View source for Point No Point Light (Washington)

{{Short description|Lighthouse in Washington, United States}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2025}}
{{Infobox lighthouse
| name            = Point No Point Light
| image           = Point No Point Lighthouse wa.jpg
| image_width     = 300px
| caption         =
| location        = [[Hansville, Washington]]
| coordinates     = {{coord|47.9123|N|122.5268|W|region:US_type:landmark|display=inline,title}}<ref name=gnis>{{cite gnis|1510000|Point No Point Light}}</ref>
| yearbuilt       = 1879
| yearlit         = 1880
| automated       = 1977
| yeardeactivated = 
| foundation      = Masonry
| construction    = [[Brick]] and [[stucco]]
| shape           = Square
| height          = {{convert|30|ft}}
| focalheight     = {{convert|27|ft}}
| lens            = Fifth order [[Fresnel lens]] (1880); Fourth order [[Fresnel lens]] (1898)
| range           = 
| characteristic  = 3 white flashes every 10 s<ref name=unc/>
| module          = {{Infobox NRHP
| embed        = yes
| name         = Point No Point Light Station
| nrhp_type    = nrhp
| image        = Point No Point Boat Landing, Dwelling and Tower, looking southwest, July 1944, ca. 1943 - ca. 1953 - NARA - 298207.jpg
| image_size   = 280
| caption      =
| nearest_city = [[Hansville, Washington]]
| built        = 1879–80
| builder      =
| architect    =
| architecture =
| added        = August 10, 1978
| area         = {{convert|3|acre}}
| refnum       = 78002758<ref name="nris">{{NRISref|version=2010a}}</ref>
}} 
}}

'''Point No Point Light''' is an operational aid to [[navigation]] on the northeastern tip of the [[Kitsap Peninsula]] on the west side of [[Puget Sound]], at [[Point No Point]] where [[Admiralty Inlet]] joins Puget Sound, near the small community of [[Hansville, Washington|Hansville]], [[Kitsap County, Washington|Kitsap County]], in the [[U.S. state]] of [[Washington (U.S. state)|Washington]].<ref name=inventory/> Point No Point Light is considered the oldest lighthouse on Puget Sound<ref name=histlink/> and is listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]].<ref name=nomination/>

==History==
Local authorities first proposed to locate the lighthouse further north on [[Foulweather Bluff]].<ref name=histlink/><ref name=pointnopointfriends/> When the [[Point No Point]] location was agreed upon, the owners of the land were very reluctant to sell.<ref name=histlink/><ref name=friends/> The terms of the final  sales agreement have been variously reported as {{convert|10|acre}} for $1,000,<ref name=friends/> {{convert|40|acre}} for $1,000,<ref name=pointnopointfriends/> and {{convert|40|acre}} for $1,800.<ref name=histlink/>

Construction of the lighthouse began in April 1879. The first light used was a [[kerosene lamp]]. As 1879 drew to a close, the lens and glass for the lantern had not arrived, so the first [[lighthouse keeper]], J.S. Maggs, a [[Seattle]] [[dentist]], hung a canvas over the south window openings to break the wind and keep the kerosene lamp from blowing out.<ref name=histlink/><ref name=pointnopointfriends/>

Upon completion of the light station in February 1880, the lantern room held a fifth-order [[Fresnel lens]]. The original masonry structure was {{convert|27|ft}} high. The present {{convert|30|ft|adj=on}} brick and stucco tower is square and situated between the office and fog signal building. A fog signal, formerly used at [[New Dungeness Lighthouse]], was installed in April 1880.<ref name=friends/> In 1900, the [[Fog signal|fog bell]] was replaced by a [[Daboll trumpet]]. With no roads to the lighthouse for its first 40 years, supplies had to be brought in by boat.<ref name=histlink/>

In 1898, the original lens was replaced with a fourth-order [[fresnel lens]],<ref name=uscg/> which is still in place although it is no longer in use.<ref name=friends/> Popular history holds that when lightning struck in 1931, it caused the lens to crack. However, according to McClary, records indicate "the damage occurred when a faulty oil vaporizer tube allowed explosive vapors to build up in the light chamber."<ref name=histlink/> The tower was also damaged which required patching and replacing the copper tubing.

