North Head Lighthouse

The North Head Lighthouse,  located near Coast Guard Station Cape Disappointment in Ilwaco, Wash., has stood over the mouth of the Columbia River since 1896,  was built in response to a marked increase in the number of shipwrecks along the Peninsula as mariners coming from the north could not see the Cape Disappointment light.

The 65-foot North Head Lighthouse was designed by German-born engineer C.W. Leick and sits on solid basalt more than 190 feet above sea level.

It first used the hand-me-down first order Fresnel lens from Cape D, switching to search light and finally beacon light at the same time changes were made to her sister lighthouse. A fresh coat of paint just in time for her century birthday restored the North Head’s masonry to marine white with a red cap.

Location: Ilwaco
State: Washington
Photographer:  PA3 Adam Eggers
Date:  October 22, 2005