Bluff Point Lighthouse on Valcour Island

10/12/2026

Thank you Captain Mick Maynard for transporting our visitors to Valcour Island and the Bluff Point Lighthouse on October 10th, the day before the 250th Anniversary of the Battle of Valcour.

10/04/2026

This is a picture Susan Clenney posted October 3, 2020. Over the years she has shared many images from her window across from the Bluff Point Lighthouse.
“Bluff Point Lighthouse looks like the lights are on but No they aren't what you see is the sun reflection on the windows ..Looking out Susan's window.”

09/10/2026

Visit the lighthouse in the fall

Monday, September 28, 2026 Today a National Historic Landmark, Lake Champlain’s Valcour Bay was the site of the first naval engagement between the American Continental forces’ fledgling navy and a British fleet during the Revolutionary War. In October 1776, a small naval flotilla under the comma...

08/26/2026

The Clinton County Historical Association, who is the steward of the lighthouse, recently added a page to their website explaining the history of the Bluff Point Lighthouse.
https://www.clintoncountyhistorical.org/bluff-point-lighthouse

On the page is a link to the trail guide for Valcour Island created by Kevin Kelley, inspired and supported by the research of Roger Harwood in conjunction with CCHA.
https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/685db25a602fc68b8f8bb9d7/68751b926f886dfc51c11cee_Valcour%20Island%20Trail%20Guide.pdf

If you have any information or questions about the island
please contact the Clinton County Historical Association at
98 Ohio Ave, Plattsburgh, NY 12903 (518) 561-0340
[email protected]

Visit historic Bluff Point Lighthouse on Valcour Island. Built 1874, National Register site. Guided tours Sundays July-August 1-3pm. Rich naval history.

08/23/2026

From an article by Marjorie Lansing Porter about lighthouses on Lake Champlain in the Adirondack Daily Enterprise of March 8, 1954 – 72 years ago.
…Lake Champlain boasts nine lighthouses or did until the past year when one of them "departed," stone by stone, to be set up as a museum piece on land at Shelburne. VT. The first of the houses was erected in 1826, but their story can be told only in part, since none of the keepers appears to have adopted diary keeping as a hobby.
… Bluff Point lighthouse on Valcour Island, built in 1874, was rebuilt in 1929. The light was formerly 72 feet above water, and the beam was visible for 13 miles. At present there Is a red skeleton tower, white tank house, and a red base.
…Major William Louis Herwerth, a veteran of the Civil War, was appointed as keeper of the Bluff Point light on Valcour Island on July 15, 1876. He died five years later in 1881, and his widow took over the work as keeper, bringing up her large family on the island.
…The Bluff Point light was darkened after the Pearl Harbor disaster on December 7, 1941, and not relighted until July 1944.
To see the rest of the article by Marjorie Lansing Porter, commenting on all the lighthouses on the lake, go to:
https://www.nyshistoricnewspapers.org/?a=d&d=ade19540308-01.1.2&srpos=7&e=-------en-20--1--txt-txIN-%22bluff+point+lighthouse%22---------

We have a pamphlet called Lake Champlain Lighthouses by George E. Clifford, for sale at CCHA.

07/28/2026

Bluff Point lighthouse as well as other local photos for sale

07/13/2026

Does this building look familiar?

Penfield Reef Lighthouse, built in 1874 near Fairfield, Connecticut, stands as a historic beacon guiding ships through the waters of Long Island Sound. 🌊⚓

07/05/2026

During our cleanup day on Friday at the Bluff Point Lighthouse Rebecca and Jostein Solheim of Shelburne, Vt. stopped by. Despite the extreme heat, they asked if we a had broom and dustpan. They cleaned out the light tower with its abundance of flies and bugs. Thank you for your assistance!

07/03/2026

A souvenir of America250

06/30/2026

Wouldn't you love to be on the lake next Sunday?

VALCOUR ISLAND
CCHA has booked two “Sunday on the Island” events for 2026 – July 5th and August 2nd – the price, as usual, will be $30 per person.

We will also be offering FREE rides to the Island on the eve of the 250th Anniversary of the Battle of Plattsburgh - October 10th, 2026. Get a feel of what it was like on the Lake 250 years ago.
Reservations required – call us at 518-561-0340

All trips are subject to weather conditions, and, for safety reasons, Captain Mick Maynard will make the final decision.