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Gay Head Light

Martha’s Vineyard, MA

Built in 1856, this very popular lighthouse shows an alternating white and red light every 15 seconds and can be seen for twenty miles.  She stands atop the bluffs at 170 feet above sea level.

Sailing in from Rhode Island Sound, this light is a beautiful sight, situated high above the cliffs.  She guards the most western point of Martha’s Vineyard and warns mariners to beware of Devil’s Bridge, a most dangerous ledge that reaches out for unfortunate sailors.

 But, as hard as this lady tries to guide mariners safely into Vineyard Sound, there are still shipwrecks.  A really bad wreck took place on a cold January morning in 1884, when the City of Columbus, a passenger steamer, ran aground on Devil’s Bridge.  One hundred people drowned in twenty minutes.  Lighthouse keeper Horace Pease and some Gay Head Indians managed to save some people, but this wreck is still one of New England’s worst marine disasters.

 During the summer, this light is open to visitors on the weekends, one hour before sunset and a half-hour after sunset. 

 The sunsets are absolutely magnificent!