Cape Canaveral Light

The Cape Canaveral Light is a historic lighthouse on the east coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The light was established in 1848 to warn ships of the dangerous shoals that lie off its coast. It is located inside the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station and managed by the 45th Space Wing of the U.S. Air Force with the assistance of the Cape Canaveral Lighthouse Foundation. It is the only fully operational lighthouse that is owned by the United States Air Force.The current 151ft lighthouse tower was first erected and lit in 1868 then relocated further inland between 1893-1894. It was originally equipped with a first-order Fresnel lens that was automated in 1967 and then retired from the tower in 1993.HistoryThe Cape Canaveral lighthouse was erected to warn mariners of the outlying shoals off its coast. Broken ground and shoals extend northward and northeastward of the lighthouse terminating in the Hetzel and Ohio shoals, which have a depth of 11ft and 19ft respectively. Hetzel Shoal is located about NE of the lighthouse and Ohio Shoals about southward of Hetzel. In a heavy sea these shoals are marked by breakers, but with smooth sea there is nothing to indicate their locality. The land is usually not visible from off these outer shoals. Located closer to the land are the Chester, Bull and Southeast shoals, which are about 4.5to off the coast of the cape.First lighthouseThe current Cape Canaveral Light is not the first lighthouse constructed on Cape Canaveral. On May 21, 1838, the building of the first lighthouse at the cape was requested by Florida territorial delegate Charles Downing. Nathaniel Scobie was appointed as the first lighthouse keeper and oversaw the construction of the lighthouse. The 65ft tall white conical brick tower and keeper's dwelling were completed in January 1848 at the cost of $13,300. Its light consisted of 15 Lewis lamps powered by whale oil, each with a 21-inch (530 mm) reflector. The lamps were set on a chandelier rotated via clockwork.