This virtual geocache is located in Hillsboro Inlet Park with a sweeping view of the nearby lighthouse and waterway. Tours of the lighthouse are conducted periodically throughout the year and there is even a small museum in the park that is open every other day during the week, free of charge.
In 1855, after an extensive survey of all existing lighthouses and navigable inlets on the eastern seaboard, the Army Corp of Engineers designated Hillsboro Point hazardous for the safe navigation of ships. After several years of construction requests and Congressional fundraising approval, the Hillsboro Inlet Lighthouse was completed, inspected, and approved for service at the Detroit Foundry in 1906. The lighthouse was disassembled and shipped a total of 4,000 nautical miles via Lake Erie, Lake Michigan, the Mississippi River, the Gulf of Mexico, around Key West, and north to the Hillsboro Inlet.
The lighthouse was installed at its current location in 1907. The enormous revolving second-order Fresnel lens was built by Barbier, Benard, and Turenne of Paris, France. The lens is composed of 356 circular prisms which were cast in precision molds and then lapped and polished to a high brilliance. They were fit into machined pockets in brass frames to hold them in precise alignment in a clamshell shape, 9 feet in diameter. Light was originally provided by an oil vapor lamp. This lamp was replaced with 250-watt incandescent bulbs in the 1920s and replaced again with twin 1,000-watt bulbs in 1966 (one bulb serving as a backup).
In the second half of the 20th century the inlet became an increasingly busy waterway, and in 1974 the lighthouse was fully automated. One United States Coast Guardsman was assigned to remain on site to maintain the light and grounds. The assistant keepers' homes were converted to guest quarters for senior Coast Guard and other senior military officers. The Hillsboro Inlet Light Station was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places on February 16, 1979.
On May 22, 1992 broken gears forced the lens to be turned off and replaced by a smaller temporary beacon. A report was completed in 1996 that recommended the lens be removed and placed in a museum. The following year, a group of concerned citizens formed the Hillsboro Lighthouse Preservation Society, whose primary goal was to reactivate the Fresnel lens. Public support allowed for the lighthouse to be restored with the original classic Fresnel lens intact, and major renovations included a complete sandblasting of the entire tower, new paint, the removal of 400 pounds of liquid mercury used in the original rotational mechanism, new curved panes of glass to faithfully replicate the original glazing, and a new one-piece bearing mechanism. Renovations were completed in 2000. The Hillsboro Lighthouse Preservation Society is currently responsible for all maintenance and duties for continued service of the lighthouse.
The Hillsboro Inlet Lighthouse has been nicknamed "Big Diamond" due to the 73 diamond-shaped panes of glass encasing the lantern house and is considered one of the most powerful lighthouses in the world with a beam that can be seen for 28 nautical miles (52 km; 32 mi).
In order to log this cache, locate the bell at the coordinates given and send me a message with answers to the following questions:
1. Who was the LEADER of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxillary relighting team?
2. Who was appointed lighthouse keeper in 1984?
3. What are the dates listed on both sides of the actual bell itself?
As always, please avoid revealing spoilers or answers in your logs and photos or they will be deleted - have fun and enjoy the view! Congrats to -DOLFINANDO- & Lphill22 for the FTF!
Virtual Reward - 2017/2018
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between August 24, 2017 and August 24, 2018. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards on the Geocaching Blog.