Oldest Pacific Lighthouse
Lahaina Maui Hawaii
In 1840 King Kamehamea III ordered a nine foot wooden tower built as an aid to navigation for the whaling ships anchored off Lahaina.
It was equipped with whale oil lamps, kept burning at night by a Hawaiian caretaker who was paid $20 per year.
The tower was increased to 26 feet in 1866, rebuilt in 1905, and the present concrete structure was dedicated by the U.S. Coast Guard in 1916.
This light was first in the Hawaiian Islands and predates any lighthouse on the U.S. Pacific Coast.
Uploaded on February 17, 2013