Thirty Mile Point Lighthouse - Niagara County, New York

Built as a lighthouse to guide mariners around shoals on Lake Ontario, the Thirty Mile Point Lighthouse is located at Golden Hill State Park, just at the northeastern corner of Niagara County in the Town of Barker. Taking its name from being 30 miles east of the mouth of the Niagara River, the Thirthy Mile Point Lighthouse was commissioned in 1873 and constructed in 1875 and 1876. At the time when the lighthouse was built, the closest lighthouse east of the Niagara River was the Oak Orchard Lighthouse, but it was not much use as a means to assist in getting ships to the Welland Canal. Before the lighthouse was built, there were a number of shipwrecks that had sunk near Thirty Mile Point, most notably a shipwreck in 1678 for a ship belonging to the French explorer La Salle, and the HMS Ontario, a British schooner which lost all of its passengers when it sunk during a Halloween storm in 1780. Certainly the construction of the lighthouse was beneficial to shipping interests in the area.

By the time the calendar turned to the year 1958, the lighthouse became automated. Around the same time, New York State began to purchase land around the lighthouse and in 1962, Golden Hill State Park was opened. Ownership of the lighthouse was transferred from the United States Coast Guard to New York State in 1984. You can take tour inside the lighthouse from the middle of May to the middle of October or even spend the night inside the lighthouse as well. Also, as part of a way to celebrate the maritime heritage of the Great Lakes, the Thirty Mile Point Lighthouse was depicted on a postage stamp in 1995, as part of a series highlighting a lighthouse on the shores of each of the Great Lakes.


Heading to the lighthouse.


A view to the west of Lake Ontario on a very peaceful 4th of July afternoon.

A view of the beacon at the top of the lighthouse

Looking east from the lighthouse. Golden Hill State Park also has a lot of camping opportunities.

The lighthouse tower.

The front of the lighthouse.

Sources and Links:
Lighthouse Friends - Thirty Mile Point Lighthouse
Friends of Thirty Mile Point Lighthouse - The Lighthouse
New York State Parks - Golden Hill State Park

How to Get There:

Update Log:
February 3, 2018 - Posted original article to Unlocking New York.
September 8, 2021 - Transferred article from Unlocking New York to Gribblenation.

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