By Linda Tancs

A mile offshore of Rockport, Thacher Island is a small seacoast town about 40 miles north of Boston, Massachusetts. It’s home to Cape Ann Light Station, a National Historic Landmark with twin lighthouses. The site bears significance as the last light station established under colonial rule (in 1771) and the first station in the United States to mark a navigational hazard rather than a harbor entrance. The area was indeed hazardous. Looking to the southeast from the towers you may see an iron pole jutting out from the water, which marks an area called the “Londoner” because the reef just below the surface claimed hundreds of vessels mostly bound to Boston from London in the early 1700s. The original wooden lighthouses were replaced with identical granite lights in 1861. At 124 feet, they’re the tallest lighthouses in the state. The island is open to visitors from June to September and is accessible via small boat, kayak or the island’s launch service.