Knowledge & Nibbles – Anclote Key Lighthouse: A Historical Monument Three Miles Offshore

Three miles offshore of Tarpon Springs stands a historic sentinel, the Anclote Lighthouse. Built in 1887, the same year Tarpon Springs was founded, it is 110 feet tall and designed with a skeleton architecture to allow storm winds and surges to blow through. The structure itself is made of cast iron to withstand the salty air. There are 127 steps to the gallery deck with the light and light deck above that. Both the lighthouse and ranger’s house (located just north of the lighthouse) are fully “off the grid,” using solar power for electricity and rain collection, and reverse osmosis for water. Join Ranger Tod Cornell, the current lighthouse keeper, to find out more about the lighthouse and what it’s like to live and work on Anclote Key.