1830: The Illuminating Start of a Longtime Lighthouse on Maryland’s Western Shore

September 20, 1830

Point Lookout Light in southern Maryland was formally inaugurated. This structure, marking the mouth of the Potomac River, is located at the southernmost tip of the state’s western shore of the Chesapeake Bay. (The origins of the name “Point Lookout” can be traced to the War of 1812, when that area was used as an observation post for monitoring the movements of British ships in the region.)

Point Lookout Light was first lit by James Davis. He served as the lighthouse’s first keeper until his death only a couple of months later. His daughter Ann then took over his duties, and remained in that position until her own death in 1847.

Another woman serving as a keeper at Point Lookout Light was Pamelia Edwards, whose tenure lasted from 1855 to 1869. The American Civil War, which took place during her time as keeper, would leave a powerful imprint on Point Lookout in its entirety. The Hammond General Hospital, for example, was built in that area in 1862 to provide medical care for wounded Union Army soldiers. By the following year, Camp Hoffman was ultimately established near the hospital to hold thousands of captured Confederate Army States soldiers. Many of those prisoners died as a result of the squalid conditions at that vast compound.

Originally a story-and-a-half structure, Point Lookout Light underwent its own notable (and far more benign) changes over the decades. One such modification was accomplished during the 1880s, with the lighthouse heightened to two complete stories. An even more ambitious renovation occurred in the late 1920s, when Point Lookout Light was converted into a duplex to provide larger living space there for both the keeper and assistant keeper and their respective families. This revamping more than doubled the size of the building.

Point Lookout Light remained in operation until being deactivated in 1966. The lighthouse is now part of Point Lookout State Park. (The above photo of Point Lookout Light was taken in 2007.)

Photo Credit: Patriotick (licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en)

For more information on Point Lookout Light, please check out http://www.cheslights.org/heritage/pt-lookout.htm and https://dnr.maryland.gov/publiclands/Pages/southern/PtLookout/Point-Lookout-Lighthouse.aspx

Additional information on lighthouses on Maryland’s western shore is available at https://www.ibiblio.org/lighthouse/md.htm