Island Light Station were the first U.S. government lighthouses opened in Alaska, first lit on March 21, 1902. It became the last lighthouse in Alaska to be automated on August 14, 1984.

History

In 1901, a contract of $22,500 was awarded to construct a lighthouse on the southernmost of the Five Finger Islands. Completed in 1902, it was a rectangular lighthouse with a square tower, elevated several feet above the surrounding hipped roof. Atop the tower sat a lantern room from which a fourth-order

Fresnel lens A Fresnel lens ( ; ; or ) is a type of composite compact lens (optics), lens which reduces the amount of material required compared to a conventional lens by dividing the lens into a set of concentric annular sections. The simpler Dioptrics, d ...

produced a fixed beam of white light at a focal plane of . The original structure burned down in December 1933. The tower was rebuilt using public works appropriations. The current structure is made of concrete, which was completed and relit in 1935. It was automated by the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and Admiralty law, law enforcement military branch, service branch of the armed forces of the United States. It is one of the country's eight Uniformed services ...

in 1984. It was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

as Five Finger Light Station in 2004. The listing was as a

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains historic building, older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal p ...

including four

contributing buildings In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic dist ...

and one other

contributing structure In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic distr ...

. The original lighthouse burned. The replacement, built in 1935, "is a good example of

Modern Movement architecture Modern architecture, also called modernist architecture, or the modern movement, is an architectural movement and style that was prominent in the 20th century, between the earlier Art Deco and later postmodern movements. Modern architecture w ...

, popular in the 1930s for concrete buildings, and adapted by the U.S. Lighthouse Service as the agency replaced the original wood frame lighthouse buildings at many of its sixteen staffed stations in Alaska." and The light station was listed on the

in 2004.

References

External links

United States Coast Guard

2007 U.S. postage stamp featuring Five Finger Islands Light
*
Lighthouse Friends — Five Finger Islands Lighthouse
* 1902 establishments in Alaska Art Deco architecture in Alaska Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Alaska Lighthouses completed in 1902 Lighthouses completed in 1935 Lighthouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Alaska Buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Petersburg Borough, Alaska {{US-lighthouse-stub

History

See also

References

External links