Visiting Pomham Rocks Lighthouse in Rhode Island

If you’re interested in lighthouses and history, you’re going to want to check out Pomham Rocks Lighthouse. This lighthouse was established in 1871. It sits on a small island in the Providence River just south of Providence, Rhode Island. In the summer months, the Friends of Pomham Rocks Lighthouse offer tours of the lighthouse!

History of the Lighthouse

Pomham Rocks Lighthouse is a historic lighthouse located on a small rocky island in the Providence River near East Providence, Rhode Island. It was first lit on December 1, 1871, to help guide ships navigating the busy waters leading to Providence.

Designed in the French Empire mansard style by Albert Dow, the lighthouse was one of several constructed in the Providence River. Its unique location on a small islet just offshore made it both visually striking and strategically important.

The lighthouse was manned until 1974, when it was automated and later deactivated by the U.S. Coast Guard. For years, the structure sat abandoned and deteriorating until preservation efforts began in the early 2000s.

After many years of hard work to restore the lighthouse, it was opened again on June 10, 2018 as a museum. While restoration and preservation of this lighthouse is still ongoing to this day, the lighthouse has been beautifully restored. Inside, there are many interesting facts and artifacts from the lighthouse’s history as well as history about other lighthouses that were once in the area.

How To Book A Tour

If you’re interested in visiting this lighthouse, go to the Pomham Rocks Lighthouse website. Here, you’ll find the available dates for tours out to the island to visit the lighthouse. You can book the cruise directly on their website. It’s very quick and easy to book.

Once you’ve booked your tour, you’ll receive a confirmation email with all of your booking details. They’re also really good about sending emails once your tour date gets closer. The instructions in the email are extremely clear for where to park and meet for the cruise.

Getting There

The cruise departs from the Edgewood Yacht Club in Cranston, Rhode Island. There is a parking area you can park in. However, if that’s full, there’s street parking available on Shaw Street and Narragansett Boulevard. I went very early in the season on a Thursday morning so the lot at the yacht club was empty.

The Cruise and Tour

The cruise to the island only took about fifteen minutes. It’s a nice, relaxing ride to the other side of the river on a small boat. As you approach the island, you’ll get some great views of the lighthouse.

When you get to the island, you’ll get off at the dock. You’ll be greeted with a sign that lets you know that the lighthouse is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Once you get onto the actual island from the dock, you’ll be given some history about the lighthouse and it’s history before heading inside. There are chairs you can sit in while you listen to the docent talking about the history. Then, you’ll be able to go into the lighthouse.

When you walk into the lighthouse, you’ll get some history about the renovations that took place to get the lighthouse to look the way it does now! They also have a binder with some photos of the condition the lighthouse was in when they acquired it. It was in rough shape, but with a lot of time and hard work, they were able to beautifully restore it.

Since the lighthouse is now a museum, there are a lot of cool exhibits you can check out inside. The lighthouse’s fourth order Fresnel lens is on display downstairs. It had been taken away from the lighthouse and in a museum for decades. But, it was brought back to the lighthouse to mark the 150th anniversary of the lighthouse.

On the second floor, you can learn about other lighthouses that were in the Providence River. There’s also a room dedicated to Coast Guard history on this floor. Be sure to take your time as you make your way through the museum to read about interesting history.

After the second floor, you can make your way up to the top of the lighthouse! To get to the lantern room, you will have to climb stairs that are really more like a ladder. If you’d like to go out on the gallery outside of the lantern room, you’ll have to duck through a small door.

I did make my way outside the lantern room and just took in the views. This is one of my favorite parts about climbing up lighthouse towers. I love being at that high vantage point with 360-degree views.

When you’re done exploring, be sure to check out the basement. In the basement, there is a large cistern that was used to collect rainwater for the lightkeepers and their families to use. It’s definitely a cool thing to check out!

Be sure to also check out the gift shop. If you have a lighthouse passport, you can get your stamp there. If you’re just looking for a souvenir to remember your visit, they have a little bit of everything like magnets, mugs, and shirts.

If you’ve still got some time to spare, there are plenty of spots outside to sit back and enjoy the views from the island. There are picnic tables as well as plenty of Adirondacks chairs to sit back and relax in.

As you depart the island, you’ll get to see a cool rock face that actually looks like a human face. It’s similar to the Old Man of the Mountain that was in New Hampshire. But, I thought that this rock face had softer features than the Old Man of the Mountain did. I couldn’t believe how much it looked like a side profile of a face!

Things To Do In The Area

The total time for the cruise and visit to the island only takes about an hour and a half. To make the most of the trip, you can check out some other things to do in the area.

When I went, I went into the village of Pawtuxet which is a five minute drive from the yacht club where the boat tour departs from. I grabbed a hot chocolate and cinnamon roll from Beans + Buns.

You could also go into Providence for the day. Providence has plenty of things to do like the Providence Place Mall, Roger Williams Park and Zoo, Muse Paintbar, and plenty of spots to grab a bite to eat.

If you want to see more lighthouses, here’s a list of 14 lighthouses you can check out in Rhode Island. The closest one to Pomham Rocks Lighthouse would be Conimicut Lighthouse, which can be viewed from Conimicut Point Park in Warwick.

If you’re up for the drive, you can head about an hour south to Newport to check out the handful of lighthouses there, grab a bite to eat, walk the Cliff Walk, or tour a mansion.

Is Pomham Rocks Worth Visiting?

Honestly, I think it is! If you love lighthouses, I’d say this is a must visit. It has not been open to the public for very long since it only opened as a museum in 2018. The lighthouse was thankfully saved, beautifully restored, and is now open to the public. It’s a fun experience taking the boat out to the island and exploring the lighthouse!

If you’d like to book, you can check the dates and book on the Pomham Rocks Lighthouse website.

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