Cape Mendocino

1867 - A tender, Shubrick, came north to drop off materials and men to build the light in September. It was shipwrecked thirty miles to the south.

1868 - Station Established - The 43 foot tower was one of the highest in the U.S. at 422 feet above sea level.

1868 - First lit, December 1st.

1873 - An earthquake ripped the ground open 15 feet from the tower. The keepers filled the split with concrete.

1906 - Another earthquake did further damage to the site and required that two additional buildings be added to the complex.

1939 - The Coast Guard took over station.

1948 - First order Fresnel lens moved to Ferndale where it sits in a replica tower at the entrance of the Humboldt County Fairgrounds.

1951 - Automated

1970 - Deactivated

1998 - a group of volunteers dismantled the lighthouse and reassembled it in Mal Coombs Park in Shelter Cove, California

1999 - Cape Mendocino Lighthouse Preservation Society laid the foundation for the new location.

Cape Mendocino is the western most point in California. It is also one of the most dangerous points of coastline in the state. It became evident by the mid-1800s that a light was needed to guide lumber and steam ships up and down the coast.

Joseph Bein, built the tower in San Francisco. It was constructed of sixteen iron panels that were assembled at the site. The lantern was delivered to Eureka and loaded on to wagons and hauled 40 miles south to the site rather than risk damage by a direct delivery.

Directions - Humboldt County Fairgrounds: From Highway 101, take Highway 211 to Ferndale. Before you reach the town proper, turn right onto Van Ness Ave. for several blocks, then left onto 5th St. The fairgrounds are on the left, and the lighthouse replica with the original lens forms the main entrance.

Directions - NEW Cape Mendocino location, Shelter Cove: From Highway 101 South, Exit Redwood Drive towards Redway and bear right. Turn right onto Willow Dr./Cedar Ln., then right again onto Briceland Road. From highway 101 north, exit Redwood Drive. Turn left towards Redway, and then left again onto Redway Drive/Briceland Road in Redway.  This road turns left and becomes Briceland Thorne Road, crossing the Eel River. Keep right as you pass through Briceland, then follow the signs to Shelter Cove/Kings Range, keeping right at Thorne Junction onto Shelter Cove Road. In Shelter Cove, turn left at the stop sign at Upper Pacific Drive, then right onto Machi Road.

Directions - OLD Cape Mendocino site: From Highway 101, take Highway 211 through Ferndale. Turn right onto Ocean Ave. for two blocks, then left onto Mattole Road. From the Humboldt County Fairgrounds, turn left onto 5th St. to its end, right onto Ocean Ave. for one block, then left onto Mattole Rd. (a large sign arches over the road). Mattole Rd. is extremely mountainous and often under (or in great need of) repair, so be careful. As you approach the ocean, but before you go down the last steep hill to the beach, there is an uphill gravel road on the right. It is gated just after its start, and again further up its length. This road leads about half a mile to the lighthouse, and is closed to the public. However, the cape is totally unmanned. Anyone who were to go there would find a spectacular view of the coast and the remaining foundation of the lighthouse, near the old oil house. Such a person could also be sure that at that moment, no one in the entire state of California is further west. Further down Mattole Rd., on the beach, is a small plaque commemorating the lighthouse. It sits on the west side of the road, near a small bridge and a very large, strangely flat rock that is visible just offshore.

Table Bluff

1856 - First of eight lighthouses to mark Humboldt Bay was completed.

1867 - Lighthouse Board recommends moving the lighthouse due to floodng and fog.

1885 - Humboldt Harbor Lighthouse was deemed uninhabitable as it was flooded by a high tide and jolted by a pair of earthquakes.

1891 - Funds became available for the new station on Table Bluff.

1892 - Land purchased and construction began and Fresnel lens moved to new location. Tony Schmoll, the light keeper, activated the light.

1911 - Fresnel lens was replaced with a revolving one, changing it from a fixed-white to a flashing white light.

1953 - Station was automated. Old Fresnel lens shipped to San Diego and displayed in the Old Point Loma Lighthouse.

1971 - Purchased by Gospel Outreach, naming it Lighthouse Ranch, and used for training and a retreat center.

1975 - Light deactivated by the Coast Guard.

1987 - The two-story tower was cut in two and relocated to Eureka’s Woodley Island Marina. The Fresnel lens was retrieved from the Old Point Loma Lighthouse and is now on display at the Humboldt Bay Maritime Museum in Eureka.

Table Bluff is 165 feet high and four miles south of the bay’s entrance. The light served mariners entering both Humboldt Bay and Eel River. The station was patterned after the one in 1890 at San Luis Obispo and consisted of a square tower attached to an ornate Victorian dwelling, a fog signal building, and an assistant keeper’s duplex all lined up along the edge of the bluff. Behind the main buildings stood an oil house and a carpenter shop.

Travel Instructions: The lighthouse tower can be reached by going north on Highway 255 from Highway 101 in Eureka.

The lighthouse's Fresnel lens can be seen at the Humbolt Bay Maritime Museum. Open Tuesday through Saturday from Noon to 4PM. Museum address: 423 1st Street. Phone: (707) 444-9440.