Fowey Rocks Lighthouse - Key Biscayne, FL

Author Love Dean describes the Fowey Rocks Lighthouse as standing “in lonely grandeur with waves gently lapping its base in the clear bright light of the subtropical day with nothing in sight except a few vessels”

In 1748 the HMS Fowey, an impressive man-of-war ship with a 20-gun lower deck battery of 18 pounder cannons and a 22 gun upper deck battery of 9 pound cannons was sailing South towards the Florida Keys.  Unfortunately the vessel’s wooden hull was no match for the rocky teeth of a reef and ran aground.

That treacherous reef was christened Fowey Rocks in honor of the Royal Navy frigate HMS Fowey, which is one of the many ships that wrecked on the reefs. Finally on September February 17th 1875 construction was underway for a cast iron pile lighthouse that would sit 130 ft above the water.

Spending months at a time imprisoned in metal surrounded by howling winds and raging seas with occasional hurricanes was tough on the keepers, but living in fear of ships crashing into their platform for 3 years before the lighthouse could be completed was their biggest problem.

First the ship Aratoon Apcar ran aground on the reef and came to rest 200 yards from the workman’s platform.  While efforts to save the boat failed, she was pounded apart on the rocks and sank.    On another evening the men had a near-death experience when the steamer Ara Kanapka rammed the reef a few yards from the tower.   Several weeks later another vessel the Carondelet paid them a night time visit to the construction site. They jettisoned the majority of the cargo and it was able to float off the reef.

The Fowey Rocks Lighthouse was finally lit in the summer of 1878.   The keepers dwelling was a two-story octagonal building rising from the center of the house and there’s a tall 50 ft enclosed spiral stairwell leading up to the service and lantern room.  The tower was capped with a copper roof and a ventilation ball.

Of course Fresnel lens were installed,  but today it’s been replaced with a modern solar powered light visible 17 miles out to sea and the light is a group of two flashes every 10 seconds.

Fowey Rocks is located 7 Mi southeast of Cape Florida on Key Biscayne.   This small colorful reef is abundant with marine life and healthy coral growth. The water is packed with tropical fish and there are three shipwrecks (Arratoon Acar, Mississippi, Tarpon) just a few hundred feet from the tower to explore in 10-20 feet of water.

This is a beautiful place, crystal clear warm water, awesome diving and some of the best snorkeling in the Miami area.