Battery Point Light was one of the first lighthouses on the California coast.
Rugged mountains and unbridged rivers meant coastal travel was essential for the
economic survival of this region. In 1855, Congress appropriated $15,000 for the
construction of a lighthouse on the tiny islet, which is connected to Battery Point
by an isthmus which is visible, and can be traversed on foot, at low tide.
The 1964 Alaska earthquake, the strongest earthquake ever recorded in the
northern hemisphere, caused a tsunami. The lighthouse survived. In the following year,
the modern beacon that replaced the Fresnel lens in the tower was switched off, and a
flashing light at the end of the nearby breakwater served as the harbor's navigational aid.
In 1982, the light in the lighthouse tower was lit again, and the Battery Point Lighthouse
was listed as a private aid to navigation.