Point Cabrillo Light Station
Point Cabrillo Light Station, 45300 Litehouse Rd, Mendocino, CA 95460, USA
Name and Location
Point Cabrillo Light Station is a historic lighthouse located on the Mendocino Coast of northern California, USA. The address is 45300 Lighthouse Road (Litehouse Rd), Mendocino, CA 95460.
Construction and History
The Point Cabrillo Light Station was authorized by Congress in 1905 and constructed between 1907 and 1909. It was first lit on February 1, 1909. The original function of the light station was to aid navigation, marking a dangerous reef and shoals off the Mendocino coast. Although automated in 1974, the U.S. Coast Guard still retains responsibility for the light.
Architecture and Materials
The Point Cabrillo Light Station features a standard U.S. Lighthouse Board wood-frame design with an Edwardian vernacular style. The complex consists of a 37-ft cylindrical light tower with integral oil house, keeper's duplex and assistant keeper cottages (three residences total), workshops, generator house, fog-signal building, barn, and blacksmith shop. The original optical apparatus is a third-order Fresnel lens by Chance Brothers.
Light and Navigation
The tower height is 37 ft (11.3 m) with a focal plane of 97 ft (29.6 m) above mean sea level. The light characteristic is flashing white every 15 seconds (Fl W 15 s), with a nominal range of 18 nautical miles.
Accessibility and Visiting
The Point Cabrillo Light Station is open to the public on weekends and most weekdays from 10 am to 4 pm, with hours varying seasonally. Visitors can take self-guided museum exhibits or docent-led tower climbs on weekends (advance reservations recommended). Facilities include a museum shop, interpretive displays in keeper's quarters, onsite restrooms, picnic tables, and parking.
Notable Views and Landscape
The surrounding area offers scenic views of the Mendocino Headlands State Park, MacKerricher State Park, and the Mendocino Village. Visitors can enjoy whale watching, hiking, glass beach, tidepooling, and pygmy forest.
Anecdotes and Folklore
According to legend, visitors have reported hearing phantom footsteps in the old fog-signal building, possibly a former keeper on night watch. In 1910, shortly after first lighting, the steamship "Bear" ran aground nearby, and keepers assisted in rescue efforts.
Technical and Operational Details
The light station is managed by the California Department of Parks and Recreation in partnership with the Point Cabrillo Light Station Association (a nonprofit volunteer group). The website is https://www.pointcabrillo.org/.
Further Information
For further information, refer to the Point Cabrillo Light Station Association website, "Lighthouses of the Pacific Coast" by A. Johnson (2005), pp. 112-119, U.S. Coast Guard Light List, Vol. VI (latest edition), National Register of Historic Places nomination form, National Park Service (1978), and Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Point_Cabrillo_Light
Details
| Name | Point Cabrillo Light Station |
|---|---|
| City | Mendocino |
| Country | United States |
| Coordinates | 39.3485816, -123.8261727 |
| Website | https://www.pointcabrillo.org/ |
| Year of construction | 1909 |
| Events | Shipwrecks: Shortly after first lighting, the steamship “Bear” ran aground nearby in 1910; keepers assisted in rescue. |
| Stories | Shortly after first lighting, the steamship “Bear” ran aground nearby in 1910; keepers assisted in rescue. |
| Architectural style | standard U.S. Lighthouse Board wood-frame design, Edwardian vernacular |
| Construction material | ["wood-frame tower and keeper's dwellings on concrete and masonry foundations; corrugated metal roofs painted red; tower and buildings clad in white shiplap siding"] |
| Focal height | 29.6 |
| Tower height | 11.3 |
| Heritage status | true |
| Renovations | Late 1990s–2000s extensive volunteer-driven stabilization of tower and dwellings; original lens restored in 2007 |
| Access description | small lot at the end of Lighthouse Road; ADA-accessible path to lower exhibits |
| Accessible | true |
| Landscape type | Coastal bluff habitat, tide pools |
| Guided tours | true |
| Facilities | museum shop, interpretive displays in keeper's quarters, onsite restrooms, picnic tables |
| Opening hours | weekends and most weekdays, 10 a.m.–4 p.m. |
| Nearby attractions | ["Mendocino Headlands State Park (scenic bluff trails, whale watching)","MacKerricher State Park (glass beach, tidepooling, pygmy forest)","Mendocino Village (art galleries, shops, restaurants)","Jug Handle State Natural Reserve (prehistoric shorelines, hiking)"] |
| AIS Radar | false |
| Light characteristic | "Fl W 15 s" |
| Light range | 18 |
| Automated | true |