History
Westfield was once part of the Town of Portland and the natural harbor there was known as Portland Harbor. When the Town of Westfield was established formally in 1823, the harbor area became known as Barcelona.
The lighthouse was established in 1829 through the efforts of Thomas B. Campbell. The conical tower and attached keeper's cottage were constructed of fieldstone, with a natural, emplaced foundation. The light was emitted by eleven lamps with 14 inch reflectors. It was the first lighthouse in the world to be powered by natural gas, which Campbell transported from a "burning spring" about a mile distant by means of wooden pipes. Thirty years later, in 1859, the lighthouse was deactivated, but it still stands today, in private ownership.
The lighthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.
Read more about this topic: Barcelona Light
Famous quotes containing the word history:
“Humankind has understood history as a series of battles because, to this day, it regards conflict as the central facet of life.”
—Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (1860–1904)
“Yet poetry, though the last and finest result, is a natural fruit. As naturally as the oak bears an acorn, and the vine a gourd, man bears a poem, either spoken or done. It is the chief and most memorable success, for history is but a prose narrative of poetic deeds.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“Philosophy of science without history of science is empty; history of science without philosophy of science is blind.”
—Imre Lakatos (1922–1974)