Florida Keys Reef Lights

On October 6th. 1891, Mary Bethel was appointed Assistant Keeper at the Key West Lighthouse. She held that position, serving under her husband, William, until his death in 1908, when she was then named as Head Keeper.

On October 5th,1836, just months after the July 23rd attack on the Cape Florida Lighthouse, Seminole Indians destroyed a garden on Key Largo used by the crew of the Lightship Florida (LV-BB), currently stationed on Carysfort Reef.
Less than nine months later, on June 26, 1837, Seminoles would again target the Key Largo garden; this time killing Captain John Whalton and one other crewman, and wounding two others.
(Image: Lightship Florida (LV-BB). Source: United States Lighthouse Society Candace J. Clifford Lighthouse Research Catalog https://archives.uslhs.org/node/4022)

Ownership of Fowey Rocks Light, known as 'The Eye of Miami', was transferred to Biscayne National Park on October 2nd, 2012. Unfortunately, it seems the National Park Service has decided on a policy of 'benign neglect'...the lighthouse is not actively being torn down, but nothing is being done to preserve it.
(Image: Fowey Rocks Light (2021). Source: James Stein)

On September 29, 1970 Cape Florida Lighthouse was placed on the National Register of Historic Places - NPS. The National Register is a program administered by the National Park Service listing our nation's historic places worthy of preservation.
While Cape Florida Lighthouse was not an efficient aid to navigation, it has a colorful history. It was the site of both an attack in 1836, during the Second Seminole War, and a raid by Confederate sympathizers in 1861.
Today the Lighthouse is administered, and preserved, by Bill Baggs Cape Florida State Park, with the support of Friends of Cape Florida, Inc.

In the 1920's and 30's unmanned lights were built along the reef to mark local hazards. The towers of these lights, although shorter, are very similar to the six main reef lights.
As new technology came about these smaller lights were abandoned as aids to navigation; their lanterns removed and towers either demolished or used as other purposes, such as platforms for weather instruments.
At this point Tennessee Reef is the only one that still has its original lantern room. Tennessee Reef Light was first lit on September 26th, 1933. The light is a hexagonal, pyramidal skeleton tower. Standing at 49’, it was illuminated with a fourth order Fresnel lens and showed a flashing white light.

Mary Bethel served as the 10th, and last, Head Keeper at the Key West Lighthouse. Born Mary Elizabeth Sands on July 16, 1854, in Eleuthera, Bahamas, she married William Bethel in Key West, on April 17, 1874.
William Bethel became the Head Keeper at the Key West Lighthouse on June 17th, 1889. Mary was appointed Assistant Keeper on October 6th. 1891. She served as Assistant Keeper until she took over as Head Keeper upon the death of her husband in 1908. Her son, Merrill, would serve as her assistant.
Ms. Bethel retired from the lighthouse service in 1914 and lived in Key West until her death on September 24th, 1941, aged 87. She is buried in the Key West Cemetery (Lot 206, Tract 6).

Great history from the Florida Lighthouse Association!

Building a lighthouse is challenging enough.

Now imagine building one in eight feet of water on a reef.

The Sombrero Key Light, located offshore of Marathon, was first illuminated on March 17, 1858. The cast-iron skeletal tower was built under the direction of Lieutenant George G. Meade and originally held a first-order Fresnel lens.

Its foundation was an impressive feat of engineering. Iron piles were driven into the rock beneath the reef and braced together to support the tower above the water.

More than 160 years later, Sombrero Key Light remains one of the unmistakable silhouettes of the Florida Keys.

Could you imagine being a lighthouse keeper stationed out there?

The Battle of Baltimore, during which the Stars Spangled Banner was written, was an extended engagement that took place between September 12th-14th, 1814. The Battle of North Point on the 12th became one of the most pivotal events in the Battle of Baltimore. A small detachment of American forces left their defenses north of Baltimore and did the unthinkable: marched directly towards the better trained and greater numbered enemy. While the battle ultimately was a British victory, it had several key effects. It slowed British land forces' advance on Baltimore, had a great impact on American morale, and resulted in a large number of British casualties including the death of their commander. Taking part in that battle, as a member of the ‘Washington Blues’ of the 5th Regiment Armory, was John Flaherty, first keeper of the Garden Key and Sand Key Lighthouses.
John married Rebecca Winnull in 1820. In 1824 Rebecca wrote, first to Stephen Pleasonton and then to First Lady Louisa Adams, soliciting a position as a lighthouse keeper for John. In her letter, Rebecca mentions John’s service, ‘He served his country in the hour of danger and more particularly in the glorious defense of Baltimore’.
John was appointed as a keeper, unfortunately it was for the Garden Key Lighthouse in the Dry Tortugas and not the original Thomas Point Shoal Light in the Chesapeake Bay, closer to their home in Baltimore. He and Rebecca arrived at their station in July 1826 and the light was first displayed in the 4th of that month.
Unfortunately, the Flaherty’s had an unpleasant posting on Garden Key and they were moved to the newly built Sand Key Lighthouse in April 1827. John continued as Principal Keeper at Sand Key, with extended leaves of absence due to his health, until his death in 1830. Rebecca succeeded him as Principal Keeper.

After striking Cuba, Hurricane Irma swept up from the south, passing American Shoal Light on the morning of Sunday, September 10th, 2017. At the time it was a category 3 storm with sustained winds of 130 mph (113 knots). It then went on to make landfall on Cudjoe Key at 9:10 am.
Photos taken by Bill and Donna Thompson showed that sheeting on the roof of the lantern room was damaged and the glass was blown out. The frustrating thing is that as of December 2025 nothing has been done by the private owners to mitigate the damage, leaving the lighthouse vulnerable to accelerated deterioration!

The effects of category 4 Hurricane Donna were felt on the Florida Keys on September 9th and 10th, 1960. As the storm headed northwest the stronger right front quarter passed over Alligator Reef Light. According to 19 year old Coast Guardsman Jeffery Kime, ‘The winds were so strong that they vibrated the steel shutter doors that separated them from outside. At the height of storm, the winds raged up to 135mph. They had 6-8 inches of rain in the barrack area.’ In a November 24th, 1960 article in the Miami News Mr. Kime said, ‘I’ll never forget being inside the little cabin here and listening to parts of the lighthouse ripping away.’
After passing Alligator Reef, Donna went on to hit the Middle Keys. On shore another lighthouse, this one fake, also played a role. The Chesapeake House, at MM 83.5 (present day Whale Harbor), had a fake lighthouse tower attached to the restaurant. Jerry Wilkinson and Laura Albritton, in their book 'Historic Lighthouses of the Florida Keys', state that six people took refuge in the lighthouse tower 'when Hurricane Donna arrived.' They go on to say, 'Although the restaurant itself sustained major damage, the lighthouse survived--as did the six who rode out the storm inside'.
According to NWS report the damage to the Middle Keys was very severe due to sustained winds of 140 mph, with gusts of 175-180 mph, and a substantial storm surge, but luckily the death toll was very light, with a total of 12 persons killed in all of Florida. (https://www.weather.gov/mfl/donna)