The Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse is a "must see" when visiing Jupiter. It is the oldest existing structure in Palm Beach County and was completed and first lit on July 10, 1860. It stands 156 feet tall with 105 steps from the base to the top. The Lighthouse itself is 108 feet high, but is built on an ancient Indian shell mound that dates around 700 AD, and stands 48 feet tall. The light was produced by a kerosine lamp shining through a Fresnel lens which was manufactured in Paris by the Henry-Lepaute Company. The light was electrified in 1928. The light can be seen from approximately 20 miles out at sea.
The lighthouse was designed by George Gordon Meade, a Lieutenant at the Bureau of Topographical Engineers. He was the same general who later defeated Robert E. Lee at Gettysburg,
Florida was a Confederate state during the Civil War. After the light was lit, in 1860, a group of Confederate sympathizers, including some of the Lighthouse Keepers, snuck into the tower and removed enough of the lamp mechanism to make it unserviceable, hoping that the Yankee ships would run aground. The light remained dark throughout the war.
After the war, in 1866, sections of the lens assembly were returned, and the light once again beamed. Captain James Armour became the lighthouse keeper and would serve for forty-two years.
In 1959, the two-story Lighthouse Keeper’s dwelling was torn down and new quarters were built. In 1973, the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse was put on the National Register of Historic Places. For a number of years, the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse was painted a "firehouse" red, but during the 1999 restoration, the tower’s color was returned to the natural red brick. The restoration work took 8 months and cost $850,000.
The Loxahatchee River Historical Society administers the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse. The lighthouse is owned and maintained as an active maritime aid to navigation by the U.S. Coast Guard.
Source: Loxahathee River Historical Society |