Point of Shoals Light

The Point of Shoals Light was a lighthouse located in the James River in Virginia.

Point of Shoals Light

Undated photograph of Point of Shoals Light (USCG)
Location	In Burwell Bay on the James River
Coordinates	37.0683°N 76.6530°W / 37.0683; -76.6530
Tower
Constructed	1855
Foundation	screw-pile
Construction	cast-iron/wood
Automated	1932
Shape	hexagonal house
Light
First lit	1871 (latest structure)
Deactivated	1933
Lens	sixth-order Fresnel lens
Characteristic	Fixed white

History

The first request for a light to mark the shoal at this bend in the river came in 1835, but a light was not constructed here until 1855. It was the target of a Confederate raid in the Civil War, and by 1869 concerns were raised about its safety. These concerns were realized two years later when damage from ice flows brought about the rebuilding of the structure.

This light was automated fairly early, in 1932. Its unmanned life was brief, as continued shoaling in old channel led to the dredging of a new channel on the opposite side of the river the following year, at which point the light was deactivated. The house was removed in the 1960s, but the iron foundation remains, unlit.

References

• Point of Shoals Light, from the Chesapeake Chapter of the United States Lighthouse Society
• de Gast, Robert (1973). The Lighthouses of the Chesapeake. Johns Hopkins University Press. p. 149.