Fig Island Range, GA 
Select a photograph to view a photo gallery
Photo Gallery
Photo Gallery
Photo Gallery
For more than half a century, the light at Fig Island helped form one of the most important navigational systems on the Savannah River. From its beginnings as a simple beacon on a marshy island to its later role as part of a carefully aligned range guiding ships through a newly dredged channel, the development of Fig Island Light reflected the constant struggle between commerce, nature, and technology. As the river shifted, shoals formed, channels closed, and new routes were carved, the lights evolved again and again to meet the demands of one of the South’s busiest ports.
Congress first recognized the need for improved navigation aids on the Savannah River in 1847. On March 3 of that year, an appropriation of $6,000 was made for two small light stations: one on the east end of Long Island and another on the east end of Fig Island. These modest lights were intended to mark the hazardous bends and shoals that had long plagued vessels moving between Savannah and the Atlantic.
Construction of Fig Island Light followed quickly. On January 26, 1848, the Charleston Daily Courier reported that Messrs. Blair and Sturtevant of Savannah had been contracted to build the lighthouse and keeper’s dwelling, with completion expected by early summer. The resulting structure was simple but functional—a one-story wooden dwelling with a lantern mounted on the roof, all supported by pilings driven into the soft river bottom.
By 1850 the station was described as the “Fig Island beacon light,” equipped with two lamps in the lantern and a pole beacon with a single lamp nearby. Hugh Logan served as keeper, and records reveal a remarkably detailed account of oil consumption and supplies on hand including spare lamps, reflectors, cloth, and even scissors. The dwelling, however, was far from comfortable. It was described as “very leaky,” even after repairs, and the constant dampness and decay foreshadowed the maintenance challenges that would define the station’s early years.
By the mid-1850s, the light had become essential to river traffic, yet the original structure had deteriorated badly. In 1855 extensive repairs were undertaken. The foundation was renewed, dikes re-embanked, platforms replaced, and the premises enclosed. The roof and floors were repaired, the rooms replastered, and the exterior repainted. A frame was erected for a fog bell, and a small pile wharf—destroyed by a gale in 1854—was rebuilt.
That same year, Captain J. F. Gilmer of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers recommended something even more ambitious: a range light to be placed in the city of Savannah so that, when aligned with Fig Island Light, it would guide vessels past wrecks and through the most dangerous reaches of the river. At the time, pilots relied on a red light placed in a streetlamp—an unreliable substitute that was visible only under ideal conditions.
Congress approved $2,000 in 1856 for a small light to be erected on the “bay” at Savannah. Two years later, the new Beacon Range Light at the east end of Bay Street was first exhibited. Standing seventy-seven feet above the river, it displayed a red light produced by a sixth-order Fresnel catadioptric lens. Painted a dark bronze green, it was designed to align with Fig Island Light to form a navigational range.
Mariners were instructed to bring the Bay Beacon into line with Fig Island Light while ascending the river, then follow the range past the wrecks and shoals. This marked the first true Fig Island range system and represented a major step forward in channel navigation.
During the Civil War, Confederate forces destroyed many coastal and river lights to prevent their use by Union ships. After the war, the Lighthouse Board moved quickly to restore them. In 1866, Fig Island, Cockspur Island, the Bay Light, and several temporary beacons were re-established.
That same year, a formal notice described the re-lit Fig Island Beacon: a fixed white light, elevated twenty-six feet above sea level, visible nine miles, and displayed from a white tower using a sixth-order lens. Its purpose remained unchanged—to guide navigators safely to Savannah at night.
The Bay beacon-light was discontinued in 1869 as it no longer marked the best channel for reaching Savannah.
Through the late 1860s and early 1870s, the Fig Island station was reported in good or fair condition, with routine repairs and improvements. A new landing was built in 1872 after the old one rotted away, and the house was repainted.
By the late 1870s, nature and engineering had again altered the river. Fig Island Channel closed, and a new, straighter, and deeper Wrecks Channel was dredged on the south side of the river. As a result, the original Fig Island Light became “comparatively useless.”
In 1879, Congress appropriated $3,000 for a new Fig Island Light and a new rear range light on the Exchange Building in Savannah. On December 1, 1880, the change took effect. The old beacon was relocated to a new structure on the south side of Fig Island, while a red light was displayed from the tower of the Exchange Building. Together, they formed the Fig Island Range Lights for Wrecks Channel.
The front light stood on piles in the river, showing a fixed red beam from a square white lantern room. The rear light, 130 feet above the river, aligned perfectly with it to mark the new channel.
The range lights were continually improved. New lanterns, lightning rods, and locomotive headlights were installed. After a cyclone in 1896 twisted the wooden front beacon, it was replaced with a new structure. In 1904, when the Exchange Building was torn down, the rear light was transferred to an iron skeleton tower built on piles along the same range line.
Despite these efforts, advances in dredging, navigation, and lighting technology gradually made the Fig Island Range Lights obsolete. On February 28, 1915, the range was officially discontinued, ending nearly seventy years of service.
A long line of keepers maintained the Fig Island lights, beginning with E. Penny in 1848 and ending with Arthur Norris, who served until 1915. Their work—often in isolation and difficult conditions—ensured that the lights remained reliable guides for generations of mariners.
When the range lights were discontinued, Arthur Norris, who had been in charge since 1888, was offered a position as assistant keeper at Saint Simons Lighthouse, but he turned it down because he was under treatment by a doctor at Savannah.
Though the structures themselves have mostly vanished (The Bay beacon-light does remain standing in Emmet Park), the legacy of Fig Island Light and the Fig Island Range Lights endures as part of Savannah’s maritime history. They stand as reminders of an era when rivers were the lifelines of commerce and when a single beam of light could mean the difference between safe passage and disaster.