In October 1856, the U.S. Lighthouse Board placed this fog bell and Cape Disappointment Lighthouse into service, establishing the first light station on the Oregon and Washington coast. Positioned on the north side of the entrance to the Columbia River, the bell and lighthouse warned ships away from the rocky shoals of the notoriously dangerous bar. In 1888, the Lighthouse Board transferred the bell to Warrior Rock Lighthouse on Sauvle Island, one mile southeast of this location, and its clear peal was heard from here on foggy days. In 1969, the U.S. Coast Guard removed the historic bell from service and donated it to the care of Columbia County.