The largest island of the former British West Indies, Jamaica is 234 km (145 mi) long and 80 km (50 mi) wide. After being colonized by Spain in the early 1500s Jamaica was conquered by Britain in 1655. After three centuries as a British colony the island has been an independent nation within the British Commonwealth since 1962. It remains a Commonwealth Realm, recognizing the British monarch as head of state. Kingston, on the south coast, is the capital, largest city, and most important port of the country. Jamaica has a population of about 2.8 million and is very popular as a tourist destination. Jamaica has seven historic lighthouses, no one of them like any of the others and all of them interesting in their design. All seven lighthouses are accessible, but several of them are rather poorly known. Historically Jamaica was divided into three counties, but the counties no longer have any function; for local government they are subdivided into fourteen units called parishes. Aids to navigation in Jamaica are maintained by the Port Authority of Jamaica, an agency of the Ministry of Transport and Works. ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. Admiralty numbers are from volume J of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. U.S. NGA List numbers are from Publication 110.
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Surrey County (Eastern Jamaica) Lighthouses
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Middlesex County South Coast Lighthouses
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Cornwall County (Western Jamaica) Lighthouses
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Middlesex County North Coast Lighthouse
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Morant Cays Lighthouse
Information available on lost lighthouses:
Notable faux lighthouses:
Adjoining pages: North: Eastern Cuba | East: Navassa Island | West: Cayman Islands
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Posted 2001. Checked and revised January 1, 2025. Lighthouses: 14. Site copyright 2025 Russ Rowlett and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.