Penfield Reef Light

Penfield Reef Light is a granite and wood lighthouse built on Penfield Reef to guide ships at the entrance of Black Rock Harbor along Long Island Sound. The tower rises roughly 11 meters and provides navigation assistance to maritime traffic passing through this busy waterway.

Congress authorized funding in 1870 for construction of the lighthouse, which began operation in 1874 with a fourth-order Fresnel lens. The tower functioned as a vital navigation marker for shipping in the region throughout the following century.

The lighthouse holds a spot on the National Register of Historic Places and represents one of several Second Empire architectural style lighthouses in North America.

The lighthouse has been remotely operated by the United States Coast Guard since 1971 and uses modern technology to guide ships safely. Its location on the reef means visitors typically view it from the water rather than from a direct vantage point on land.

In December 1916, Keeper Frederick Jordan drowned while rowing to shore, leading Assistant Keeper Rudolph Iten to document numerous supernatural occurrences afterward.

Location: Fairfield County

Inception: 1874

Height: 11 m

Made from material: granite, wood, granite

GPS coordinates: 41.11667,-73.22167

Latest update: December 11, 2025 18:04