RG26: Lighthouse Plans; NC, Cape Hatteras; #20. Elevation and Section of First Order Lighthouse at Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, 1869. (NAID 731255)
RG26: Lighthouse Plans; NC, Cape Hatteras; #57. Drawing Showing the Spiral Stripes Design for the Lighthouse at Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, 1873. (NAID 6281523)
RG26: ZZ, Standard Apparatus Plans; Vol. 19, Plate 98. Light Keeper’s Implements, 1862.
Lighthouse Drawings in celebration of National Lighthouse Day
National Lighthouse Day is August 7 and to celebrate, we’re highlighting some architectural drawings and maps relating to lighthouses from our holdings of the Records of the United States Coast Guard, Record Group 26.
One of the more famous lighthouses in the United States, and also the tallest, is the lighthouse at Cape Hatteras, NC. Its cylindrical shape with the lantern at the top and spiral stripes painted down its sides provide an iconic look at the architecture of many coastal beacons. The stripes are unique to the lighthouse and act as a daymark for ships to identify it along the coast. Keepers, and visitors today, had to take 257 steps to reach the balcony, which is similar to a 12-story building.
The lighthouse plans within our holdings also give us a closer look into the lives of lighthouse keepers. In the days before automation, the keepers most well known duty, was to manage the lantern. They not only had to light the lamps, but they needed to tend to basic cleaning and maintenance using the proper tools.
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