{"nrhp_refnum":"72000825","name":"Barcelona Lighthouse and Keeper's Cottage","other_names":["Portland Harbor Lighthouse and Dwelling House"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"East Lake Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Westfield","county":"Chautauqua County","state":"NY","lat":42.34111289200007,"lon":-79.59475212399997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1972-04-13","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Transportation"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A circular rubble-stone lighthouse and an adjoining one-and-a-half-story stone keeper's cottage on East Lake Road in Westfield, Chautauqua County, New York. They were built in 1828-29 and were originally known as the Portland Harbor Lighthouse and Dwelling House.","why_significant":"The lighthouse is believed to be the oldest surviving structure of its kind on the Great Lakes and the first public building lit by natural gas. In 1829 gas tapped from a nearby spring and carried in wooden pipes lit it, a step toward the gaslight era. It also marks the harbor's role in Great Lakes shipping.","narrative":"Overlooking Lake Erie on East Lake Road in Westfield, this pair of stone buildings once served the harbor at Portland, now Barcelona. Congress appropriated $5,000 in 1828 for a lighthouse, and Judge Thomas B. Campbell built the tower and keeper's dwelling for $3,456.70. The tower is circular, forty feet to its platform, with coursed rubble walls, an octagonal roof and a spiral stair carried on a single forty-foot timber. The cottage is a one-and-a-half-story stone building with a gable roof and three dormers. The first keeper arrived in May 1829, and the light operated until 1859. In 1829 the tower was lit with natural gas drawn from a nearby spring and carried through wooden pipes, which is why it is believed to be the first public building lit that way. It is also considered the oldest surviving lighthouse of its type on the Great Lakes, and it remains a local landmark.","period_of_significance":"19th Century (specific date 1829)","architect_builder":"Judge Thomas B. Campbell (contractor who erected the lighthouse and dwelling)","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Condition listed as fair; the lighthouse operated until 1859 and is now a local landmark. A later grant application describes repair work and says it will remain open to the public.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:50:38.647498-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/72000825.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/72000825/d0e2b0963e-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/72000825/d0e2b0963e-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"Leon J Stein","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Barcelona_Lighthouse_and_Keepers_Cottage_Barcelona_Light,_also_known_as_Portland_Harbor_Light,_is_a_lighthouse_overlooking_Barcelona_Harbor_on_Lake_Erie_in_the_Town_of_Westfield,_New_York.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Leon J Stein</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Barcelona_Lighthouse_and_Keepers_Cottage_Barcelona_Light,_also_known_as_Portland_Harbor_Light,_is_a_lighthouse_overlooking_Barcelona_Harbor_on_Lake_Erie_in_the_Town_of_Westfield,_New_York.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75316751","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barcelona_Light","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4859853"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/chautauqua-county/barcelona-lighthouse-and-keepers-cottage-72000825/"}