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General Note

First tower, at left, of brick was lighted 1848. Second tower, of iron plates riveted together into a tapering cylinder and bolted to a massive concrete base, was lighted April 1867. It was moved one mile west and re-lighted July 25, 1894.

Biographical Note

The 1848 Cape Canaveral Lighthouse was one of the first man-made structures built on the cape. Rebuilt in 1868, it is 145 feet high and is constructed of iron plates bolted together with interior bricks. The lighthouse was painted with black and white bands in 1873 and was moved to its current site in 1894. During World War II, enemy submarines used its beam to target passing ships, attacking the tanker Pan Massachusetts and many other vessels. During one period, 24 ships were sunk and the Coast Guard rescued hundreds of sailors. The light was extinguished until war's end. The current lens was installed in 1993.