Barcelona Lighthouse

History

In May 1828 Congress set aside $5,000 for a lighthouse at or near Portland, on the New York shore of Lake Erie, and the light was built the following year at the natural harbour now called Barcelona.^[2] The tower and the attached keeper's cottage are of fieldstone. The tower stands about 40 feet tall, and its first apparatus was eleven lamps backed by 14-inch reflectors.^[2,3]

What made Barcelona unusual was its fuel. Settlers had long known of a 'burning spring', where flammable gas bubbled up through the rock bed of a brook near the harbour. After the lighthouse was finished in 1829, local men walled in the spring under a stone cone to trap the gas and piped it about 230 rods, roughly three quarters of a mile, to the tower.^[2] A contract of January 1, 1831, provided for lighting it with gas year-round.^[2] Wikipedia calls it the first lighthouse in the world powered by natural gas, while the Lighthouse Directory describes it as the first in the country; either way it is among the earliest.^[2,3]

The light was taken out of service in 1859.^[2] For more than a century afterward the cottage was a private home, much of that time with one family, and the tower lost its lantern; an open platform was added in 1962, and a decorative gas light has been shown since then.^[3] The lighthouse and cottage joined the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.^[4]

New York State Parks acquired the property in 2008, and the Town of Westfield manages it under licence, with volunteers running a visitor centre in the cottage.^[3] A restoration of the tower began in 2024.^[3] The state's visitor page notes that climbing the tower is strenuous and finishes on an alternating-step ladder, and that the tower may close for weather or construction.^[5]

How to see it

Tower climbs The operator has offered public tower climbs, usually seasonally.

Best public viewpoint

The lighthouse grounds on East Lake Road (NY 5) above Barcelona Harbor; parking is at the harbour by the Daniel Reed Pier.^[5]

Tower climbs

New York State Parks has opened the tower for climbs seasonally, subject to weather, staffing and restoration work; the climb is steep and ends on a ladder.

Operator

Town of Westfield (under licence from New York State Parks)

Last verified

Last verified 2026-10

Access details last verified 2026-10. Hours, tours and ownership change. Check the operator before you go. Pier and breakwater lights can be dangerous in wind and waves; obey posted closures and never enter private or Coast Guard property.

Questions people ask

Can you climb the Barcelona Lighthouse?

Yes, when it is staffed in season. New York State Parks says the climb is strenuous and ends on a narrow ladder, and the tower may close for weather or restoration work. The grounds are open year-round.

Was Barcelona the first lighthouse lit by natural gas?

It is one of the earliest. From 1831 it burned gas piped from a nearby 'burning spring'. Wikipedia calls it the first in the world, and the Lighthouse Directory the first in the United States.

Is the Barcelona Lighthouse active?

No. It was taken out of service in 1859. A decorative gas light has been displayed since 1962, but it is not an aid to navigation.