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The Burrows Island Light is a lighthouse on the western tip of Burrows Island, facing Rosario Strait, near Anacortes, in Skagit County, Washington.[2]

Burrows Island Light

Burrows Island Light (USCG)
Location	Burrows Island, Washington
Coordinates	48°28′41″N 122°42′49″W[1]
Tower
Constructed	1906
Foundation	Stone
Construction	Wood
Automated	1972
Height	34 feet (10 m) (57 feet (17 m) above sea level)
Shape	White square tower on fog signal building
Light
First lit	1906
Focal height	17 m (56 ft)
Lens	Fourth-order Fresnel lens (removed)
Range	9 nautical miles (17 km; 10 mi)
Characteristic	Flashing white light every 6 s. Emergency light Iso W 6 s, operates at reduced intensity. Horn: 2 blasts ev 30s (2s bl-2s si-2s bl-24s si).

History

In 1905, prompted by the loss of several vessels to nearby Dennis Shoal and Lawson Reef, the Lighthouse Board selected the westernmost tip of Burrows Island, near Anacortes, Washington, as the site for a new light station. The island covering more than 400 acres (160 ha) stands just off Fidalgo Island, and presents a rugged aspect to sailors. The Burrows Island Light, faces Rosario Strait and was first lit April 1, 1906.[3] The Seattle Post-Intelligencer published a small photograph and enthusiastic article on May 2, 1906. "The fog signal station is a model plant and contains all the latest improvements. A fourteen foot trumpet is used to sound the warnings instead of a bell, and the contrivance is operated by the power of two powerful gasoline engines."

The Daboll trumpet fog signal blew the next year for 329 hours. The 34 square feet (3.2 m²) tower is attached to the fog signal building and once held a fourth-order Fresnel lens.[4]

Captain James Hermann and his assistant Edward Pfaff were the first keepers at the station, which consisted of four buildings: the lighthouse itself, a boathouse and shop, a small coal and oil building and the massive duplex which dominates the station.[4]

The wood-framed lighthouse stands nears the island's shoreline, which mainly consists of sharp and rocky drop-offs that demanded a derrick be constructed for loading the station boat and bringing in supplies.[5] Automated in 1972, the Fresnel lens was replaced with modern optics and a helicopter landing pad located where the lighthouse keeper's home formerly stood.[4]

In 2011, the Northwest Schooner Society began a long-term restoration project of the property and its weather-damaged and vandal-ravaged buildings.[6]

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Burrows Island.

• "Historic Light Station Information and Photography: Washington". United States Coast Guard Historian's Office. Archived from the original on 2017-05-01.

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