Aerial view of Turn Point Lighthouse Photograph courtesy U.S. Coast Guard

The U.S. Government had surveyed Stuart Island in 1874 and offered most of the resulting lots for homesteading. The parcel that included Turn Point, however, was held back as a possible site for a lighthouse, and in 1892 a detailed survey of Turn Point was made and specifications were prepared for the necessary buildings at the planned station. On December 27 of that year, after an advertisement for bids had been published, a contract was signed for the construction of the station’s dwelling, fog signal building, barn, and water tanks. Work got underway in March of 1893, and the station commenced operation later that year on November 30. The station’s light consisted of a lens lantern displayed from a post located close to the point. A steam-powered Daboll trumpet served as the fog signal.

The first head keeper of Turn Point Lighthouse was Ed Durgan, who was aided by assistant keeper Peter Nicholai “PN” Christiansen, a Norwegian. Each of the keepers was given one side of the two-story duplex to house their families. For transportation, a sailboat was built and delivered to the station, where it was kept inside a boathouse.

During the evening of February 16, 1897, repeated blasts of a ship’s whistle brought Durgan and Christiansen rushing out into the frigid winter night to find that the tug Enterprise had run aground on rocks near the station. Equipped with pike poles, the keepers plunged into the water and managed to free the tug and direct it to a safe moorage. The captain appeared to be the only person on board, until several drunken crew members were found to be below deck.

The sober captain informed the keepers that other crew members were drifting aboard a barge that the captain cut lose before running aground near the light. The barge was soon located, and its occupants were safely brought ashore through the use of a breeches buoy. To add to the excitement of the evening, one of the intoxicated sailors on the tug brandished a butcher knife and threatened his comrades. With some help, the captain was able to subdue the knife wielder, who was placed in a straight-jacket and locked up in the station’s hen house. For their rescue efforts, the keepers received special citations.

In 1936 the light was updated to a small concrete tower with a 300 millimeter light and a diaphragm foghorn replaced the Daboll trumpet. The station was automated in 1974, and the keepers' dwelling was subsequently used by researchers from the University of Washington as a base for studies on whale migration.

The Spokane District of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) currently manages the station. Working with the Coast Guard, the BLM has undertaken a three-phase restoration project. In 2005, work was done on the roofs of the fog signal building, keepers' dwelling, and barn. In addition, several windows were restored using "wavy glass" and then secured behind rock-proof coverings. In phase two, a power station, consisting of solar panels and a propane generator, was built on the hill above the station. The work for phase three has not been fully determined but may include the establishment of a museum and a guest keeper program at the station. The Turn Point Lighthouse Preservation Society has been formed to educate the public about the lighthouse and to aid in its preservation.

References:

1. Lighthouses of the Pacific, Jim Gibbs, 1986.
2. Umbrella Guide to Washington Lighthouses, Sharlene and Ted Nelson, 1998.
3. Lighthouses of the Pacific Coast, Randy Leffingwell and Pamela Welty, 2000.

Lighthouse tours from Orcas Island that pass by Turn Point are offered a couple of times each summer.