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Seven Foot Knoll Light

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Coordinates:39°09′18″N76°24′33″W/ 39.1551°N 76.4091°W/39.1551; -76.4091
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Seven Foot Knoll Light
Seven Foot Knoll Light at its original location (1900)
Map
Locationoriginally at the mouth of thePatapsco Riverin theChesapeake Bay;relocated to theInner HarborinBaltimore, Maryland
Coordinates39°17′01″N76°36′19″W/ 39.2836°N 76.6054°W/39.2836; -76.6054(current)
39°09′18″N76°24′33″W/ 39.1551°N 76.4091°W/39.1551; -76.4091(original)
Tower
Constructed1856Edit this on Wikidata
Foundationscrew-pile
Constructionwrought-iron(originallycast-iron)
Automated1949
Height40 ft (12 m)
Shapecylindrical house
HeritageNational Register of Historic Places listed placeEdit this on Wikidata
Light
First lit1856
Deactivated1988
Focal height17 m (56 ft)Edit this on Wikidata
Lensfourth-orderFresnel lens
Range12 nmi (22 km; 14 mi)
CharacteristicFl WR 6sEdit this on Wikidata
Seven Foot Knoll Light
Seven Foot Knoll Lighthouse at its present location
LocationPier 5, Inner Harbor,Baltimore, Maryland
Arealess than one acre
Built1875(1875)
NRHP referenceNo.89001096[1]
Added to NRHPAugust 22, 1989

TheSeven Foot Knoll Lightwas built in 1855 and is the oldestscrew-pile lighthouseinMaryland.It was located atop Seven Foot Knoll in theChesapeake Bayuntil it was replaced by a modernnavigational aidand relocated toBaltimore's Inner Harboras a museum exhibit.

Location

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It was initially installed on a rockyshoalcalled Seven Foot Knoll (at39°09′26″N76°24′12″W/ 39.1572°N 76.4034°W/39.1572; -76.4034), in the mouth of thePatapsco River.The northern tidal reach of this river is theBaltimore Harbor,where the now-decommissioned lighthouse has been placed as a museum exhibit. In 1997 the lighthouse was transferred to the Baltimore Maritime Museum (now theHistoric Ships in Baltimoremuseum) and is permanently installed at the south end of Pier 5.

The Seven Foot Knoll Light at the south end of Pier 5

Construction

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An exterior view showing the technique used to join the iron wall sections.

Constructed of 1-inch (25 mm)rollediron,the lighthouse consists of three main sections. The gallery deck was located 9 feet (2.7 m) above the average high tide waters. The house was the second section, sitting directly atop the gallery deck. This is where the keeper and his family would live. Atop the housing area was the third section of the lighthouse, the light beacon. A 4th orderFresnel lenswas housed in the small light compartment. It was visible for 12 nmi (22 km; 14 mi).

History

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The first requests for a light came in 1848, with initial appropriations in 1851. Delays in planning and bidding pushed the start of construction to 1854. The house consisted of a cylindrical structure ofwrought ironplates, with the ninth pile in the center.[2]Total construction costs came to $43,000 by its completion the following year. Most parts were fabricated inBaltimoreat the Murray and Hazelhurst ironfoundry.The parts were then shipped to Seven Foot Knoll by boat where they were assembled atop of thescrew piles.Ice, the perennial threat to screw-pile structures, caused damage in 1884 and 1894, leading to the piling of 790 cubic yards (600 m3) ofripraparound the piles.[3]

Seven Foot Knoll depicted on an 1857 survey map.

The light was automated in 1949, and fell into disrepair, eventually being supplanted by a skeleton tower.[4]In 1988, the lighthouse was removed from Seven Foot Knoll, carried by a 1000 Ton CapacityShearlegderrick, and placed ashore inBaltimore'sInner Harborwhere it was donated to the city. On August 22, 1989 the lighthouse was listed on theNational Register of Historic Places.[1]Aided by the Lady Maryland Foundation (now the Living Classrooms Foundation), many members of the Steinhice family descendants worked to restore the structure prior to its re-opening.

