The United States of America is a federal union of 50 states and a capital district. The northeastern state of Connecticut is located in the southern New England region east of New York and west of Rhode Island. Third smallest of the states, Connecticut is named for the Connecticut River, which flows through the center of the state. Connecticut faces south on Long Island Sound, a broad sound separating Connecticut from New York state's Long Island. The sound is 110 mi (180 km) long and as much as 21 mi (34 km) wide. Among Connecticut's onshore lighthouses are two Early Federal towers and several interesting survivors from the Pleasanton era around 1840. Many of the other lighthouses are located offshore in Long Island Sound. Only a few Connecticut lighthouses are open to the public. Jeremy D'Entremont's book, The Lighthouses of Connecticut (Beverly MA: Commonwealth Editions, 2005) is the indispensable reference for these lighthouses. Connecticut is divided geographically into eight counties, but the county governments were abolished in 1960. Local government is provided by 169 towns and cities. Navigational aids in Connecticut are operated by the U.S. Coast Guard Sector Long Island Sound with its Aids to Navigation Team based at New Haven. Ownership (and sometimes operation) of historic lighthouses has been transferred to local authorities and preservation organizations in many cases. ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. Admiralty numbers are from volume J of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. USCG numbers are from Vol. I of the USCG Light List.
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New London County Lighthouses
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![]() Latimer Reef Light, Fishers Island Sound, January 2024 Instagram photo by National Lighthouse Museum |
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Middlesex County Lighthouses
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New Haven County Lighthouses
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Fairfield County Lighthouses
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Information available on lost lighthouses:
Notable faux lighthouses:
Adjoining pages: East: Rhode Island | South: Long Island | Southwest: New York City and Hudson River
Return to the Lighthouse Directory index
Posted May 2001. Checked and revised June 19, 2024. Lighthouses: 26. Site copyright 2024 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.