Online Auction: Historic Lighthouse
By Sue Clark on Jul 11, 2007 in Lighthouses For Sale 
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An historic lighthouse is going up on the auction block by the General Services Administration’s Office of Real Property Disposal. Fourteen Foot Bank Lighthouse, located three miles offshore of Bowers Beach in Delaware Bay, will be auctioned online beginning July 16, 2007. Minimum bid is $10,000 USD and bidding will be in $5,000 USD increments. There will be one property inspection on August 1, and you must be a registered bidder to sign up for it.
Fourteen Foot Bank Light was built in 1876, the lighthouse is registered in the National Register of Historic Places. The lighthouse is a three story cast iron tower topped by a lantern and an upper gallery deck. The lighthouse sits on a trumpet shaped iron caisson lined with concrete. The lighthouse includes a two and a half story gabled keeper’s house, a fuel storage area and a lantern room. No public utilities are available.
The lighthouse is an active aid to navigation, and the rights to the lantern, along with all the easements, will be retained by the federal government. You must place a $10,000 in certified funds or cashier’s check deposit to participate, or you can use your Visa, Mastercard, Discover or American Express. Full details on the property and application for registering and site inspection (PDF file, will open in a new window).
If you’re looking for a truly unique vacation getaway, this could just be for you. Privacy is virtually guaranteed (except for the occasional Coast Guard visit), and the water view is spectacular. All 360 degrees, in fact. You’ll have to bring your own generator, though. I wonder how the cell phone coverage is out there. Seriously, if I had the money, I’d buy this in a heartbeat, along with every other lighthouse that doesn’t have a protector. What do you think?
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August 27th, 2007 at 9:40 pm
[…] bidding war at the last minute caused a delay to the scheduled end of the General Services Administration (GSA) auction of Fourteen Foot Bank Lighthouse in Delaware. Lighthouse News last checked the auction site on August 17, and bids were at […]