Bristol Ferry Lighthouse
Ferry Rd., Bristol, RIBristol Ferry Lighthouse is significant for its role in the history of Rhode Island's commerce and transportation, and as an example of one of the state's early surviving lighthouses. Established in 1855 at the entrance to Mount Hope Bay, the light served to guide ships en route to the textile mills of Fall River. The light is also important as a navigational mark for numerous passenger steamers which, during the middle of the nineteenth century, provided the main form of transportation between the cities and towns on Mount Hope Bay with those on Narragansett Bay, the Providence River, and with other major New England ports outside the state. Architecturally, it is significant as one of three early surviving lighthouses in the state of the type which features a keeper's dwelling with an attached light tower.
The land on which the lighthouse stands was acquired on October 9, 1854, and the tower and dwelling were completed the following year. The lighthouse took its name from a Bristol-to Portsmouth ferry, which operated from a landing a few yards to the west of the light.
In addition to the lighthouse, the original 1/5-acre reservation included at least five outbuildings: an 1880 woodshed; two oil houses, one built in 1904 and another in 1909; a hen house; and a privy. Of these, only the 1904 brick oil house survives. In 1908 the size of the site was increased with the purchase of an additional 1-1/4-acres.
The most significant change to the lighthouse during its active period occurred in 1918 when the original wooden lantern at the top of the light tower was removed, the height of the tower was increased by six feet, and a new cast-iron lantern, gallery deck, and balustrade were installed.
The construction in 1928-1929 of the Mount Hope Bridge directly above the lighthouse provided a more highly visible navigational aid. With its completion, the importance of the light declined. In 1928 the lantern was removed from the light tower, and the light was replaced by an automatic beacon placed atop a new steel skeletal tower built just south of the lighthouse, across Ferry Road. The following year, after serving for seventy-four years, the lighthouse, the three outbuildings, and most of the land was sold. The Lighthouse Service retained possession of a small parcel of land south of Ferry Road as well as the skeletal tower, which they continued to operate as a navigational aid until 1934 when it was taken down and replaced by the Bristol Harbor Light.
Since 1929, the lighthouse has served as a private residence. Few alterations have been made to the exterior, with the exception of a small section at the back of the ell, which was torn down and replaced with a wood-frame addition of similar proportions. The interior has been remodeled with a change in the original first-floor plan, but the original second-floor plan is intact. Many of the original details, such as the flooring, doors, window trim, and tower staircase, remain. The 1904 brick oil house is the only outbuilding that still stands.
Recently the property was subdivided when the previous owner sold the lighthouse with only the original 1/5-acre plot and kept the 1-1/4-acre piece that had been added to the site in 1908.
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1988.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.