Jones Point Light
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| Location | Alexandria, Virginia |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 38°47′25.4″N 77°02′26.3″W / 38.790389°N 77.040639°W |
| Tower | |
| Foundation | Natural / Emplaced |
| Construction | Wood |
| Automated | 1919 |
| Shape | Conical lantern on square house |
| Heritage | National Register of Historic Places listed place, Virginia Historic Landmark  |
| Light | |
| First lit | 1856 |
| Deactivated | 1926-1995 |
| Lens | Fifth order Fresnel lens |
The Jones Point Light is a small river lighthouse located on the Potomac River in Alexandria, Virginia. Built in 1855, it is the oldest surviving inland lighthouse in the United States. It is a small, one-story house with a lantern on top. The lighthouse was discontinued in 1926, replaced by a small steel skeletal tower located nearby; this smaller tower was in use for ten years before being discontinued. After being dark for more than half a century, Jones Point Light was relit by a private concern in 1995.
The lighthouse is located on Jones Point in Alexandria, and is part of Jones Point Park. Visitors can approach the lighthouse, but it is currently impossible to enter the building.
The lighthouse is immediately north of the confluence of Hunting Creek and the Potomac River. The 1791-1792 survey of the boundaries of the District of Columbia began at a spot that was then at the tip of a cape at the Point. The south cornerstone from the boundary survey remains in the seawall adjacent to the lighthouse.
In 1980, the lighthouse and the cornerstone were listed in the National Register of Historic Places as reference #80000352. The lighthouse is also listed in the Library of Congress Historic American Buildings Survey as survey number VA-641. The listing shows lighthouse drawings and several black and white photos of the lighthouse prior to restoration.
Gallery
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The lighthouse and the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, seen from the bank of the Potomac River at Belle Haven -
Fifth-order Fresnel lens once used at the lighthouse, on display at The Lyceum, Alexandria's history museum -
Skeleton tower at the point, which replaced the earlier structure
External links
- NPS Inventory of Historic Light Stations
- Lighthousefriends: Jones Point Lighthouse
- Historic American Buildings Survey (Library of Congress) - Survey number VA-641
38°47′25″N 77°02′26″W / 38.7904005°N 77.0406094°W
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