Trinity Shoal Light

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Trinity Shoal Light was planned to be a lighthouse on Trinity Shoal in the Gulf of Mexico, off the coast of Louisiana. It would have been one of the most exposed lighthouses in the United States. Congress provided funds in 1871, but construction moved slowly. The shoal is about 20 miles from land, making the foundation very difficult. Workers lived on a shelter platform on the site, finished in 1873, and work began in earnest. On November 16, 1873, a strong hurricane struck. The lighthouse tender at the site, carrying most of the building materials, was wrecked, but its crew were rescued by a nearby steamer. The plan was to keep the workers on station, but by November 18 the rough weather destroyed their quarters and scattered 16 men into the sea. All 16 were saved by the same steamer that had rescued the tender’s crew. Because of the weather, the Lighthouse Board decided a tower was no longer needed, and construction was stopped. Some materials were later salvaged for the Southwest Pass Light. Trinity Shoal was marked by a lightvessel, which was eventually replaced by a small automatic light. 29°12′N 92°12′W