Year of Construction: 1887
First Lighted: 1887
Electrified: 1933
Automated: 1952
Deactived: 1970-1982
Tower Height: 175 feet
Focal Height: 159 feet
Type of Tower: conical brick
Construction Materials: brick, granite, and iron
Number of Stairs: 213
Daymark: red tower, white ring near top, black lantern
Status: active
Current Optic: third-order rotating Fresnel lens
Grounds Open To The Public: yes
Tower Open To The Public: yes
The massive red-brick tower at Ponce Inlet anchors a remarkably complete historic station arranged around brick walkways. The lighthouse, keeper dwellings, oil house, and lens exhibits together show how a major first-order station operated at the turn of the twentieth century.
A short-lived lighthouse built on the opposite side of the inlet in 1835 was undermined by a storm and collapsed the next year. Work on the present tower began in the 1880s, using more than a million bricks, and the light entered service in 1887. It was electrified in 1933, when a third-order Fresnel lens replaced the original first-order lens. The Coast Guard automated the station in the early 1950s and abandoned it in 1970. Local preservationists restored the property, and the tower was reactivated in 1982 after a new building blocked the replacement light.
The light station is open to the public on a regular museum schedule in Ponce Inlet. Admission includes the grounds, historic buildings, exhibits, and tower climb, subject to weather and safety restrictions. Check the museum’s official site for current hours and programs.
The Town of Ponce Inlet owns the station, and the Ponce de Leon Inlet Lighthouse Preservation Association operates it. The tower functions as a private aid to navigation. The restored station, tower, and lens collection are open to visitors.
