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Bug Light

First erected: 1856

Height: 35 Feet

First Keeper: Nathaniel Hooper

Automated in: 1929

Light: Sixth Order Fresnel Lens

Flash Pattern: Fixed

Distance: 7 Nautical Miles

Image Description: The Narrows Light sits to the left of the picture with Boston Light in the background. A large ship is to the right of the Narrows Light, entering the harbor. Date unknown.

Image Credit: DCR/NPS

Built in 1856 at 35 feet above water, the Narrows Light was situated at the end of Great Brewster spit, the entrance to the Narrows Channel, the former main shipping route into the harbor. Harrison Loring, a South Boston shipbuilder, designed the Narrows Light as a hexagonal wooden building situated on seven iron stilts, resembling a large bug. Over time, the funny looking structure earned the nickname ‘Bug Light.’

In 1856, a sixth order Fresnel lens was installed with a fixed red light, visible for seven nautical miles. A fog bell was placed on the side of the lighthouse that would blow every twenty seconds in times of poor visibility. Nathaniel Hooper was the first keeper when it went into service.

After Hooper’s service ended in 1871, there were a number of other keepers, including a rumored pirate and murderer. The tale of the pirate lighthouse keeper is told by Edward Rowe Snow, a well-known Harbor Islands aficionado and storyteller. Whether or not the story is true is a mystery lost to time.

Image Description: An etching of the lighthouse with Fort Warren in the background. A group of people are seen sitting and standing on the spit of sand in the foreground. 

Image Credit: NPS

Another popular story involving Bug Light dates back to the Civil War. One evening there was commotion at the lighthouse. Soldiers from nearby Fort Warren heard gunshots across the water. Being on high alert due to a rumored Confederate ship was spotted in the New England area, several soldiers sailed over to investigate. To their relief there was no Confederate ship, but the lighthouse keeper was shooting at the rats in the lighthouse. It later became known as the “Battle of Bug Light” to the soldiers stationed at the fort. 

On June 7, 1929, the final keeper to the light, Tom Small, was removing paint from the exterior of the building with a blowtorch. The structure caught fire and was destroyed. 

The lighthouse was immediately replaced with a gas-operated lighted bell buoy in 1930. This was updated with an automatic light and fog bell on the base of the former lighthouse. Eventually the station went through its final renovation. The automatic light and fog bell were replaced with a small steel tower with an automatic light, which shines in the harbor today.

Image Description: A steel skeleton structure sits in the foreground, the modern Narrows Light. Boston Light sits in the background. 

Image Credit: DCR/NPS

Works Cited

“Non-Extant Navigational Aids – Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area (U.S. National Park Service).” Www.nps.gov. Accessed April 29, 2021. https://www.nps.gov/boha/learn/historyculture/other-navigational-aids.htm.

D’Entremont, Jeremy. “Narrows Light History.” NEW ENGLAND LIGHTHOUSES: A VIRTUAL GUIDE. Accessed April 29, 2021. http://www.newenglandlighthouses.net/narrows-light-history.html.

Kales, Emily, and David Kales. 1989. All about the Boston Harbor Islands. 34. Hingham, Ma: Hewitts Cove Pub.

Snow, Edward Rowe. 1973. The Lighthouses of New England, 1716-1973. 225-226. New York: Dodd, Mead.

Sweetser, M F, and Moses King. 1888. King’s Handbook of Boston Harbor, by M.F. Sweetser. Illus. By Charles Copeland and Others. 216. Boston, Mass., Moses King Corp.

United States. Light-House Board. 1907. List of Lights and Fog Signals on the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts of the United States; Corr. To March 1, 1907. 46. Washington, Govt. Print. Off.