Anacapa Island Light Station, Ventura California
The Anacapa Island Light Station was established to mark the strategic east entrance of the Santa Barbara Channel. There was agitation for a lighthouse on the Channel Islands as far back as 1853 when the luxurious sidewheeler Winfield Scott struck a rocky ledge and sunk, But the Lighthouse Board not wishing to pay the additional cost of an island beacon decided instead to build an economy lighthouse at Port Hueneme in 1874.
Not until 1912 was a navigation light placed on Anacapa, that being an unmanned skeleton tower. With an increase in shipwrecks and a commercial fishing boom in the area, a permanent light station was placed in operation in 1932. This was the last light station complex completed in California.
The Light Station consists of the following structures:
Lighthouse Tower (1932)
The lighthouse tower is the principal element of the light station. It is a substantial structure built to contain a Fresnel lens (in this case 3rd order) and its architectural integrity is complete (including the original lens). Its construction of reinforced concrete was pioneered by the Point Arena Lighthouse in 1908. Most California lighthouses built after 1908 were of reinforced concrete. Although the lighthouse tower is the only major station building not built specifically in the Spanish Revival style, its smooth white surface is directly compatible with the white stucco of the Spanish buildings.
Fog Signal Building (1932)
The fog-signal building's roof was originally covered with red tiles, placing it stylistically with the other Spanish Revival buildings on the site. At some point, these tiles were replaced by the present asbestos tiles, reportedly because the Spanish tiles kept blowing off at this windy location.
Assistant Keeper's Quarters (1932)
The Assistant Keeper's quarters is one of the station's "Spanish Revival" buildings. Most of the original design features are intact: red tile roof, white stucco walls, carved beams, arched doorway, wrought iron beam supports, etc. The only architectural features no longer present are the low stucco garden walls that once surrounded the front and rear doors. The original station contained a Keeper's dwelling in addition to this Assistant Keeper's dwelling. It was inadvertently demolished during the transfer of the station from the Coast Guard to the National Park Service in 1978. The only other Spanish Revival style Keeper's residence in California is found at the Point Vicente Light Station on the Palos Verdes Peninsula. Spanish Revival architecture was a very popular residential style throughout Southern California in the 1920s and 1930s.
General Services Building, Visitors' Center (1932)
This building presently serves as the Visitors' Center for the National Park Service on Anacapa Island. Its design places it as part of the Spanish Revival theme of most of the station's buildings. The architectural integrity of the building is mostly complete.
Tank House (1932)
This building contains the fresh water supply used by the station personnel and by the original steam fog signal. The building's design places it as a part of the Spanish Revival theme found throughout the station.
Derrick Building (1932)
This building's unadorned facade reflects its utilitarian usage. Its architectural integrity is intact. It is located at the top of the landing and is not near the other Spanish Revival buildings on the station.
Oil House (1932)
The oil house's unadorned concrete construction reflects its utilitarian usage.
Power House (1932)
This building's Spanish Revival design places it with the other station buildings designed in this style.
Lower Landing (1931)
This is one of the few landing sites remaining at a California light station. Landings were frequently conjuncts of remote light stations where the interior road network prevented vehicular access. As the stations gradually became connected to the outside world by roads, and as cars and trucks came to prominence, the need for landings diminished. Most fell into disrepair and were eventually washed away in winter storms. The landing at Anacapa Island has been maintained, however, because it is an island and its accessibility is by water only. The landing was constructed in 193l, one year before the construction of the station buildings.
Upper Derrick Landing (1931)
The derrick was necessary to lift supplies up the 90' cliffs from the landing. This was originally constructed in 193l, one year before the construction of the station buildings.
Landing Stairway (1931)
The stairway provided access from the landing to the station complex. It was constructed in 1931, one year before the construction of the station buildings.
Site Description
The Anacapa Island Light Station is located on the eastern 40 acres of Anacapa Island, one of the three islands comprising the Channel Islands National Park. As the eastern-most island in the chain, the Anacapa Island Lighthouse looks out over the Santa Barbara Shipping Channel and beyond to the Ventura County Coast. The station is comprised of the lighthouse tower, fog-signal building, Keeper's residence, 2 storage buildings, 1 industrial building, 1 service building, a derrick building, lower landing, upper landing, stairway, and watershed. The tower and fog-signal building are located at the edge of the cliff, 277' above sea level. The remaining buildings are located more toward the interior of the island. The entire complex consists of original buildings dating from the station's founding in 1931. Several original Keeper's residences have been destroyed, however. The design of the buildings on the site reflects the Spanish revival architecture popular in Southern California in the 1920s and 1930s. Taken together, the remaining light station buildings present an excellent example of a later period (after 1920) light station complex executed in a popular regional architectural style. The buildings and structures on the site retain a high degree of architectural integrity and they generally are in very good condition. The Anacapa Island Light Station is very similar in design to the Point Vicente Light Station on the Palos Verde Peninsula built in 1926. Both have cylindrical reinforced concrete towers and Spanish Revival accessory buildings.
Lighthouse Tower (1932):
A cylindrical lighthouse tower constructed of reinforced concrete. At its apex, a glass and iron lantern room rests atop a circular concrete platform with iron railings. The top portion of the lantern room contains glass panels separated by diagonal metal munitions. The lantern room is capped by a metal conical roof and ball vent. The top of the shaft is pierced by eight windows distributed evenly around the circumference of the tower. Two additional windows are found midway between the ground and the lantern room. Another window is found at the ground level. The entrance doorway is surrounded by a raised concrete pediment protruding from the base of the shaft. Decorative concrete stringcourses encompassing the shaft are found near the top of the structure and, again, approximately 5 feet above ground at the base. The structure's foundation is of poured concrete. The architectural integrity of the structure is intact (including the original 3rd order Fresnel lens) and it is in very good condition.
