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Sombrero Key Light

Lighthouse · Florida

U.S. Coast Guard Archive Photo of Sombrero Key Light, Marathon, Florida (color, 300 dpi)
U.S. Coast Guard Archive Photo of Sombrero Key Light, Marathon, Florida (color, 300 dpi) · United States Coast Guard, photo by PH3 Dan R. Boyd, USCG. / Wikimedia Commons · Public domain

Sombrero Key Light is a lighthouse in Florida. Florida has 49 lighthouses on record at Wayfarrow.

It was built in 1858, in the Civil War era, making it the 9th oldest of the 30 in Florida with a recorded construction date; the light characteristic is recorded as Fl(5) W 60s (a group of 5 white flashes every 60 seconds), with a range of about 15 nautical miles; the recorded designer or builder is George Meade; the structure is built of cast iron.

Status check, 2026-11: This 1858 cast-iron screw-pile skeleton tower is the tallest lighthouse in the Florida Keys and was deactivated in 2015. Its height isn't settled: most sources say 142 ft, but the USCG Historian lists 166 ft total and 142 ft above water. Sombrero Key Light is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It stands at 24.6279° N, 81.1116° W.

Key facts

Current structure built1858
Light characteristicFl(5) W 60s
Range15 nautical miles
Designer / builderGeorge Meade
Materialcast iron
Heritage designationNational Register of Historic Places listed place
National RegisterListed
Coordinates24.62791, -81.11161

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Sources and licences

Facts marked "approximately" carry an uncertain date in the source. Text on this page is generated from the sources above; no encyclopedia prose is copied. Last updated 2026-11-05.