WayfarrowWhaleback Light
Lighthouse · York County, Maine
Whaleback Light is a lighthouse in York County, Maine. Maine has 70 lighthouses on record at Wayfarrow, 5 of them in York County.
It was built in 1872, in the late 19th century, making it the 31st oldest of the 61 in Maine with a recorded construction date; its light sits 59 feet above the water; the light characteristic is recorded as Fl(2) W 10s (a group of 2 white flashes every 10 seconds), with a range of about 14 nautical miles; the structure is built of stone.
Status check, 2026-11: The poorly built original tower (c.1830) was replaced in 1872 by a dovetailed granite tower and removed in 1880, so the record's 1830 is the station date, not the current tower. Sources give the height as 49, 50, 70 or 75 ft, so it is left null. Whaleback Light is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is not reachable by road: the nearest road is about 1 mile away, so it is seen from shore or reached by water. It stands at 43.0588° N, 70.6964° W.
Key facts
| Current structure built | 1872 |
|---|---|
| Focal height | 59 ft |
| Light characteristic | Fl(2) W 10s |
| Range | 14 nautical miles |
| Material | stone |
| Heritage designation | National Register of Historic Places listed place |
| National Register | Listed |
| Coordinates | 43.05882, -70.69638 |
Nearby places
- Portsmouth Harbor Lightlighthouse · Rockingham County · 1 mi
- Puddle Dockghost town · Rockingham County · 3.2 mi
- Brickyard Landingghost town · York County · 6 mi
- Isles of Shoals Lightlighthouse · Rockingham County · 7.3 mi
- Cape Neddick Lightlighthouse · York County · 9.1 mi
- Boon Island Lightlighthouse · York County · 11.9 mi
- Newichawanocghost town · York County · 16.6 mi
- County Farm Bridgecovered bridge · Strafford County · 16.8 mi
- Newburyport Harbor Lightlighthouse · Essex County · 18 mi
- Newburyport Harbor Front Range Lightlighthouse · Essex County · 19.1 mi
- Newburyport Harbor Rear Range Lightlighthouse · Essex County · 19.2 mi
- Goat Island Lightlighthouse · York County · 24.8 mi
Questions
Where is Whaleback Light?
Whaleback Light is in York County, Maine, at 43.0588, -70.6964.
How many lighthouses are in York County?
York County, Maine has 5 lighthouses on record at Wayfarrow.
- Wayfarrow status check (web sources) — Checked for current status (facts)
- Wayfarrow status check (web sources) — Checked for current status (facts)
- Wayfarrow status check (web sources) — Checked for current status (facts)
- Wayfarrow status check (web sources) — Checked for current status (facts)
- Wikidata — Wikidata item (CC0)
- National Register of Historic Places — National Register of Historic Places record (public-domain)
- Wikidata — Wikipedia article (linked as a source; text not used) (CC0)
Facts marked "approximately" carry an uncertain date in the source. Text on this page is generated from the sources above; no encyclopedia prose is copied. Last updated 2026-11-05.