The United States of America is a federal union of 50 states and a capital district. The west coast state of California is the most populous state in the nation with a population approaching 40 million. It is also the third largest state, with a coastline on the Pacific Ocean about 840 mi (1350 km) long. Formerly a Mexican territory, California became part of the U.S. after the Mexican War of 1848. The famous Gold Rush began in 1849 and the first lighthouses were built a few years later. These early lights, like the Point Pinos Light at right and the Battery Point Light shown near the bottom of the page, were built in a what was then a typical New England style. Ironically there are no examples of this style surviving in New England, so the only place to see these traditional New England lighthouses is in California. This page includes the lighthouses of the northern California coasts from Monterey County north to the Oregon border. This area includes about two thirds of the state and includes the San Francisco Bay metropolitan area. Lighthouses of Southern California are on a separate page. Navigational aids in the United States are operated by the U.S. Coast Guard but ownership (and sometimes operation) of historic lighthouses has been transferred to local authorities and preservation organizations in many cases. Aids to navigation in California are maintained by the Eleventh Coast Guard District with Aids to Navigation Teams at San Francisco and Humboldt Bay. ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. Admiralty numbers are from volume G of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. USCG numbers are from Vol. VI of the USCG Light List.
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Point Sur Light, Big Sur, November 2007 ex-Flickr Creative Commons photo by Curtis Brown |
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East Brother Island Light, Richmond, March 2013 Wikimedia Creative Commons photo by Frank Schulenburg |
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Table Bluff Light, Woodley Island, January 2018 Wikimedia Creative Commons photo by Frank Schulenburg. |
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Information available on lost lighthouses:
Notable faux lighthouses:
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St. George Reef Light, March 2012 Flickr Creative Commons photo by Anita Ritenour. |
Adjoining pages: North: Oregon | East: Nevada | South: Southern California
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Checked and revised January 2, 2024. Lighthouses: 39. Lightships: 1. Site copyright 2024 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.