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All the United States California San Francisco Mile Rocks Light

Mile Rocks Light

A modest reminder of treacherous waters at the Golden Gate.

San Francisco, California

Added By
Tre
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  Annetta Black/Atlas Obscura
  Annetta Black/Atlas Obscura
Mile Rocks Light in 1962   http://www.uscg.mil/history/weblighthouses...
A Helicopter Lands on Mile Rocks Light Photo Credit - Uzvards   http://www.flickr.com/photos/uzvards/
Mile Rocks Light as seen from Land’s End   Annetta Black/Atlas Obscura
Mile Rocks Lighthouse with Labyrinth at Land’s End   Annetta Black/Atlas Obscura
  MtnLady / Atlas Obscura User
  Antahny / Atlas Obscura User
  brettm13 / Atlas Obscura User
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About

Beyond the Golden Gate Bridge, an orange and white striped caisson is perched on a rock just above the water. The caisson is what remains of the Mile Rock Light, built in 1904 by James A. McMahon and his crew after the horrific crash of the ship City of Rio De Janeiro in 1901. The Rio De Janeiro hit Mile Rock and sank in just eight minutes, killing approximately 130 of the 210 people on board, including her captain, William Ward.

The lighthouse was built to warn ship captains of the group of rocks that lies barely visible above the water at high tide, as the fog horn from Fort Point could not be heard at the rocks and the bell buoy was often dragged underwater by the violent currents of the Golden Gate.

The lighthouse was manned by a crew of four, delivered to Mile Rock by boat and climbing a rope ladder the 20 feet from the bow of the boat to a catwalk leading to the lighthouse. The isolation was brutal. Due to tight quarters, families were not allowed on the lighthouse and keepers came up with inventive ways to keep in contact with their girlfriends and wives. One keeper is reported to have used flashlights to communicate with his wife who would walk their dog at night at Land’s End.

In the 1960s, despite great protest from the public, the lighthouse was dismantled and replaced with a heli-pad. Today, air-horns serve as fog horns and all the lighthouses of the bay have either been decommissioned or dismantled.

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Lighthouses Architectural Oddities Ruins Architecture

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Added By

Tre

Edited By

Martin, Annetta Black, dntinsley, Antahny...

  • Martin
  • Annetta Black
  • dntinsley
  • Antahny
  • MtnLady
  • brettm13

Published

July 22, 2012

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Sources
  • http://www.rudyalicelighthouse.net/CalLts/MileRock/MileRock.htm
  • http://www.lighthousefriends.com/light.asp?ID=77
  • http://www.uscg.mil/history/weblighthouses/LHCA.asp
Mile Rocks Light
San Francisco, California, 94121
United States
37.792846, -122.510366

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The Shipwrecks at Land's End

San Francisco, California

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Land’s End Octagon House

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Fort Miley Batteries

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Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of San Francisco

San Francisco

California

Places 217
Stories 50

Nearby Places

The Shipwrecks at Land's End

San Francisco, California

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Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of San Francisco

San Francisco

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Stories 50

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