Why the US Government Is Unloading a Record Number of Lighthouses Right Now

By Charlotte Collins

Lighthouses have long been used as beacons to call seafarers home, but with advancing navigational technology rendering them more or less obsolete, the structures are being offered as homes themselves—or more likely, as unorthodox seaside stop-ins for any aquatic enthusiasts out there to call their very own. Each May, the US General Services Administration (GSA) selects a number of lighthouses to auction to the public, as well as to other nonprofit entities. This year, a record 10 lighthouses across the nation's shores are up for grabs. The initiative is part of the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act Program, which works with state entities and the public to "convey these historic properties to new stewards that will continue preserving their memories and historic significance," per the GSA's site.

Six of the waterfront watchtowers are available via no-cost transfers to any federal department or agency, the local government of the community in which they’re located, and to eligible nonprofits with the stipulation that the new owners must responsibly preserve the historic maritime landmarks. Lynde Point Light in coastal Connecticut, Little Mark Island and Monument in Maine, Plymouth Light and Nobska Lighthouse in Massachusetts, as well as Rhode Island lighthouses Warwick Neck and Warwick Light Tower are open to applicants. Candidates will be assessed on the merits of their financial and program management qualifications but also on the basis of their plan for historic preservation and use for the structures.

Keweenaw is among the lighthouses made available for public auction via GSA's site this year.

If no applicant is deemed a sufficient steward, the GSA will proceed with a public auction for the six lighthouses. Four more are already planned for public sale via auction in June, and will be posted on the GSA's auction site. Prospective owners will be able to bid on Connecticut's Penfield Reef and Stratford Shoal lighthouses, Cleveland Harbor West Pierhead Light, and Keweenaw Waterway Lower Entrance Light in Michigan. For anyone who lacks the budget for a traditional seaside retreat but finds themselves enchanted by the water, a move into the keeper's quarters will likely cost less than an average house; required bid deposits for the four lighthouses are set as low at $2,000.

The view from a porthole in Nobska Lighthouse.

Interior of Nobska Lighthouse, with spiral staircase and brick walls.

Despite the tendency for lighthouses to fall into disuse with less navigational need for the buildings these days, Paul Hughes, the regional public affairs officer for the GSA's New England region, tells AD that historic value in the shoreside structures are reason enough for their preservation. "Lighthouses are widely recognized as cultural landmarks throughout the United States," Hughes says. "They represent the significant contributions that mariners have made to our country for industrial, territorial, and recreational purposes."

The spiral staircase in Nobska Lighthouse. The keeper's quarters at Nobska are cape-style wood frame structures with gabled roofs.