Fog-Signal Building (1932):
A tall, one-story, square plan, concrete building. The hipped roof starts approximately 16' above grade. In the center of the roof an electronics tower measuring approximately 8' square projects another 12'. The foundation and walls of the base structure are concrete. The roof is covered in asbestos tile. The tower is a steel-frame structure finished with metal lathe and stucco. Modern electronic navigational equipment is currently attached to its roof and tower. The elevations are unadorned but are pierced by 1 door and 1 window. The original building contained red roof tiles similar to the other Spanish Revival buildings on the site.
Assistant Keeper's Residence (1932):
A three-bedroom, one-story, 1,800-square-foot residence built in the "Spanish Revival" style. Elements of this particular style present in this building include the red tile roof, exterior white stucco walls, and interior features such as carved beams, wrought iron beam supports, arched doorways, and brass fittings. The building has a partial concrete basement. The condition of the building is very good although some of the window frames are rotting. The architectural integrity of the building is nearly intact. However, the original white stucco garden walls surrounding the front and rear entrances are no longer extant. The red tile roof was replaced in 1978 with identical tile.
General Services Building/Visitors' Center (1932):
A one-story rectangular stucco building built in the Spanish Revival style. Features of this style found on this building include the red tile roof and white stucco exterior. The interior has 1 1/2" grooved wood siding and ceiling. The degree of architectural integrity of the building is quite high, although the original red roof tiles were replaced with identical material in 1978. The building is in very good condition.
Tank House (1932):
A one-story wood-frame building housing two large wooden water tanks, each having a capacity of 50,000 gallons. Although the exterior is covered in white clapboard instead of stucco, the overall style of the building is Spanish Revival. The roof is covered in red tile, and the front entrance pavilion contains an 8' Spanish arched doorway. The building is rectangular in plan, measuring approximately 32' X 59'. The sides of the building are pierced by evenly spaced tall, narrow windows. A circular window approximately 4' in diameter is additionally found in the center of the gable end near the top of the building's front facade. The building is in very good condition. Original records show that the building originally had a rigid, asbestos-shingle roof, instead of the red tile roof of surrounding structures. The present tile roof may have been installed in 1970 as it only needed minor repairs in 1978 when the other red tile replacement roofs were installed at the station. Ironically, the addition of the red tile roof makes the building look more historically "accurate" than was the case with the original roof. It is unclear why the original building did not contain a red tile roof similar to its neighbors.
Derrick Building (1932):
A one-story, rectangular building measuring approximately 10 X 18 feet. The building is of wood-frame construction with horizontal wood siding on the exterior. It rests on the concrete slab of the derrick landing. The gabled roof is covered with wood shingles. The windows are metal sash industrial style. The building is in good condition.
Oil House (1932):
A small one-story, concrete, rectangular building measuring approximately 19 X 28'. The roof is flat and is surrounded by a 2' parapet. The north and south elevations have evenly spaced 2' X 3' window openings containing metal sash windows glazed with wired glass. There is one door opening on the west elevation.
Power House (1932):
A rectangular one-story building measuring approximately 25 X 65'. Like the other Spanish Revival style buildings on the site, this building has white stucco walls and a red tile roof. Its foundation is concrete. The condition of the building is very good and its architectural integrity is quite complete. The red tiles on the roof were replaced with identical tile in 1978.
Lower Landing (1931):
The lower derrick landing is irregular in shape and covers an area of approximately 1200 square feet. The structure is built into the rocky cliff and consists of concrete retaining walls backfilled and covered with a concrete slab. The landing originally supported a steel derrick and a small wood frame building which no longer exists. There is a steel railing along the perimeter of the inlet side of the landing and a concrete sea wall faces the ocean for protection against high waves. Below this is a boat landing constructed on wood pilings. The boat landing appears to be a replacement of an earlier boat landing.
The Navy placed a cement plug in a sea-eroded tunnel under the landing and braced a rock cliff above the lower hoist house in 1943. When the lighthouse was automated in 1968 Phase II of the operation included burning the hoist house on the lower landing and disposing of the lower derrick and hoist equipment.
The landing is in good condition.
Upper Derrick Landing (1931):
The upper derrick landing is irregular in shape and covers an area of approximately 2500 square feet. The structure consists of a concrete retaining wall backfilled and topped with a concrete slab. Anchored to the landing is a steel derrick, and a steel railing along the outer edge. The inner edge is set into the hillside.
During the automation changes in 1966, the boom at the upper hoist was extended. In 1975 a 7/16" cable was placed from the top of the crane mast to the boom end to give an additional safety factor, and the winch cable was replaced. 105 feet above water. Designed to lift at 80 feet per minute.
The upper derrick landing is in good condition.
Landing Stairway (1931):
The stairs connecting the upper and lower derrick landings consist of two types: concrete and metal. The stairs climb a height of approximately 90 feet between the two concrete landings. The stairs on the upper half are formed directly on the rock of concrete with steel railings. The lower half is an open structural metal tower containing 4 flights of metal stairs. Rails and steps were rehabilitated by NPS after 1970 agreement with the Coast Guard. The landing stairway is in good condition.
Concrete Watershed (1932):
The 30,000 square foot rain shed, a cement slab of irregular shape behind the Tank House, is shaped to funnel rainwater down to the water tanks. This structure never was hooked up to function as a rain shed because of problems with nesting Western Gulls. Today it is used as a helipad.
