(The last manned lighthouse of the Chesapeake Bay)
1873: Congress approves $20,000 to build a new screwpile lighthouse at the end of Thomas Point Shoal.
1875: Congress approves an additional $15,000 to complete the new screwpile at Thomas Point. The new light is exhibited for the first time on November 20, 1875 with a 3-1/2 order Fresnel lens.
1877: Foundation damaged by heavy ice. The 2nd tower is reactivated for a short time. Kerosene also becomes the primary fuel for all lighthouses.
1886: 1600 cubic yards of riprap placed around lighthouse to protect it from ice.
1899: A new 4th order Fresnel lens is installed.
1903: Assistant keeper Henry Addicks disappears from the station mysteriously. He is never found.
1912: The light changes from a flash every30 seconds to a flash every 5 seconds.
1934: The lighthouse is electrified by generators.
1952/1953: A 10,000 foot electrical cable is run from the lighthouse to shore, and connected on shore to provide commercial power.
1964 Lighthouse becomes the last manned beacon on the Chesapeake Bay.
1972: The U.S. Coast Guard considers decommissioning the lighthouse. Public outcry around the decision causes the Coast Guard to delay the decision.
1975: The lighthouse is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The lighthouse centennial is celebrated with John White, U.S. Coast Guard, in charge of the station. He is the station’s first black keeper.
1980: The lighthouse is automated, and the U.S. Coast Guard begins a search for a civilian caretaker.
1986: The lighthouse is automated but remains in care of the Federal Government. The Fresnel lens is removed and stored at Coast Guard offices near Baltimore, Maryland.
1997: The lighthouse is converted to solar and battery power.
1999: The lighthouse is designated as a National Historic Landmark, one of only 12 U.S. lighthouses to receive this designation.
2002: The U.S. Coast Guard declares that the Thomas Point Shoal Lighthouse is “excess to the needs of the United States of America.” The lighthouse is listed as available for transfer.
2003: The city of Annapolis partners with the United States Lighthouse Society, Anne Arundel County and the Annapolis Maritime Museum to apply for ownership of the lighthouse.
2004: Management of lighthouse transferred from Department of Interior to a consortium of four partners which include: the Annapolis Maritime Museum, the Chesapeake Chapter of the U.S. Lighthouse Society, the City of Annapolis and Anne Arundel County.
2005: Volunteers from the Chesapeake Chapter of the U.S. Lighthouse Society begin preservation at the lighthouse.
6/2/07: Public tours of LH begin led by Annapolis Maritime Museum and Chesapeake Chapter USLHS docents. Restoration continues.
2016: Vandals break windows and damage the lighthouse.
2019/2020: Fundraising begins to restore the steel structure supporting the lighthouse in 2019. Steel beams and tie rods are replaced in the spring of 2020.
Source: Bay Beacons by Linda Turbyville, Thomas Point Shoal Lighthouse by David Gendell
Updated July 2024

