Pigeon Point Lighthouse Born Out Of Tragic Shipwrecks

摘要

Dangerous rocks, unpredictable currents and persistent fog characterize the rugged coasdine of Pigeon Point, 50 miles south of San Francisco.rnDuring the 1800s, as ship traffic increased along California shores, the area was known to mariners as exceptionally hazardous. Many vessels fell victim to Pigeon Point's treacherous shoreline.rnIt took years of petitioning the U.S. Lighthouse Service Board before money was allocated for a lighthouse at Pigeon Point. The most significant events influencing the decision were the wrecks of two ships, Coya and Hellespont, in the 1860s. The loss of these vessels, along with the deaths of 37 passengers and crew, stirred a public outcry that the Lighthouse Service Board could no longer ignore.