Plymouth Light
Plymouth Light is a lighthouse, at a modelled elevation of 17 m. Manomet Hill stands 114 m to the south, 5.3 miles off. The nearest named place is Pumphouse, a lighthouse less than a tenth of a mile away. Old King's Highway (Route 6A) passes 18 miles off.
The story
Plymouth Light, also known as Gurnet Light, is a historic lighthouse located on Gurnet Point at the entrance to Plymouth Bay in the town of Plymouth, Massachusetts. The light is accessible only by passing through the town of Duxbury, which lies to the north. The tower is located inside the earthworks of Fort Andrew, which existed in the Civil War, War of 1812, and Revolutionary War. The original lighthouse was built in 1768, burned down and rebuilt in 1801, when the single light became a pair, and rebuilt again in 1842, again as a pair. The light gradually lost importance as Plymouth Harbor silted up and lost most of its traffic. Then, when the Cape Cod Canal opened in 1914, there was a significant increase in vessel traffic past the light. The northeast tower was torn down and the remaining tower upgraded from a sixth order Fresnel lens to one of the fourth order. The fourth order lens is now on display at the Lifesaving Museum in Hull, Massachusetts. The light is the oldest wooden lighthouse in the United States. The light was relocated approximately 140 feet (43 m) to the north in December 1998 because of beach erosion; this placed it within the earthworks of Fort Andrew. The property and the Duxbury Pier Light, in open water 2.3 nmi (4.3 km; 2.6 mi) to the SW are both managed by Project Gurnet and Bug Lights, Inc. The site is also known for being staffed by America's first female lighthouse keeper. The actual light is 102 feet (31 m) above Mean High Water. Its white light is visible for 17 nautical miles (31 km; 20 mi); its red sector, which covers Mary Ann Rocks, is visible 15 nautical miles (28 km; 17 mi). Plymouth Light was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as Plymouth Light Station on March 8, 1977.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Dates from 1768.
Wikidata Q7205822, referenced by the OpenStreetMap record.
What the record says
- Built
- 1842
- Height
- 11.9 m
What to expect
How to reach it
- 17.7 mi off the Old King's Highway (Route 6A), National
Named places within 25 miles
- Plum Hills: 0.8 mi
- Captains Hill: 4.2 mi
- Hardin Hill: 4.4 mi
- Coles Hill: 4.5 mi
- Burying Hill: 4.7 mi
- Saquish Beach: 0.9 mi
- Plymouth Beach: 3.2 mi
- Captain's Flats: 3.3 mi
- Standish Shore: 3.6 mi
- Shipyard Lane Beach: 4.0 mi
- Duxbury Beach Reservation: 3.1 mi
- Plymouth Long Beach: 3.2 mi
- Plymouth Long Beach: 3.3 mi
- Plymouth Long Beach: 3.4 mi
- Plymouth Long Beach: 3.5 mi
- Hunt Park: 3.8 mi
- Nelson Street Park: 4.4 mi
- Pilgrim Memorial State Park: 4.5 mi
- Fishermans Memorial Park: 4.5 mi
- Stephens Field: 4.5 mi
- Myles Standish Cellar Hole: 3.8 mi
- Myles Standish Monument: 4.2 mi
- Plymouth Rock: 4.5 mi
- National Monument to the Forefathers: 4.9 mi
- Town of Marshfield Veterans Honor Roll: 8.6 mi
- King Caesar House: 4.3 mi
- Windsor House Museum: 4.4 mi
- Duxbury Rural & Historical Society: 4.4 mi
- Traylor Trask Museum: 4.5 mi
- Edward Winslow House Museum: 4.5 mi
- Pilgrim Mother Statue: 4.5 mi
- William Bradford Statue: 4.5 mi
- Massasoit: 4.5 mi
- The Pilgrim Maiden: 4.6 mi
- Myles Standish Legs: 12.6 mi
- Hart Family Maze Garden: 18.2 mi
- The McGraw Family Garden of the Senses: 18.2 mi
- Donald Marvin Daylily Garden: 18.2 mi
- Herb Garden: 18.3 mi
- North American Hydrangea Test Garden: 18.3 mi
- Mayflower II: 4.4 mi
- Mayflower Experience: 4.4 mi
- Pembroke Herring Run: 11.4 mi
- Edaville: 13.9 mi
- Mann Farmhouse: 14.3 mi
- High Cliff: 4.4 mi
- Fourth Cliff: 12.1 mi
- Lookout Point: 12.1 mi
- Third Cliff: 13.5 mi
- Peaked Cliff: 13.8 mi
- Massachusetts Tourist Information Center: 5.6 mi
- State Route 3 Parking Area Northbound: 12.2 mi
- State Route 3 Parking Area Southbound: 12.2 mi
- Rest Area SR-25 Welcome Center: 15.4 mi
- truck pull-off: 22.7 mi
- Herring Run Recreational Area: 16.0 mi
- Bourne Recreation Area: 17.8 mi
- Stella Tirrell Picnic Table Area: 21.3 mi
- Stella Tirrell Picnic Area: 21.4 mi
- Pumphouse: 0.0 mi
- Long Point: 22.1 mi
- Rock Falls: 24.7 mi
Summits around it
The highest named summits within 16.2 miles of Plymouth Light. Elevation from each summit’s own record; bearing measured between the two coordinates.
| Summit | Bearing | Elevation | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manomet Hill | S 174° | 114 m | 5.3 mi |
| Pine Hills | S 172° | 95 m | 4.8 mi |
| Monks Hill | WSW 245° | 83 m | 6.9 mi |
| Carolina Hill | NW 322° | 77 m | 10.7 mi |
| Flagg Hill | SSW 197° | 64 m | 8.1 mi |
| Black Pond Hill | NW 319° | 64 m | 16.1 mi |
| Pinnacle Hill | SSW 211° | 62 m | 7.7 mi |
| Sparrow Hill | SW 231° | 61 m | 6.1 mi |
When to go
Light through the year
| Date | Sunrise | Golden hour | Sunset |
|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox | 06:47 | 18:18 | 18:55 |
| June solstice | 05:08 | 19:40 | 20:22 |
| September equinox | 06:30 | 18:05 | 18:42 |
| December solstice | 07:08 | 15:29 | 16:15 |
Local time (America/New_York).
Climate normals
Months averaging 50–80 °F: May–Oct.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg °F | 31 | 33 | 39 | 49 | 59 | 68 | 74 | 73 | 66 | 56 | 46 | 37 |
| Precip in | 4.8 | 4.2 | 5.8 | 4.7 | 3.7 | 3.8 | 3.5 | 3.6 | 4.3 | 5.0 | 4.4 | 4.9 |
1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals, NOAA NCEI — Plymouth-kingston, 5 mi away.
Mean tidal range 9.89 ft at the nearest NOAA station.
NOAA CO-OPS station Duxbury, Duxbury Harbor, MA, 4 miaway — today’s predictions live there.
Where this comes from
Location and category confirmed against OpenStreetMap.
National Register of Historic Places, reference 77000655OpenStreetMapWikipediaWikidataOfficial site- National Register of Historic Places — Plymouth Light Station, reference 77000655, listed 03/08/77.
OpenStreetMap element way/1030900166
Day trips start here
- Carver · 12 mi
- Halifax · 13 mi
- Scituate · 15 mi
- Middleborough · 17 mi
- Wareham · 18 mi
- Bridgewater · 19 mi
Take the scenic way to Plymouth Light.
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