Conimicut Lighthouse stands on Conimicut Shoal at the entrance to the Providence River in Narragansett Bay. In November 1868, the nearby Barrington Nyatt Point Lighthouse was discontinued and the original granite daymark in Conimicut was converted to a lighted aid. Because the new light had no housing for keepers, the early keepers had to make a 1 mile rowboat trip from the former Nyatt Light. A five-room dwelling for the light keeper was built in 1874, but by the following March it was destroyed by drifting ice. In 1882, the granite tower was replaced by a cast-iron lighthouse built on a caisson foundation sunk 10 feet into the bay floor and filled with concrete, with space left for a basement for fuel and water storage. Its lamp was a 10-sided lantern with a Fourth Order Fresnel Lens visible for 13 nautical miles, and the light stood 58 feet above mean high water. The new structure also included living quarters beneath the light. In 1939, the U.S. Coast Guard assumed control of the nation’s lighthouses, though the actual operation of this light was not transferred from civilian keepers to the Coast Guard until the late 1950's, after which upkeep fell under the jurisdiction of the City of Warwick. In 1960, the light was converted from a kerosene incandescent oil vapor lamp requiring hand pumping to an electric lamp powered by a cable from shore, making it one of the last lighthouses in the nation to be converted to electricity. Six years later, the light was automated and resident keepers were no longer needed. In 2003, the light was converted to solar power, while the former main power cable under the shoreline remained in place and operational. On September 29, 2004, ownership officially changed to the City of Warwick under the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act through the efforts of Mayor Scott Avedisian and Councilman Joseph Solomon. In 2005, the Conimicut Lighthouse Foundation was created to oversee preservation, and later that year it received a $560,000 Department of Transportation grant to restore the lighthouse’s original appearance and recreate the keeper’s residence. Today, a modern 250 mm optic flashes every 2.5 seconds for boater navigation, and a sensor at nearby Warwick Light Station activates the automated horn during poor visibility.
