Facts

The Lighthouse Itself

• Height: 82 feet to focal plane; 88 feet total height
• There are 85 steps to the top which are made out of cypress
• DayMark: Whitewashed conical brick tower with a black lantern
• Original Lens: Fifteen Lewis-Argand lamps with fourteen-inch reflectors; Winslow Lewis (1831)
• Current Lens: Fourth-order fixed Fresnel lens; Henry-Lepaute (1867). Focal Plane: 82 feet
• Construction (first tower): Architect Winslow Lewis. Builder: Benjamin Beal and Jairus Thayer
• Construction (second and third towers): Calvin Knowlton. Conical brick tower constructed of brick and iron
• Attached keeper’s dwelling was built in 1871
• Operated by: United States Coast Guard & St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge
• U.S.C.G. District: 8
• ARLHS No.: USA-801
• Coordinates: 30 04 26 N, 84 10 47 W
• Listed on the National Register

People and Events

• The present tower is the third tower and was built in 1842
• The Fresnel lens was removed and hidden from Union troops during the Civil War
• The light was re-lit after the Civil War in 1867
• Lighthouse Road was built in 1934 by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)
• There were 21 lighthouse keepers at St. Marks – 2 were female
• J.Y. Gresham was the longest serving keeper – 1918-1949 – 31 years
• over 250,000 people visit the lighthouse every year
• The St. Marks Lighthouse is the 2nd oldest lighthouse in Florida (the oldest is on Amelia Island)