The 20 Tallest Lighthouses in California

Ranked by the height of the tower standing today, for every lighthouse in California that we could confirm is still standing. Pigeon Point Lighthouse leads, 115 ft tall; number 20 is Santa Cruz Lighthouse, 39 ft tall. Dates or measurements marked uncertain in the source are left out rather than guessed Each entry was checked against current sources (park services, historic registers, preservation societies), and anything demolished, replaced or uncertain is left out. Each entry links to its own page with coordinates, sources and image licences.

1. 

   1. Pigeon Point Lighthouse

   115 ft tall · San Mateo County, California · National Register

   Photo: Frank Schulenburg / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

2. 2. Point Arena Light

   115 ft tall · Mendocino County, California · National Register

3. 3. St. George Reef Light

   90 ft tall · Del Norte County, California · National Register

4. 

   4. Alcatraz Island Light

   84 ft tall · San Francisco County, California

   Photo: D'Arcy Rittich. Original uploader was Drittich at en.wikipedia / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.5)

5. 

   5. New Point Loma Lighthouse

   70 ft tall · San Diego County, California · National Register

   Photo: United States Coast Guard / Wikimedia Commons (public domain)

6. 6. Piedras Blancas Light Station

   70 ft tall · San Luis Obispo County, California · National Register

7. 7. Los Angeles Harbor Light

   69 ft tall · Los Angeles County, California · National Register

8. 8. Point Vicente Light

   67 ft tall · Los Angeles County, California · National Register

9. 9. Point Conception Light

   52 ft tall · Santa Barbara County, California · National Register

10. 

    10. East Brother Island Light

    48 ft tall · Contra Costa County, California · National Register

    Photo: Frank Schulenburg / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)

11. 11. Point Hueneme Light

    48 ft tall · Ventura County, California

12. 

    12. Point Cabrillo Light

    47 ft tall · Mendocino County, California · National Register

    Photo: Frank Schulenburg / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)

13. 

    13. Battery Point Light

    45 ft tall · Del Norte County, California · National Register

    Photo: Kathleen Franklin from Marysville, CA, USA / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)

14. 

    14. Point Pinos Lighthouse

    43 ft tall · Monterey County, California · National Register

    Photo: Frank Schulenburg / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)

15. 15. Long Beach Light

    42 ft tall · Los Angeles County, California

16. 

    16. Santa Cruz Breakwater Light

    41 ft tall · Santa Cruz County, California

    Photo: Benjamin Cody / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)

17. 

    17. Farallon Island Light

    41 ft tall · San Francisco County, California

    Photo: Wikimedia Commons (public domain)

18. 18. Anacapa Island Light

    40 ft tall · Ventura County, California · National Register

19. 19. Point San Luis Light

    40 ft tall · San Luis Obispo County, California · National Register

20. 

    20. Santa Cruz Lighthouse

    39 ft tall · Santa Cruz County, California

    Photo: Don DeBold from San Jose, CA, USA / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)

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