Skip to main content

Barcelona Lighthouse and Waterfront - New York

Image
By

A lighthouse, a beach and a waterfall, all in the same place? Right in Western New York? Absolutely! Deep in the middle of the Lake Erie Concord Grape Belt, not far from where the first Welch's plant was built in nearby Westfield, is Barcelona. Located on the shores of Lake Erie, Barcelona features a lighthouse that was constructed in 1828, which will likely be the first thing you notice. The lighthouse is owned by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation and has a tourism office located in the old lighthouse keeper's house, but the lighthouse itself is not open to visitors due to structural issues. However, you can enjoy scenic views of the lighthouse itself and enjoy a nice picnic lunch with the lighthouse as the backdrop.

Some history on the Barcelona Lighthouse, or the Portland Harbor Lighthouse as it was originally known. In 1828, the United States Congress appropriated $5,000 to construct a lighthouse at Portland Harbor, which had just been designated an official port of entry. Portland was a small town located 20 miles west of Dunkirk, New York and 33 miles east of Erie, Pennsylvania and would later change its name to Barcelona. During the early 1800s, warehouses and wharves had been established in Portland to serve the small vessels transporting lumber, salt, flour, and fish to and from the port. The harbor provided a safe haven for sail and steam cargo vessels and a rest spot for passengers traveling between Erie and Buffalo. From Portland Harbor, portage was also available to Chautauqua Lake and on to the Allegheny River, for traffic on route to Pittsburgh.

A lot on a bluff overlooking Portland harbor was purchased from Wilhelm Willink, Wilhelm Willink the younger, and Cornelius Vallenhoven on July 10, 1828 for $50. In August 1828, a $2,700 contract for constructing the lighthouse and a dwelling for the lighthouse keeper was awarded to Judge Thomas B. Campbell. Using native, rough-split, fieldstone, Campbell constructed a 40 foot conical tower with a base diameter of 22 feet. Out of the $5,000 that had been appropriated, only $3,506.78 was used for construction, and the remaining money was carried over to the surplus fund.

The Annual Report of the Lighthouse Board for 1855 noted that Barcelona did not possess a proper harbor and that its lighthouse was not necessary even as a "lake coast light." This remark was likely due to the Great Gale of 1844, which destroyed a number of lakeside warehouses and wharves, including those located in Barcelona. Local officials had tried to restore the port to its former importance after that storm, but the opening of a railroad to nearby Westfield in 1852 doomed this effort. In, the Lighthouse Board discontinued Barcelona Lighthouse, citing as a reason the "mutations of commerce and changes of channels or harbors", certainly as a reference to the Great Gale of 1844. According to a clause in the original deed, the lighthouse property was to revert to the Holland Land Company if operation of the lighthouse was to become discontinued.

Though a light is still maintained in the tower, the Barcelona Lighthouse is no longer considered an aid to navigation. The tower and dwelling were placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972. In 2008, the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation acquired the lighthouse..

The parking area near the lighthouse is also public access to a pier. For those who enjoy fishing or kayaking, this is where you can enjoy those sorts of activities. During my 2009 visit to Barcelona, I checked out the Sea Lion, which is a replica of a late 16th Century English three masted sailing ship. However, I did not check that out during my visit in 2017 since the Sea Lion has since been moved to the Henricus Historical Park in Chester, Virginia, but I spotted an old barge out in the middle of Barcelona Harbor. The Sea Lion has its own Facebook page that has a collection of photos and stories about the old sailing vessel.

From the parking area, you also have access to the beach. One of my visits to Barcelona was on Memorial Day, so even though it was a weekend where I spent more time hiking and chasing waterfalls, walking along the beach and dipping my toes into Lake Erie was certainly enjoyable. Speaking of chasing waterfalls, I accomplished that while in Barcelona too.

A short walk down the beach (about 1/4 mile or so) will get you to 18 foot tall Barcelona Falls, as well as some intermittent falls that pop up after a heavy rainfall. It had poured the night before, so it was a bonus for me. The waterfall is unique in the fact that it drains right into Lake Erie at the bottom of the waterfall. However, this part of the lake shore has its fair share of cliffs, so it's certainly worth taking note of that as well.

