Point Pinos Lighthouse
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Why it's listed
Point Pinos Lighthouse sits on the coast at Pacific Grove, California, beside a municipal golf course and a scenic drive. Completed and first lit on February 1, 1855, it is a 20 by 30 foot, story-and-a-half building of locally quarried stone with the look of a New England cottage. Its third-order Fresnel lens was purchased in France and was fueled first by whale oil, then kerosene, and finally electricity. The woodwork and fittings were shipped from the east coast around the Horn. The 1906 earthquake damaged the original brick tower, so it was rebuilt in reinforced concrete in 1907 to the original plans, along with a new entry porch and bathroom addition. The nomination describes it as the oldest continuously operating lighthouse on the west coast, built shortly after Alcatraz Light. Women served as keepers for 40 years, and Robert Louis Stevenson wrote of visiting it. An 1899 oil storage building is also included.
Significance in brief: The nomination calls it the oldest continuously operating lighthouse on the west coast, completed and lit in 1855 shortly after Alcatraz Light. It was rebuilt in 1907 following the original plans after the 1906 earthquake. Its history includes 40 years of women lighthouse keepers, and Robert Louis Stevenson recorded a visit in "Old Monterey".
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 77000312, listed July 14, 1977. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | Asilomar Blvd. and Lighthouse Ave., Pacific Grove |
|---|---|
| County | Monterey County |
| Listed | July 14, 1977 |
| Reference number | 77000312 |
| Resource type | Structure |
| Period of significance | 1800-1899 |
| Architectural style | New England cottage appearance |
| Areas of significance | Commerce, Transportation, Architecture, Communications |
| Level of significance | National |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Condition is marked good and altered; the light remains in operation. The form marks the property both as unoccupied and as in use for museum, government and transportation purposes. |
| Acreage | 1.3 |
| Coordinates | 36.63342, -121.93368 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For a publicly owned building or structure, listing mainly matters when federal funds, permits or licences are involved: projects then go through Section 106 review so effects on the property are considered. Listing also strengthens applications for preservation grants and, for leased income-producing uses, can enable the federal rehabilitation tax credit.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 77000312.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7208119
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.