{"nrhp_refnum":"87001506","name":"West Chop Light Station","other_names":[],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"W. Chop Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Tisbury","county":"Dukes County","state":"MA","lat":41.48215890600005,"lon":-70.60326878699993,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1987-06-15","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Engineering","Transportation","Architecture","Maritime History"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A lighthouse station on West Chop Road in Tisbury, Massachusetts, at the west side of the entrance to Vineyard Haven Harbor. It includes a 52-foot brick tower (1891), two mirror-image keeper's dwellings, an oil house and a fog signal/boat house, on about 4 acres.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the station retains integrity of location, design, setting, materials and workmanship. It is also associated with the development of aids to navigation in Massachusetts. It is rated significant at the state level under criteria A and C.","narrative":"West Chop Light Station occupies a sloping, fenced site on West Chop Road in Tisbury, overlooking the west side of the entrance to Vineyard Haven Harbor. The complex includes a 52-foot brick tower with an iron lantern room, two mirror-image keeper's dwellings, an oil house with a louvred cupola, and a one-and-a-half-story fog signal and boat house. A light was first established on the site in 1817 with a stone tower and stone keeper's house. Later work brought a brick tower and twin dwellings in 1847, with the tower rebuilt or remodeled in 1891. The station retains its original fourth-order Fresnel lens and is still an active, unmanned light. A later garage does not contribute to the site's character. The station was recognized for its integrity and for its link to the development of navigation aids in Massachusetts, meeting criteria A and C at the state level.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":null,"criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Listed as an unmanned, active light station owned by the Coast Guard; the oil house interior is used for paint storage.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:12:59.832017-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/1/7898/63789801/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/87001506.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/87001506/88a309557c-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/87001506/88a309557c-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 2.0","author":"=Bruce Tuten from Savannah, Georgia, United States","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:West_Chop_Lighthouse_Martha%27s_Vineyard_Ma.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">=Bruce Tuten from Savannah, Georgia, United States</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 2.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:West_Chop_Lighthouse_Martha%27s_Vineyard_Ma.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63789801","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Chop_Light","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7984740"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/dukes-county/west-chop-light-station-87001506/"}