Foggy Afternoon at Morris Island Lighthouse, Charleston, South Carolina

A year after the completion of the 1876 Morris Island Lighthouse, Charleston petitioned Congress for funds to construct jetties at the entrance to its harbor. The jetties succeeded in deepening the main channel, but they also altered the sand transport patterns at the entrance to the harbor. Even before the completion of the jetties, it was evident that both Sullivan’s Island and Morris Island were losing large amounts of sand. To counter the erosion of the islands, plans were drawn up for spurs to be extended from both the northern and southern jetty. Two spurs were added to the northern jetty, providing protection for Sullivan’s Island, but those planned for the southern jetty were never completed. Morris Island thus continued to slowly dissolve. In 1880, the lighthouse stood 2,700 feet from the water. By 1938, the lighthouse was at the water’s edge, and today the lighthouse is its own island, roughly 1,600 feet offshore. (lighthousefriends.com)

 

© Dawna Moore ~ www.dawnamoorephotography.com ~

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