Southwest Reef Lighthouse

Established on September 1, 1859, this lighthouse stood near the entrance to the Atchafalaya Bay on the Gulf coast of Louisiana. It's design, one of only two built in the United States of this type, is a square pyramid, fully enclosed in boiler plate. Originally, it had a fixed white oil light standing 54 feet above mean high water, which was visible for 14 miles. This lighthouse remained active until March 30, 1916; it was decommissioned when Point Au Fer Reef Lighthouse was built. For over seventy years the Southwest Reef Lighthouse stood marking the passage into the Atchafalaya Bay as a day beacon until it was moved ashore and fully restored by the Town of Berwick in October 1987.