In 1975, a {{convert|90|ft|adj=on}} [[radar]] tower was built on the west side of the lighthouse. The tower is used for the [[Vessel traffic service|Vessel Traffic Service]] (VTS). In 1977, the lighthouse became fully automated and only required one keeper to be assigned to the station. The [[U.S. Coast Guard|Coast Guard]] replaced the light in 2006 with a low-maintenance, post-mounted, rotating beacon.<ref name=histlink/>

==Park and headquarters==

In 1997, the last Coast Guard personnel left Point No Point and it stood empty until it was leased to Kitsap County Parks and Recreation. The county purchased adjoining parcels and created {{convert|60|acre|adj=on}} Point No Point Lighthouse and Park.<ref name=unc/><ref name=park/> In 2012, the [[Department of the Interior]] announced the transfer of ownership of the lighthouse to Kitsap County.<ref name=salazar/>

Since 2008, the station's keeper's quarters has been the national headquarters of the [[United States Lighthouse Society]], a nonprofit preservation and educational organization.<ref name=uslhs/>

==References==
{{reflist|refs=
<ref name=uscg>{{cite web |url=http://www.uscg.mil/history/weblighthouses/LHWA.asp |title=Historic Light Station Information & Photography: Washington |publisher=U.S. Coast Guard |accessdate=May 12, 2015}}</ref>

<ref name=inventory>{{cite web|url=http://www.cr.nps.gov/maritime/light/ptnopt.htm |title=Point No Point Light |work=Inventory of Historic Light Stations: Washington Lighthouses |publisher=National Park Service |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20040418215730/http://www.cr.nps.gov/maritime/light/ptnopt.htm |archivedate=April 18, 2004 |accessdate=May 12, 2015}}</ref>

<ref name=nomination>{{cite web|url={{NRHP url|id=78002758}} |title=National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form |publisher=National Park Service |date=August 10, 1978 |accessdate=May 12, 2015}}</ref>

<ref name=salazar>{{cite press release |url=https://www.nps.gov/aboutus/news/index.htm?id=1360 |title=Secretary Salazar Announces Transfer of Lighthouses in Washington and Michigan to Local Ownership |publisher=National Park Service |date=July 18, 2012 |access-date=May 12, 2015}}</ref>

<ref name=park>{{cite web |url=http://www.kitsapgov.com/parks/Parks/Pages/regionalparks/point_no_point.htm |title=Point No Point Lighthouse and Park |publisher=Kitsap County |accessdate=May 12, 2015 |archive-date=May 12, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150512200123/http://www.kitsapgov.com/parks/Parks/Pages/regionalparks/point_no_point.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<ref name=histlink>{{cite encyclopedia |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&File_Id=5636 |title=Point No Point Light Station |publisher=HistoryLink |encyclopedia=The Online Encyclopedia of Washington State History |first=Daryl C. |last=McClary |date=January 15, 2004 |accessdate=May 12, 2015}}</ref>

<ref name=friends>{{cite web |url=http://www.lighthousefriends.com/light.asp?ID=110 |title=Point No Point, WA |publisher=Lighthousefriends |accessdate=May 12, 2015}}</ref>

<ref name=pointnopointfriends>{{cite web |url=http://www.pnplighthouse.com/History.html |title=History: The light station is established |publisher=Friends of Point No Point Lighthouse |accessdate=May 12, 2015 |archive-date=May 13, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150513033025/http://pnplighthouse.com/History.html |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<ref name=uslhs>{{cite web |url=http://uslhs.org/about/society-history |title=Society History |publisher=United States Lighthouse Society |accessdate=May 12, 2015}}</ref>

<ref name=unc>{{Cite rowlett|wa|date=October 19, 2014|access-date=May 7, 2015}}</ref>

}}

==More reading==
*{{cite book|title=Umbrella Guide to Washington Lighthouses |author1=Sharlene Nelson |author2=Ted Nelson |publisher=Epicenter Press |date=1998 |isbn=9780945397700}}
*''Strait History, the quarterly publication of the Clallam County Historical Society and Museum'', 1(4).

==External links==
*{{commons category-inline}}
*[https://www.kitsapgov.com/parks/Pages/PointNoPointPark.aspx Point No Point Lighthouse & Park] Kitsap County Parks & Recreation
*[http://www.pnplighthouse.com/ Friends of Point No Point Lighthouse]

{{Lighthouses of Washington}}
{{National Register of Historic Places in Washington}}
{{authority control}}

[[Category:Lighthouses completed in 1880]]
[[Category:Transportation buildings and structures in Kitsap County, Washington]]
[[Category:Lighthouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington (state)]]
[[Category:Parks in Kitsap County, Washington]]
[[Category:National Register of Historic Places in Kitsap County, Washington]]
[[Category:1880 establishments in Washington Territory]]