WayfarrowWolf Trap Light
Lighthouse · Mathews County, Virginia
Wolf Trap Light is a lighthouse in Mathews County, Virginia. Virginia has 36 lighthouses on record at Wayfarrow, 2 of them in Mathews County.
It was built in 1894, in the late 19th century, making it the 10th oldest of the 14 in Virginia with a recorded construction date; its light sits 52 feet above the water; the light characteristic is recorded as Fl W 15s (a white flash every 15 seconds), with a range of about 14 nautical miles; it guards Chesapeake Bay; it was deactivated in 2017.
Status check, 2026-11: The station started as a lightship in 1821, and its 1870 screwpile lighthouse was swept away by ice in January 1893; the current brick caisson light was first lit September 20, 1894 (only its 52-ft focal height is confirmed, not the tower height). Wolf Trap Light is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is not reachable by road: the nearest road is about 4 miles away, so it is seen from shore or reached by water. It stands at 37.3900° N, 76.1900° W.
Key facts
| Current structure built | 1894 |
|---|---|
| Focal height | 52 ft |
| Light characteristic | Fl W 15s |
| Range | 14 nautical miles |
| Deactivated | 2017 |
| Body of water | Chesapeake Bay |
| Heritage designation | Virginia Historic Landmark |
| National Register | Listed |
| Coordinates | 37.39000, -76.19000 |
Nearby places
- Havenghost town · Mathews County · 6.2 mi
- New Point Comfort Lightlighthouse · Mathews County · 7.8 mi
- Stingray Point Lightlighthouse · Middlesex County · 12.6 mi
- Cherrystone Bar Lightlighthouse · Northampton County · 12.7 mi
- York Spit Lightlighthouse · York County · 13 mi
- Sandy Bottomghost town · Middlesex County · 13.4 mi
- Old Plantation Flats Lightlighthouse · Northampton County · 13.6 mi
- Windmill Point Lightlighthouse · Lancaster County · 14.5 mi
- Dixondaleghost town · Gloucester County · 15.2 mi
- Tue Marshes Lightlighthouse · York County · 15.2 mi
- Messickghost town · Poquoson (city) County · 20.1 mi
- Cheadenghost town · Middlesex County · 20.3 mi
Questions
Where is Wolf Trap Light?
Wolf Trap Light is in Mathews County, Virginia, at 37.3900, -76.1900.
How many lighthouses are in Mathews County?
Mathews County, Virginia has 2 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)
- 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.