Explore The Coquille River Lighthouse

As you are traveling on the scenic Oregon coast just north of Bandon you will find the Coquille River Lighthouse. Look for the sign to Bullards Beach State Park.

The lighthouse is tucked away in the sand dunes along the Coquille River.

The lighthouse was designated for dual purposes. It served as a river entrance and a seacoast light.

The Coquille River is well known for its dangerous bar entrance. The entrance is narrow and subject to very large bar swells and currents.

The toll in lives and property has been high through the years and the light was vital to navigation.

The Coquille River extends inland for many miles and was a natural link to the much-wanted timber in the area. The bar at the mouth of the river was a major obstacle for the ships because at time the water was only a few feet deep.

Congress passed a bill in 1880 to construct a jetty on the south side of the river’s entrance. The jetty created a clear channel, prompting a rapid rise in the number of ships entering the river.

The next logical step would be to build a lighthouse so congress passed a bill in 1891 to build the Coquille River Lighthouse.

coquille lighthouse

Building The Lighthouse.

It took four years before land was purchased and the construction was started. The workers had to first level the rock to provide a base for the light and oil house. The lighthouse was built of brick and then covered with a layer of stucco.

The light was finally lit for the first time on February 29, 1896. A snowstorm settled in the next day and the first use of the fog signal was used.

The light was also know as the Bandon Light and was the last one built along the Pacific Coast. It guided ships until 1939 and then the U.S. Coast Guard installed an automated beacon on the south jetty to take over the responsibility.

Today, the Coquille River Lighthouse has a solar-powered light that shines towards Bandon and reminds people of the olden days.

Watch The Wildlife

As you travel on the road to the lighthouse watch for pelicans, geese and cormorants that are found at the Bandon Marsh. It is part of the National Wildlife Refuge System along the Oregon Coast.

Be sure and bring your camera and plenty of film because you can spend many hours at the lighthouse and the wildlife refuge and don’t forget about the pacific ocean at its backdoor.

After you visit the lighthouse up close be sure and stop in the town of Bandon. You can get a very good view of the lighthouse from across the Coquille River.

" Coquille River Lighthouse is operated by:"

Bullards Beach State Park, Bandon, Oregon
Visitor Hours: 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM Daily
May through October

Bandon By The Sea

Bandon-by-the-sea is a colorful coastal town on the southern section of the Scenic Oregon Coast.

The town has adopted as its landmark the abandoned Coquille River Lighthouse.

It sits at the north entrance of the Coquille River.

Bandon Lighthouse

For years it has been referred to as “Bandon lighthouse” no local citizen ever calling it by its proper name, Coquille River lighthouse.

It was abandoned in 1939 as a working lighthouse by the government.

Saving the Lighthouse

The years almost spelled the destruction of the lighthouse.

Eventually, the keeper’s dwelling and outbuildings were vandalized and ransacked.

The windows and doors and the metal parts turned a dirty red with rust.

Kids and hippies painted graffiti on the masonry walls inside and out and bricks were separated from the mortar. It appeared the neglected tower was doomed.

After years of neglect and vandalism, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers restored it as a tourist attraction and incorporated it with Bullard’s Beach State Park.

The old Coquille River Lighthouse, is an artists and photographers dream situated right on the river’s edge.

Remember, Let The Waves Tickle Your Toes.

Return from Coquille River Lighthouse to Oregon Coast Lighthouses