by Daniel Zeller / CNM VIP Voice / December 2013
Introduction
Much has been written about the Old Point Loma Lighthouse, and this paper brings together from multiple sources a single summary of information that will be useful to Cabrillo National Monument staff, volunteers, and guests.
Interpretation Period
We interpret the lighthouse as being set in the year 1887, and we do this for two main reasons.
First, the lighthouse was painted white in 1887, and if we were to accurately interpret the lighthouse prior to that year, we would have to strip the white protective paint from the house and revert to the natural color of the sandstone blocks, exposing them to the elements and erosion. Obviously, this is not an option.
Second, by interpreting later in the life of the lighthouse, we have more history to look at than if we interpreted at the beginning of the lighthouse’s life.
The flag that we fly on the flagpole outside of the lighthouse has 38 stars representing the 38 states in the United States in 1887.
The Old Point Loma Lighthouse
Site Selection
Chief Topographer, U.S. Coast Survey, A.M. Harrison recommended the location of the Point Loma Lighthouse near the end of Point Loma 422 feet above sea level during his survey in 1851.
In a note concerning the site selection to A.D. Bache, the Superintendent of the Coast Survey, Harrison commented that while he was on the point, fogs were frequent and heavy. Bache asked Harrison if the fog would interfere with the normal operation of the light, and Harrison replied that this was the best site available. Bache agreed and approved the site selection. (Holland & Law, 1981, pp. 16,17)
The one advantage to Harrison’s site was the fact that the light could be used by those sailing along the coast and by those in the harbor.
The land that the site was located on was part of a military reservation on Point Loma that was established in 1852 by President Millard Fillmore.
Construction
Francis A. Gibbons and Francis X. Kelly of Baltimore, Maryland were awarded the contract to build the eight lighthouses along the coast, including the Point Loma Lighthouse. (Holland & Law, 1981, p. 20)
When they arrived in San Diego, there was considerable confusion. Gibbons and Kelly were contracted to build a lighthouse at “San Diego,” and there was no mention of Point Loma, which was approximately 8 miles away from the town.
On January 17, 1853, Gibbons wrote the Lighthouse Board asking for the correct location on where to build the lighthouse, and the Lighthouse Board responded on January 25, 1853 with a copy of the Coast Survey report done by Harrison. In disbelief over the location on Point Loma, Gibbons wrote the Lighthouse Board a second time, asking where in San Diego to build the lighthouse. The Lighthouse Board responded by telling Gibbons that he was under contract to build the light on Point Loma.
Not satisfied with that answer, Gibbons made an appointment with the Assistant Secretary, William Hodge, to clarify the situation. He was given the option to build the lighthouse or back out of the contract. Gibbons did nothing for six months and, in October 1853, once again wrote to the Lighthouse Board offering to build the lighthouse on the Point Loma site for “proper compensation.”
Gibbons objected because he would have to incur costs to build a road and bridges to bring the materials from La Playa all the way out to Point Loma. He asked the Treasury for additional funds to cover the increased costs, but he was denied. (Holland & Law, 1981, pp. 30,31)
On April 7, 1854, the schooner Vaquero arrived from San Francisco with the building materials for the Point Loma lighthouse, and construction began within a week. (Holland & Law, 1981, pp. 32,33)
It took the construction crew 18 men and 35 days to construct a road to Point Loma. To wet the mortar for the bricks, water had to be brought in from a well at La Playa, nearly 7 miles away. Sandstone for use in construction of the body of the house was quarried near Ballast Point.
Interestingly, there is no record of the official completion date of the construction. We do know, however, that the collector of customs in San Diego wrote the Lighthouse Board on August 26, 1854 telling the board that the lighthouse had been inspected and was accepted on behalf of the U.S. Government. (Holland & Law, 1981, pp. 34,35)
Even though the structure was completed in 1854, it would take more than a year to get the actual light installed in the lighthouse.
For much, much more, go here.
Another obscure fact in the deep dive of the history of the Old Point Loma Lighthouse is the fact that some of the bricks used in the tower were excavated from the ruins of the 1796 Spanish fort on Ballast Point. Back in 1981, I directed an archaeology investigation of the location of the 1796 Spanish fort based on a 1867 United States Topographical field map of Ballast Point that showed a geometric U-shape that I suspected to be the lost Spanish fort on Point Loma. In the first 20-minutes of my field crew investigation, we found hundreds of broken Spanish fired tiles, layers of cobblestones, and early 19th century Spanish pottery. Within a month of that discovery, the superintendent of Cabrillo National Monument telephoned me to talk about the nature of the tiles because her National Park employees were removing plaster and wall material of the Old Light House and found unusual broken tile, so she invited me to come see. Indeed, the tiles her rangers removed from the tower matched the Spanish tiles my field crew recovered from the old Spanish fort. Hey! Maybe that is how the 1853 Light House came to be incorrectly called, “The Old Spanish Light House!”
That’s a really interesting story of our collective San Diego history, thank you for sharing that Ron!
Thank you to the OB Rag for letting the public know about the Cabrillo Park Services guided tours that include going up in the tower, a few weeks back. Volunteers go all out for the occasion wearing era specific attire and both Volunteers and Park Rangers share a lot of very interesting facts and insight that many of the locals taking the tour were unaware of, including myself.
If I remember correctly, the Parks Service and Volunteers only offer the tower tours once a year, but I highly reccomend it to everyone.