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LIGHTING THE WAY
L
ike all the islands off California, ranching occurred for about 150
years from the 1830s until the late 1980s, and Santa Barbara
Island was no different. The Hyder family was the last to make a go
of it on the treeless isle, but they left for good in 1922.
Since 1853, the U.S. government had intentions of building
a lighthouse on the lonely island. It wasn’t until after the Hyders
left that some sort of navigational aid was put in motion. On July
27, 1928, the Bureau of Lighthouses authorized an automatic
light on the northern tip of the island, just above Arch Point. The
light was to aid in the trans-Pacific and Hawaiian Islands traffic,
which follows a path six miles north of the island. In 1934, a
second light tower was erected on the south end of the island,
on the westerly side overlooking Sutil Island a quarter mile away.
The light was located 486 feet above the water and visible for 12
miles.
Both beacons were removed at the outbreak of World War
II. They were returned in 1943 when the immediate threat to Los
Angeles Harbor was thought to be over. During the war, the Navy took
over responsibility for U.S. Coast Guard activities, including aids to
navigation, and instituted a program of timed blackouts of coastal
lights in case of enemy attack.
Now only one light remains, the one I was banking on to find my
way across undulating dark seas to a speck of an island.
winter
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spr ing
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FAR
FLUNG
TRAVEL