A Historical Look at the Yaquina Bay Lighthouse
Published: 10/03/2017  Updated: 08/13/2019
This old photograph dates from around 1890 and shows the Yaquina Bay Lighthouse after it was removed from service.
This old photograph dates from around 1890 and shows the Yaquina Bay Lighthouse after it was removed from service.  Image courtesy University of Oregon Library

On Oregon's Central Coast at the entrance to Yaquina Bay and the town of Newport stands Yaquina Bay Lighthouse, a small structure that was operational for only three years.

Yaquina Bay Lighthouse was built in 1871 soon after the founding of the city of Newport, the most populated port between Puget Sound and San Francisco at the time. Active for only three years, the lighthouse became obsolete with the construction of the Yaquina Head Light and was decommissioned on October 1, 1874. This historic sentinel is the only wooden lighthouse still standing in Oregon. It is believed to be the oldest structure in Newport and rumored to be haunted. Restored to her former glory, Yaquina Bay Lighthouse is now listed in the National Register of Historic Places and is managed by the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department as part of Yaquina Bay State Recreation Site. The park site includes the lighthouse, Coast Guard observation tower and acres of forested bluff, ocean dunes and beaches.
A Historical Look at the Yaquina Bay Lighthouse