This area has always been susceptible to flooding, and several times throughout the year the entire property would have been under water. During these floods, light keepers reportedly took a boat from the house to the lighthouse to light the lamps, and raised wooden walkways were installed to reach the outbuildings, including a privy on the west side of the property. The walkways were added sometime between 1884 and 1890. A fence was first constructed around the grounds in 1828, and the four-rail fence seen in most photos was added sometime after the outbuildings were built and probably before 1890.
