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Browns Head Lighthouse Fun Facts
Location: Northwest end of Vinalhaven Island
Closest City: Vinalhaven, Maine
Latitude: 44.1116 Longitude: -68.9099
Body of Water: Penobscot Bay
Open to Public: Site: Yes
Tower: No
Station Established: 1832
Present Tower Activated: 1857
Status of Light: Operational
Tower Height: 20 ft.
Optic: Fourth Order Fresnel, 1902
Fifth Order Fresnel, 1857
National Register Reference #: 83000460
Listing Name: Browns Head Light Station
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The Browns Head Light Station, located at the west end of the Fox Islands Thorofare, was established with a rubblestone tower in 1832 and refurbished with a new, cylindrical white tower with black lantern and 1.5 story wooden keeper's dwelling in 1857. Both of the 1857 buildings remain on-site today. The 20 foot tower is actually shorter than the residence but, built high on the northwest end of Vinalhaven Island at the end of Browns Head Light Road, its height of focal plane is 39 feet above sea level. The fifth-order Fresnel lens employed in 1857 was replaced by a fourth-order lens in 1902, which is still in use. The tower and keeper's quarters are connected via a covered passageway. The Coast Guard demolished a previous pyramid-shaped fog bell tower. Today, a fog horn has replaced the original fog bell, which is on display at the Vinalhaven Historical Society museum.
The Browns Head lighthouse was automated in 1987, making it one of the last in Maine to give up its keepers. Via the Maine Lights Program, ownership of the site was transferred to the Town of Vinalhaven in 1998. The keeper's house serves as residence for the Vinalhaven town manager, who also acts as caretaker for the lighthouse. Today the light serves as a guide for the ferry between Rockland and North Haven as well as for the many pleasure craft in the area. The site is open to public but can be difficult to find as many roads on the island are unmarked.
Lighthouse Accessibility
- This site is open to the public (207-863-4471).
- Take the ferry from Rockland to Vinalhaven.
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