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Fort Point Lighthouse
This lighthouse, on top of Fort Point and directly under the Golden Gate Bridge, served as the southern beacon to the mouth of the San Francisco Bay. Its sister lighthouse at Lime Point in Marin across the bay, marked the northern boundary of the Golden Gate. This Fort Point lighthouse is actually the third to stand on this spot. The original, larger lighthouse was built in 1852, its identical twin on Alcatraz Island still stands. The original Fort Point lighthouse was outfitted with a bell to warn ships of the deadly shore. The bell and the light however were insufficient in such heavy fog as the Golden Gate's and many ships were lost including the Rio De Janiero which struck the rocks off Fort Point in 1901 and sank with a loss of 140 lives. Over the years the lighthouse warning system was upgraded to a fog trumpet, then a siren, and horn. In 1990 the Fort Point lighthouse was finally closed.
[ MAP D-6 ]


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