Information
Landmark: Biloxi LighthouseCity: Biloxi
Country: USA Mississippi
Continent: North America
Biloxi Lighthouse, Biloxi, USA Mississippi, North America
Overview
The Biloxi Lighthouse, with its white cast-iron walls gleaming in the sun, has stood guard over the Mississippi Gulf Coast since 1848 and remains one of its most recognizable landmarks.It rises from the median of U. S. Highway 90, a proud beacon of maritime history and a testament to resilience, weathering fierce hurricanes and sweeping cultural changes for almost two hundred years.The lighthouse, its cast-iron frame wrapped in cool, red brick, stood among the South’s earliest of its kind.The design blends strength and grace, rising as a slender white tower against the deep Gulf blue and the wide, open sky.It stands about 64 feet high, once lit by the warm glow of kerosene lamps before electricity took over.It weathered fierce storms-Hurricane Katrina in 2005 among them-and now stands as a proud symbol of resilience for Biloxi and the coast.The Biloxi Lighthouse holds a rare place in American history-it was tended by women for most of the 1800s and into the early 1900s, their lanterns cutting through fog and salt air night after night.Mary Reynolds, and later Maria Younghans, kept the lamp burning through the night so sailors could find their way across the dark, restless Gulf.Their stories bring to life the long, lonely hours lighthouse keepers faced, and they lend a warm, human touch to the tower’s enduring legacy.During the Civil War, the lighthouse fell dark for a short spell while Union and Confederate forces clashed along the Gulf Coast; once the fighting eased, its beam returned and guided ships safely for more than a hundred years, right up to the late 20th century.Hurricane Resilience - today, the lighthouse is famous for standing firm through fierce Gulf storms, its windows rattling as waves crashed against the rocks below.Though it stood squarely in the path of hurricanes-Camille in ’69, Katrina in ’05-the building held firm while rooftops nearby splintered and vanished.After Katrina left the seawall cracked and nearby buildings flattened, the Biloxi Lighthouse-scarred but still upright-stood as a steadfast beacon of hope and renewal for the region.Today, you can step inside the lighthouse and join a guided tour, where City of Biloxi staff lead you past its weathered iron stairs and sunlit windows.Climbing its spiral staircase, you’re greeted by wide-open views-the Mississippi Sound glittering below, barrier islands scattered in the distance, and the city stretching out all around.On interpretive tours, you’ll hear not just how the lighthouse was built, but also stories of the keepers’ lives-like braving midnight storms-and how it kept Biloxi’s maritime economy afloat.The site includes interpretive signs, and photographers often capture it at sunrise or sunset, when the tower stands in sharp silhouette against the glowing horizon.More than guiding ships through Gulf waters, the Biloxi Lighthouse stands as a cultural emblem, its white tower gleaming in the afternoon sun.The white tower, its paint gleaming under the shifting Gulf skies, stands as a beacon of both the coast’s vulnerability and its stubborn strength.For many locals, it’s a quiet marker of endurance, memory, and continuity-like the salt-stained pier that refuses to fall-carrying Biloxi’s spirit through hardship and renewal.Step inside the Biloxi Lighthouse and you’ll find echoes of its long maritime past, sweeping Gulf vistas, and the salty breeze on your face-a landmark no coastal Mississippi traveler should miss.
