SOUTH PORTLAND – The Spring Point Ledge Lighthouse in South Portland will open for the season starting Saturday, June 14. The lighthouse is open for tours every Saturday in June and every Saturday and Sunday in July.

Step into history and enjoy the rare opportunity to explore the inside of an active, working lighthouse. Located at the end of a 950-foot long granite breakwater that juts into Portland Harbor, Spring Point Ledge Lighthouse was built in 1897 as a navigational aid.

It’s the only caisson-style lighthouse in the United States that is accessible by land and one of the few lighthouses in Maine that is open to the public.

The website for the lighthouse trust said the structure was built to warn mariners of a dangerous ledge that jutted out under the water from Fort Preble. The lighthouse was especially important because by the late 1800s Portland Harbor was one of the busiest on the East Coast.

“The waterways bustled with schooners and steamships transporting goods and commodities, coal, food, and fish to and from the city,” the website states. “Additionally, there was thriving passenger traffic between Portland and other East Coast cities. By the time construction of Spring Point Ledge Lighthouse had been approved, seven steamship companies were carrying over 500,000 passengers annually past the dangerous ledge. Throughout that period an active military presence was also being maintained at Fort Preble.”

The website adds, “Several high-profile shipwrecks on the ledge finally prompted the steamship companies to begin a campaign for a lighthouse. However, it was not until March 1895 that an appropriation of $45,000 was approved by the Lighthouse Board to begin construction.”

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers constructed the breakwater in 1950 at a cost of $215,000, according to the lighthouse trust website. Today, visitors can enjoy magnificent views of Portland Harbor, while fishing or walking on the breakwater.

The lighthouse is not handicapped accessible and children must meet a height requirement of 51 inches to be admitted. In addition, visitors to the lighthouse are encouraged to wear sensible shoes, with bare feet being prohibited. The trust retains the discretion to close the lighthouse for inclement weather, including fog.

Tickets can be purchased from the booth at the foot of the breakwater. Visitors will also find an assortment of snacks, refreshments and lighthouse-related gifts. All proceeds from ticket and merchandise sales go toward the maintenance and management of the lighthouse.

– Kate Irish Collins

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A CLOSER LOOK

The Spring Point Ledge Lighthouse in South Portland is open every Saturday in June and every Saturday and Sunday in July and August 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Admission is $5 per person. See http://springpointlight.org or call 866-570-5703 for more information.

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