Chatham Lighthouse, Nauset Lighthouse and Three Sisters, Chatham and Eastham, Massachusetts

Chatham Lighthouse, Chatham, MA

Lighthouses fascinate me because of their history. I like to think what life was like at the light for the keeper and his (it was almost always a male keeper) and his family when maritime navigation was so much more difficult than it is today.

The Chatham Light in Chatham, MA has an interesting history. First, you may recognize the lighthouse. It was seen in the 2016 movie The Finest Hours about a 1952 sea rescue of the USS Pendleton. The buildings on the grounds at Chatham Light still house Coast Guard personnel, so it is not open to the public. But, there are some days when you can tour the light.

When the lighthouse was originally built in 1877, it was one of two lighthouses on the site. The second light was deemed superfluous and, in 1923, it was moved 18 miles north to Eastham, MA to replace the wooden lighthouses known as Three Sisters.

Nauset Lighthouse, notice that even though it is shorter, the Nauset light is very similar in design to the Chatham Lighthouse.

The second Chatham light, now known as the Nauset lighthouse, is open to the public for tours. You might also recognize the Nauset light as it is on bags of Cape Cod brand potato chips. The Nauset Light is open for tours and climbing the tower courtesy of the Nauset Light Preservation Society. See their calendar for dates and times.

Two of the Three Sisters

As for the wooden lighthouses, The Three Sisters of Nauset, they were saved. This is very unusual for wooden lighthouse structures. Most were destroyed when new brick, stone, or steel beacons replaced them. Or, more likely, they burned. As you can imagine, the combination of wood and kerosene did not make for a long life expectancy for lighthouses. But, the Three Sisters survived and they are now a third of a mile from the new Nauset light and you can tour the grounds with one of the staff of the Cape Cod National Seashore.

Sister number three

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