The lighthouse is a contributing element in theBaltimore National Heritage Areaand part of theHistoric American Engineering Record.[5][6]

Rescues

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Thomas Jefferson Steinhise (Keeper 1930–1941) assisted in the rescue of atugboatcrew in 1933.[7][8]The tugboatPoint Breezewas then owned by the Curtis Towing Company of Baltimore.[9]She was towing a barge ofdredge spoilsfrom Baltimore toGibson Islandon August 20, 1933. The 90 mph (140 km/h) winds and 15 ft (4.6 m) seas had overcome the tug and the crew abandoned ship. Steinhice took the lighthouse's small motorboat and made his way out in the direction of the tug's distress whistle where he pulled six crew members from the water. Five crew members survived but the engineer perished. Steinhise was awarded the SilverLifesaving Medalfor his actions in saving the lives of the stranded crew.[7][8]He is buried in Holy Cross Cemetery,Glen Burnie,MD. and his memorial includes aU.S. Lighthouse Servicegrave-marker.[10][11]

List of keepers

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A list of Head civilian keepers.[11]

Name Year Service Notes
Samuel Ayer 1855–1856
George McCutchen 1856–1860
George Seiber 1860–1861
E. B. Lucas 1861–1865
Thomas Cannon 1865–1867
John H. Wills 1867–1869
Edward B. Lucas 1869–1870
Thomas B. Davis 1870–1872
William Moody 1872–1873
Joel W. McDonald 1873–1874
James T. Bowling 1874–1879
John C. Moffett 1879–1881
John Peterson 1881–1886
Henry Corson 1886–1891
Christopher C. Butler 1891–1892
William K. Slacum 1892–1894
William R. Schoenfelder 1894–1898
John Berentsen 1898–1903
John H. Grain 1903–1916
John L. Ennis 1916-at least 1919
James W. Simpson at least 1921
Otho Bounds 1924–1930
Thomas J. Steinhise 1930–1941 Rescued crew of tug Point Breeze. Awarded Silver Lifesaving Medal.[11]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ab"National Register Information System".National Register of Historic Places.National Park Service.July 9, 2010.
  2. ^"Coast Guard Lighthouses".uscg.mil.Retrieved2016-12-26.
  3. ^Dennis Zembala (June 1989)."National Register of Historic Places Registration: Seven Foot Knoll Light"(PDF).Maryland Historical Trust.Retrieved2016-03-01.
  4. ^"LIGHT LIST Volume II ATLANTIC COAST"(PDF).US Coast Guard. 2016.Retrieved2016-12-26.
  5. ^"Baltimore National Heritage Area Map".City of Baltimore. Archived fromthe originalon December 28, 2016.RetrievedDecember 27,2016.
  6. ^Historic American Engineering Record."Seven Foot Knoll Lighthouse, Mouth of Patapsco River, Riviera Beach, Anne Arundel County, MD".Library of Congress.RetrievedDecember 27,2016.
  7. ^abCora, Paul (2009)."Seven Foot Knoll Lighthouse: The Keepers"(PDF).The Deck Log, Volume XI, Issue #3.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2016-06-23.Retrieved2016-12-26.
  8. ^ab"Tugboat Information".tugboatinformation.Retrieved2016-12-26.
  9. ^Lighthouses, Superintendent of (1933-09-01),English: Image of a letter expressing the gratitude of the Curtis Bay Towing Company to Thomas Jefferson Steinhise.,retrieved2016-12-27
  10. ^Brown, Atalie Day."Around Pasadena: Lighthouse hero honored with grave marker".capitalgazette.Retrieved2016-12-26.
  11. ^abc"Seven Foot Knoll Lighthouse".LighthouseFriends.Retrieved2016-12-30.
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