Cockspur Island Lighthouse – Fort Pulaski

I can honestly say I am glad we didn’t hike to this place as it’s an hour and a half there and back just to get close but not actually get to it. Well, technically you can but it’s not encouraged. It’s on its own little island, is over 200 years old, and has not been renovated. Soo you can get to it at low tide and possibly get in but it could be dangerous. So if you want to enter one you should visit the Tybee Lighthouse. I might’ve gone with a tour guide but not just by ourselves. But we did get to see the lighthouse while jet-​skiing– in fact it was one of our boundaries and the backdrop of our pictures. It’s very pretty and cool to look at.

If you are going to visit Fort Pulaski save some time to see the lighthouse. There has already been so much written about it here that I won’t duplicate except to say it is well worth your time to view it.

Just a short hike away from Fort Pulaski… worth the trouble?
For me… YES
For others… MAYBE NOT
Personally I like hikes, outdoors, feeling the sun on my face… I also like history and places that hold significant, historical value. The short hike from Fort Pulaski is just that, «short»… perhaps even too short but lovely nonetheless.
The path starts out somewhat vague… more or less you find yourself walking in a «general» direction aimed at a trail entrance across a grassy field that you can see in the near distance.
Once you cross a small wooden bridge (so small that you’ll barely notice you even crossed a bridge), then the trail becomes clear and soon after it becomes more of a lightly, forested trail.
Now that you’ve entered the «trail» you’ll notice the grass is thinned out and you find yourself walking in sand and/​or mud (depending on the weather conditions).
Once the trail finally reaches the southwest corner of the island, the trail opens to a lovely view of the Lighthouse… that «view» is the «reward»
Now turn around and go back…

Such an amazing fort. My son loved it and so did I, lol.

Cockspur Island Lighthouse was a surprise discovery while visiting Fort Pulaski National Monument. I can’t review a lighthouse without making mention of the famous Brian S, the Unilocal World’s foremost reviewer of lighthouses. But I want to dedicate this review to his wife, the «Scruffy Tourist», who faithfully travels with him by car, by foot, by boat and by yak on each of his lighthouse adventures.
It is actually a miracle this lighthouse is still standing considering the history of war and hurricanes that have ravaged this region. Cockspur lighthouse was built in 1855 after replacing the previous lighthouse that was destroyed in a hurricane the previous year. The first keeper of the lighthouse was John Lightburn… no lie! Within the next decade, this lighthouse would see the battle for Fort Pulaski where the Union Army took control of Tybee Island and began constructing a battery to attack the Fort.
In total, the Union army fired 5,000 36 pound shots doing severe damage to the 7 foot thick walls of the Fort, but no harm was done to the Cockspur lighthouse, which stood directly in the line of fire. The lighthouse resumed operation in 1866 and eventually acquired a lighthouse keeper by the name of Florence Martus who served 40 years from 1886. Florence started a tradition of waving a white handkerchief by day and a lantern by night at all the vessels entering and leaving the port. She was soon to be known as the «Waving Girl».
Florence became a legend with several stories being told of her reasons for waving her white handkerchief. The most popular involve her love of a man who she faithfully hoped to return, but no one really knows. In 1938, a celebration of Florence was held @ nearby Fort Pulaski honoring her 70^th birthday. Florence died in 1943. By 1949, the Coast Guard abandoned the lighthouse. However, by 1958 Park Services assumed control and a two stage restoration began in 1995 and lasted 5 years. The lighthouse was relit in 2007 using a solar powered beacon, but it was discovered that several elements where threatening the stability of the tower. It was place on a list of Ten Places in Peril in 2008 and currently awaits $ 1.4 million dollars in funds for restoration.
In the meantime, it stands beautifully as a historic marker on the Savannah River South Channel. Hopefully the funding will be provided before this structure falls victim to the shipworms, waves and erosion that have damaged it’s structural integrity and have it’s future in question.