Diamond Head Lighthouse is a United States Coast Guard facility located on Diamond Head in Honolulu, on the island of Oʻahu in the State of Hawaiʻi.
 Diamond Head Lighthouse | |
 | |
| Location | 3399 Diamond Head Rd. Honolulu, Hawaii |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 21°15′20.7″N 157°48′34.5″W / 21.255750°N 157.809583°W |
| Tower | |
| Constructed | 1898 (first) |
| Construction | concrete tower |
| Height | 57 feet (17 m) |
| Shape | square pyramidal tower with circular balcony and lantern |
| Markings | white tower, red lantern dome |
| Operator | United States Coast Guard |
| Heritage | National Register of Historic Places listed place  |
| Light | |
| First lit | 1917 (current) |
| Focal height | 147 feet (45 m) |
| Lens | Barbier et Bénard 3rd order Fresnel lens |
| Range | white: 17 nautical miles (31 km; 20 mi) red: 14 nautical miles (26 km; 16 mi) |
| Characteristic | Oc (2) WR 10s. |
U.S. Coast Guard Diamond Head Lighthouse | |
| Location | 3399 Diamond Head Rd., Honolulu, Hawaii |
| Coordinates | 21°15′25″N 157°48′34″W / 21.25694°N 157.80944°W |
| Built | 1917 |
| NRHP reference No. | 80001282[1] |
| Added to NRHP | October 31, 1980 |
The lighthouse was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980,[1] and was featured on a United States postage stamp in June 2007.[2]
History
editOriginally constructed on a 40-foot (12 m) iron tower enclosed with coral rock walls, the lighthouse was first lit on July 1, 1899, with John M. Kaukaliu as the first keeper. The Lighthouse Board took control of the lighthouse in 1904. In 1917, the lantern room was moved to a temporary metal framework while a new 55-foot (17 m) reinforced concrete tower was built on the original foundation.[3]
The adjacent residence was built in 1921 and lighthouse operations were automated in 1924. The superintendent of the 19th lighthouse district lived there until 1939, when the coast guard took control and built a radio station there during World War II.[3]
In a 2014 interview, 94-year-old veteran Melvin Bell described serving as the radio operator at the Diamond Head station during the Japanese sneak attack on Pearl Harbor, and the steps he took to warn civilian vessels of the attack.[4]
Present
editSee also
editReferences
edit- 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
- ↑ Yap, Brittany P. (June 22, 2007). "Isle lighthouse graces postage stamp". Honolulu Star-Bulletin. Retrieved February 28, 2009.
- 1 2 "Diamond Head Lighthouse Notes". Mariners' Museum and Park. Retrieved May 21, 2026. citing Dean, Love. The Lighthouses of Hawaii (1986).
- ↑ C. Douglas Kroll (March 25, 2014). "Interview of ETCM Melvin Kealoha Bell, USCG (Retired)" (PDF). US Coast Guard. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
- ↑ Fawcett, Denby (April 21, 2015). "Admiral's Spouse Is the Man of the House". Honolulu Civil Beat. Retrieved May 21, 2026.
- ↑ "Coast Guard renames operational districts". United States Coast Guard. July 3, 2025. Retrieved May 21, 2026.
- ↑ Hosken, Patrick. "How Katy Perry, Pikachu, And Her Doppelgänger Went 'Electric' In Hawaii". MTV News. Archived from the original on June 7, 2021. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
External links
edit
- Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of the United States: Hawaii". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
