|
Bush Point, WA |
|
Description:
The passage between Bush Point on Whidbey Island and Marrowstone Island is the narrowest one in North Puget Sound and was first marked by a private light maintained by the Farmer family, early settlers of Bush Point. Each night, the Farmers would hang a kerosene lamp from a wooden gallows to aid mariners.
A post light, which employed a tubular-lantern light, was established at Bush Point by the Lighthouse Board on May 10, 1894. In 1921, the Bureau of Lighthouses requested $46,000 for the establishment of a light and fog signal station at or near Bush Point on Puget Sound, noting the following: This is a low point, and the currents in the vicinity are strong and irregular. Several serious collisions have occurred between Bush Point and Point No Point through inbound and outbound vessels following the shore of Marrowstone Island during foggy weather on account of the echo which can be obtained from it. This aid was petitioned for by the Shipmasters' Association of America during September, 1918, and was considered by that association as the second most important aid required for Puget Sound. The Bureau repeated its request several times, until $10,000 was allotted in 1930 for an automatic acetylene light at Bush Point. The project was expected to be completed in 1931, but the twenty-foot, pyramidal tower, built of reinforced concrete, was not finished until 1933. Operated by commercial electric power, the semiautomatic light and fog signal were controlled from the residence of a caretaker. The total cost for the project was $6,197. References
Location:
Located at Bush Point south of Admiralty Head on Whidbey Island.
The lighthouse is owned by the Coast Guard. Grounds/tower closed. |
