Craighill Channel Lower Range Rear LighthouseTimeline
(Also known as Miller’s Island Lighthouse. Located off-shore, east of Ramona Beach,
three miles northeast of Fort Howard– 07/20/14)
1870 Major dredging and enlarging of channel.
1873 60-foot square cofferdam built around site in two feet of water. Foundation
piles driven into muddy bottom. Topped with lattice of timbers. Nine piers
of Port Deposit granite added to support lighthouse. Temporary light
established on granite piers. Keeper lives in onshore quarters used by
construction crew.
1875 105-foot tall square pyramidal cast iron tower with lantern, double gallery
and square central cylinder with wooden braces completed on site. One-and-
a-half- story Keeper’s quarters incorporated in the lower portion. Lower half
straw colored, upper half brown, lantern red. Tallest lighthouse in
Maryland. 4th-order Fresnel lens installed in lantern room.
1884 Extensive repairs made. Decaying wooden braces replace by iron beams.
New boat davits added. Entire tower painted – lower half – white, upper half
-brick red, lantern – black.
1888 Cyclone tears away dwelling’s roof, copper smokestack and portions of the
covering of the stairway shaft. Damage quickly repaired. Nicholas Hill –
land owner on Miller’s Island – sues federal government for unauthorized
occupation of lighthouse site. District court rules against Hill.
1923 Lamp converted to acetylene and automated. Keeper’s dwelling rented.
1929 Electrification. 94-watt railway headlight bulb placed in lens. Candlepower
increased from 20,000 to 140,000.
1938 Keeper’s dwelling dismantled. Wooden stairway covered with metal sheets.
2010 Fresnel lens removed from lighthouse. Light remains active aid to navigation.
Sources: Lighthouse Friends web site – http://www.lighthousefriends.com/light.asp?ID=415, Lighting the Bay – Tales of Chesapeake Lighthouses by Pat Vojtech and The Lighthouses of the Chesapeake by Robert deGast
