LIGHTHOUSE PHOTOS
Click photo to enlarge
COBB POINT BAR LIGHT STATION, Looking E. 250' Dec. 1912
Cobb Point Bar Light. Station, Maryland., March 19, 1918; Looking approx. NW
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Cobb Island, Maryland, USA
Designated Waterway: Potomac River
The Cobb Point Bar Light no longer exists. The Cobb Island Light was located in the Potomac River marking the west side of the entrance of the Wicomico River.
Originally known as the "Cob" Point Bar, The Cobb Point Bar, also know as Cobb Island Bar Light, was a square cottage screwpile that was pre-fabricated at Lazaretto Depot using the same plans as the light at Tangier Sound in Virginia. The pre-fabricated sections were brought to the site and assembled in a little over 30 days. The lighthouse was commissioned on December 25, 1889. The light had a fourth order Fresnel lens that displayed a fixed white light. The cost of the lighthouse was $15,000. The lighthouse was demolished in 1940 after being heavily damaged by fire in 1939.
A number of new screw-pile lighthouses were built on the Potomac River during the final 25 years of the 19th century. This was due both to increased shipping traffic and the an increased size and draft of the vessels traveling up and down the river. At this time a number of steam ship lines operated on the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries. These carried cargo and passengers on regularly scheduled routes, much as the airlines do today. Three steamship lines in addition to numerous smaller vessels made regular stops up the Wicomico River which was known for having a narrow and tricky channel at its entrance. Formal requests for a light at Cob Island Bar (a.k.a. Cob Point Bar) began in 1875 and the request was renewed in 1885 and again in 1887. At that time Congress appropriated $15,000 for the light. Construction of the square, screw-pile, light was delayed until November 1889. The materials were gathered and the cottage was pre-fabricated at Lazaretto Depot using the same plans as the light at Tangier Sound in Virginia. These were brought to the site in November and the light was erected in a little over a month. It was commissioned on Christmas Day, December 25, 1889 and exhibited a fourth order Fresnel lens.
The justification for the lighthouse read as follows: "Three steamboat lines run regularly into the Wicomico from the Potomac River, doing a heavy carrying trade of oysters, tobacco, and other productions. As many as 350 vessels have anchored at one time inside the bar. This is also a good harbor for refuge in storms and from drifting ice. The mouth of the river is, however, so nearly closed by the sandbars projecting from opposite sides that a vessel endeavoring to avoid one is in danger of being stranded upon the other. Hence sailing vessels rarely attempt to leave or enter at night. In 1883 the steamer Sue, in going out, by mistake of one minute in the time of running, ran upon the bar a Cob Point. The light on Blakistone's Island is nearly 5 miles distant from this bar and affords no guide to this location."
In 1939 the lighthouse caught fire and was so badly damaged that the remains had to be torn down. It was replaced by a bell and automated light.
Researched and written by Matthew B. Jenkins, a volunteer through the Chesapeake Chapter of the U.S. Light House Society.
| Location Type |
Offshore |
|
Construction Type |
Screwpile |
| Original Optics |
Fourth order Fresnel lens |
| Current Optics |
|
| Year Built |
1889 |
| Builder: |
Lazaretto Depot |
| Operational: |
No |
| Date Deactivited: |
1939 |
| Automated: |
|
|
Markings: |
|
| Shape: |
Square cottage screwpile |
| Height: |
40 feet |
| Focal
Plane Height: |
|
| Range: |
|
| Sound
Signal Building: |
No |
| Sound
Device: |
Fog bell |
| Existing
Keepers Quarters: |
Integrated |
| Current
Use: |
No Longer Exists |
| Current
Owner/Manager: |
|
| Open to
the Public: |
|
| Web
Site: |
Cobb Point Bar Light |
National Register Status:
Miscellaneous
The current light is a small navigation beacon mounted on the original foundation. On nautical charts, this area is called "Lighthouse Lumps". Located off Cobb Island at the western entrance to the Wicomico River; visible from many points on the south side of Cobb Island (end of MD 254).
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