Barcelona Lighthouse
Sea Lion
Barcelona Lighthouse. You can see the picnic area to your left.


Barcelona Harbor


An old barge. I forget the name of this vessel.


Beach and cliffs.


Barcelona Falls


Barcelona Falls


Barcelona Falls


An intermittent waterfall located further down the shore.


Looking west towards the beach.


How to Get There:



Sources and Links:
Western New York Waterfall Survey - Barcelona Falls
LighthouseFriends.com - Barcelona (Portland Harbor) Lighthouse
New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation - Barcelona Lighthouse
Westfield Republican - Sea Lion Moved to Historical Park


Update Log:
January 9, 2018 - Originally published to Unlocking New York
December 25, 2021 - Post moved from Unlocking New York to Gribblenation

Labels:
Location: Barcelona Lighthouse, 8234 E Lake Rd, Westfield, NY 14787, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Deer Isle Bridge in Maine

By
As graceful a bridge that I ever set my eyes upon, the Deer Isle Bridge (officially known as the Deer Isle-Sedgwick Bridge) surprisingly caught my eye as I was driving around coastal Maine one Saturday afternoon. About 35 miles south of Bangor, Maine , the Deer Isle Bridge connects the Blue Hill Peninsula of Downeast Maine with Little Deer Isle over the Eggemoggin Reach on ME 15 between the towns of Sedgwick and Deer Isle . It should be noted that Little Deer Isle is connected to Deer Isle by way of a boulder lined causeway, and there is a storied regatta that takes place on the Eggemoggin Reach each summer. But the Deer Isle Bridge holds many stories, not just for the vacationers who spend part of their summer on Deer Isle or in nearby Stonington , but for the residents throughout the years and the folks who have had a hand bringing this vital link to life.   The Deer Isle Bridge was designed by David Steinman and built by the Phoenix Bridge Company of Phoenixville,
Post a Comment
Read more

Former US Route 99 through Athlone and the last Wheeler Ridge-Sacramento corridor expressway

By
Athlone was a siding of the Southern Pacific Railroad located in Merced County on the alignment of what was US Route 99 between the cities of Chowchilla and Merced.  The Athlone corridor of US Route 99 was one of the first in San Joaquin Valley to fully upgraded to four lane expressway standards.  The Athlone expressway corridor was inherited by California State Route 99 when US Route 99 was truncated to Ashland, Oregon during June 1965.  The four-lane expressway through Athlone was the last segment of what had been US Route 99 in the Wheeler Ridge-Sacramento corridor to be bypassed by a freeway.  The Athlone expressway corridor was bypassed by the modern California State Route 99 freeway in 2016.  Despite being put on a road diet and narrowed what was the Athlone expressway corridor still displays evidence of being part of US Route 99.   Above the blog cover photo displays the Athlone expressway corridor of US Route 99 south of Merced as depicted in the July 1939 California Highways &
Post a Comment
Read more

Breezewood - The Rise and Decline of a Highway Rest Stop

By
It's the Pennsylvania Turnpike Interchange most people hate - and with a passion.  The Breezewood Interchange - a junction of two Interstates (70 & 76) that became complicated due to archaic rules, rural politics and power, and an unwillingness to change.  At its romanticized best, this small unincorporated community of under 100 residents is a reminder of travel days of the 1950s-1970s; at its worst, it is a gradually dying relic of old motels and services that drivers are forced to slow down and drive through on their way to bigger and more modern destinations. The Breezewood Strip - where Interstate 70 runs along a surface street (US 30) (Doug Kerr) The Breezewood Interchange is an exception to the rule in the Interstate Highway System.  Depending on your direction, Interstate 70 joins or leaves the Pennsylvania Turnpike (Interstate 76) here.  However, unlike nearly every Interstate junction in the United States - Interstate 70 must traverse on a roughly 1/4 mile stretch of
2 comments
Read more