Lantern to Return to Oregon Coast Icon: Yaquina Bay Lighthouse in Newport Gets Glow Back

Published 08/09/25 at 6:25 a.m.
By Oregon Coast Beach Connection Staff

(Newport, Oregon) – Back at the first day of the year, one of only a handful of Oregon coast lighthouses you can still go inside was shut down to go under the knife for extensive renovations, Set to open in June, that didn't happen. However, now Newport's Yaquina Bay Lighthouse is entering the final stages of its revamp. (Photo courtesy OPRD)

A key moment in this is happening Monday, August 11, when Oregon’s oldest wooden lighthouse gets its glow back. At 11 a.m. crews will use a crane to lift the approximately 11,000-pound lantern back to the top of the historic Yaquina Bay Lighthouse.

Constructed in 1871, Yaquina Bay Lighthouse is the only surviving wooden lighthouse on the Oregon Coast and the last in the state to feature a combined tower and living quarters. The Oregon Parks and Recreation Department, which manages hundreds of historic structures statewide, is overseeing the $1.8 million restoration project.

The lantern lift is expected to take about an hour and will be visible from the public parking area at Yaquina Bay State Recreation Site. Access to the construction zone will be restricted unless arranged in advance.

The lighthouse is slated to reopen to the public at the end of August once restoration work is complete.

Event: Lantern returning to the top of the historic Yaquina Bay Lighthouse

Date: 11 a.m. Monday, Aug. 11

Location: Yaquina Bay State Recreation Site in Newport

Project: The $1.8 million restoration includes repairs to roof framing, chimney, brick foundation, lantern, siding, doors and windows, along with a new roof and full exterior repainting to protect the 150-year-old structure.

Parking: Available in the public lot with clear views of the lighthouse; no access to the construction zone without prior arrangement.

It's been an eventful year at this Oregon coast hotspot: earlier they had to remove a famous tree because it was decaying. Decay Hits Beloved Oregon Coast Tree, Now the Newport Icon Must Be Cut Down

Yaquina Bay Lighthouse has a unique history for many reasons, including the fact Newport is the only town on the coast with two lighthouses. While the Yaquina Bay Lighthouse lit up in 1871, it was decommissioned only three years later when the Yaquina Head Lighthouse went up and replaced it.

The bay lighthouse is also the source of an interesting ghost story that started all because of a piece of short fiction published in the local newspaper about 100 years ago (see links below).

It then spent decades as a kind of zombie home: derelict, falling apart, and occasionally used (including by the military during World War II). Right after the war it was scheduled for demolition and nearly lost to time, but somewhat saved in the '50s when some plans emerged to refurbish it. That didn't happen until the '70s and it finally reopened in '75 as an attraction.

Other lighthouses on the coast you can still visit include Coquille Light in Bandon, Port Orford's Cape Blanco and Cape Meares near Oceanside.

SEE:

Almost Haunted Oregon Coast: Yaquina Bay Lighthouse Lore and Legends, Part 2 

Landmarks and Legends of an Oregon Coast Lighthouse, Newport's Yaquina Bay, Part I

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