{"nrhp_refnum":"77000655","name":"Plymouth Light Station","other_names":["Gurner Light Station"],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"SE of Duxbury at Gurnet Point","address_restricted":false,"city":"Duxbury","county":"Plymouth County","state":"MA","lat":42.003503687000034,"lon":-70.60048502799998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1977-03-08","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Commerce","Military","Transportation","Maritime History"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A Coast Guard light station on Gurnet Point in Duxbury, Massachusetts, at the entrance to Plymouth, Kingston and Duxbury harbors. The station was established in 1768, and its present wood-frame tower dates from 1843.","why_significant":"The station was established by the Massachusetts Legislature to guide shipping into three harbor towns. It figured in Revolutionary War events, including a stray shot from the frigate Niger that pierced the lighthouse, and in the 1778 loss of the brigantine General Arnold. It kept its twin lights for 156 years, until 1924, and its red sector covers the wreck-prone Mary Ann Rocks.","narrative":"Plymouth (Gurnet) Light Station occupies Gurnet Point in Duxbury, Massachusetts, on the north side of the entrance to the harbors of Plymouth, Kingston and Duxbury. The Massachusetts Legislature established it in 1768 to guide ships into those ports, and the state ceded it to the federal government in 1790. Fire destroyed the lighthouse in 1801, a new light began operating in 1803, and exposure to the elements forced a rebuilding in 1843. The surviving tower is an octagonal, pyramidal wood-frame structure, 39 feet high and painted white. Other buildings include a brick oil house of about 1900, a brick fog signal building and a dwelling of 1960. During the Revolution a shot from the British frigate Niger pierced the lighthouse. In 1778 the brigantine General Arnold wrecked nearby, and seventy-two crew members froze to death. The twin lights continued until 1924, when the northeast tower was discontinued after 156 years.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Still an active Coast Guard light station in 1976. The tower is wood frame, built in 1843, and the station has a 1960 dwelling, a brick oil house and a fog signal building now used as a generator building. Condition is marked good.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:11:54.601713-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/28/7927/63792728/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/77000655.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/77000655/7e2bf8e573-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/77000655/7e2bf8e573-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"U.S. Coast Guard","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Plymouth_Light_Twin_Towers_MA.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">U.S. Coast Guard</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Plymouth_Light_Twin_Towers_MA.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63792728","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plymouth_Light","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7205822"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/plymouth-county/plymouth-light-station-77000655/"}