{"nrhp_refnum":"88001179","name":"Ten Pound Island Light","other_names":[],"category":"structure","location":{"address":"Gloucester Harbor","address_restricted":false,"city":"Gloucester","county":"Essex County","state":"MA","lat":42.53681986700008,"lon":-70.70135953299996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1988-08-04","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Engineering","Transportation","Architecture","Maritime History"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A 30-foot cast iron conical lighthouse tower on Ten Pound Island at the eastern end of Gloucester Harbor, Gloucester, Massachusetts, built in 1881 to replace an 1821 stone tower, with ruins of an oil house and keeper's dwelling nearby.","why_significant":"The form states the light retains integrity of location, design, setting, materials and workmanship, and is associated with the development of aids to navigation in Massachusetts. It is described as a well preserved example of the cast iron towers of its period and remains an important location in navigating Gloucester Harbor. It meets criteria A and C at the state level.","narrative":"Ten Pound Island Light is a cast iron lighthouse on a small island at the eastern end of Gloucester Harbor, Massachusetts. The conical tower, 30 feet tall and rising 44 feet above the water, was built in 1881 to replace a stone tower erected in 1821. It is painted white with a black top pierced by four portholes, and a ten-sided lantern sits above a balcony with Italianate brackets and balusters. Inside, a brick-lined shaft holds an iron spiral stair and a wooden ceiling with unusual porthole skylights. Granite walls of an 1821 oil house and the foundations of the keeper's dwelling remain nearby. Fishermen and vessels used the light as a guide when entering the harbor. It was listed for its association with the development of aids to navigation in Massachusetts and as a well preserved example of a cast iron tower of its era. The island is now abandoned, and the light has been removed from the lens room.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Cast iron conical lighthouse tower with Italianate balcony details","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"The light has been removed from the lens room and the station is unmanned. The island is abandoned, and the dwelling and oil house survive only as ruins.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:12:59.82368-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/36/7902/63790236/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_MA/88001179.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/88001179/55fd721ed1-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/88001179/55fd721ed1-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"USCG","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ten_Pound_Island_Light_1821_version.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">USCG</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ten_Pound_Island_Light_1821_version.JPG"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/63790236","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ten_Pound_Island_Light","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7699292"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/massachusetts/essex-county/ten-pound-island-light-88001179/"}