Hillsboro Inlet Light

Infobox Lighthouse


caption = The Hillsboro Inlet Lighthouse (from US Coast Guard archives)
location = north side of Hillsboro Inlet
coordinates = coord|26|15|33|N|80|04|51|W|region:US_type:landmark
yearlit = 1907
automated = 1974
yeardeactivated =
foundation = iron piling
construction = iron
shape = octagonal skeletal with cylinder
focal plane height = 136 feet (41 m)
lens = second-order bivalve Fresnel lens
range = 28 nm
characteristic = White, Flashing every 20 seconds

Hillsboro Inlet Light is located on the north side of Hillsboro Inlet, midway between Fort Lauderdale and Boca Raton, in Hillsboro Beach, Florida. The light marks the northern limit of the Florida Reef, an underwater coral formation on the lower east coast of the state.

In 1901, the United States Lighthouse Establishment persuaded Congress to authorize the construction of a lighthouse in the dark area between Jupiter Inlet Light and Fowey Rocks Light. In the second half of the 20th century, this inlet became an increasingly busy waterway. Hillsboro Inlet Light is considered the most powerful light in the worldFact|date=July 2008 with a beam that can be seen 28 miles.

The octagonal iron pyramidal tower was built at Russel Wheel & Foundry Co in Detroit, Michigan, moved to the Hillsboro Inlet Light Station in 1906, and lit on March 7, 1907. Its second-order bivalve Fresnel lens emits a light measuring 5.5 megacandelas and is placed 136 feet (41 m) above sea level. Automated in 1974, the light acts both as a coastal navigational aide and as a support to local water traffic.

The light was relit in 2000, with 400 pounds (180 kg) of mercury replaced by a specially designed ball-bearing assembly.

In 2003, Hillsboro Inlet Light was honored with a 37¢ U.S. postage stamp.

References

*Crompton, Samuel Willard. "The Lighthouse Book." Barnes and Noble Books, New York, 1999. ISBN 0-7607-1135-6.
* [http://www.uscg.mil/history/weblighthouses/LHFL.asp U.S. Coast Guard Historic Light Station Information] - accessed July 28 2008
*McCarthy, Kevin M. (1990) //Florida Lighthouses. University of Florida Press ISBN 0-8130-0993-6

External links

* [http://www.hillsborolighthouse.org/ The Hillsboro Lighthouse Preservation Society] - Lighthouse information and 2 minute video with aerial view, internal views and description of lens.