Browns Point Light

Browns Point Lighthouse
LocationBrowns Point, Washington
Coordinates47°18′21.3″N 122°26′39.4″W / 47.305917°N 122.444278°W / 47.305917; -122.444278
Tower
Constructed1887
FoundationConcrete
ConstructionConcrete
Automated1963
Height34 feet (10 m) (38 feet (12 m) above sea level)
ShapeSquare without lantern
HeritageNational Register of Historic Places listed place Edit this on Wikidata
Light
First lit1933 (current tower); 1903 (previous tower); 1887 (first structure)
Focal height12 m (39 ft) Edit this on Wikidata
LensVRB-25
Range12 nautical miles (22 km; 14 mi)
CharacteristicFlashing white light every 5s, Light obscured from 217° to 002°. HORN: 2 blasts ev 30s (2s bl-2s si-2s bl-24s si).
Browns Point Lighthouse and Keeper's Cottage
Nearest cityTacoma, Washington
Area2.5 acres (1.0 ha)
Built1933 (1933)
Architectural styleModernistic
NRHP reference No.89000208
Added to NRHPFebruary 16, 1989

The Browns Point Lighthouse is a lighthouse located near Tacoma on Browns Point at the east entrance to Puget Sound's Commencement Bay, Pierce County, Washington.

History

Cupy the first light station on Browns Point, erected in 1887, consisted of a white light lens lantern on a white post that stood 12 feet (3.7 m) above sea level and 50 yards from the low tide shoreline. A wood-frame lighthouse and separate keepers cottage were built in 1901. The current lighthouse was built in 1933 and automated in 1963. The lighthouse plus the original keeper's cottage, oil house and boathouse are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 2021, the lighthouse was restored, in an effort led by the Points Northeast Historical Society, with $65,000 in donations from local residents. The restoration was led by Metro Parks Tacoma, and the lighthouse was re-dedicated on October 17, 2021.

Public access

The Points Northeast Historical Society rents out the keeper's cottage with the renter serving as an honorary lightkeeper who conducts lighthouse tours on Saturday afternoons. The Society also operates two museums by the lighthouse: the History Center with changing history exhibits and the Boat House Museum with displays of a replica surfboat and maritime artifacts. The lighthouse is on the grounds of Browns Point Lighthouse Park which offers picnicking and scenic vistas of sea traffic and mountains.

References

  1. ↑ "13th Coast Guard District Lighthouses". 13th Coast Guard District. January 1996. Retrieved April 20, 2015.
  2. ↑ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  3. ↑ "Browns Point Light". Inventory of Historic Light Stations: Washington Lighthouses. National Park Service. Archived from the original on April 7, 2004. Retrieved April 20, 2015.
  4. ↑ "History of Browns Point Lighthouse Park". Metro Parks Tacoma. Retrieved April 20, 2015.
  5. ↑ "Historic Light Station Information & Photography: Washington". U.S. Coast Guard. November 17, 2014. Retrieved April 20, 2015.
  6. ↑ "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form". National Park Service. February 16, 1989. Retrieved April 20, 2015.
  7. ↑ Winters, Anne (October 1, 2021). "Lighting Up the Past at Browns Point". Parks Tacoma. Retrieved August 25, 2025.
  8. ↑ "Light Keeper's Cottage Rental". Points Northeast Historical Society. Retrieved April 20, 2015.
  9. ↑ "Browns Point, WA". Lighthousefriends. Archived from the original on April 27, 2015. Retrieved April 20, 2015.
  10. ↑ "Browns Point Lighthouse". Seattle and Sound. Archived from the original on April 3, 2015. Retrieved April 20, 2015.

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