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Video: Moving an 1850s lighthouse

The Gay Head Light has been a fixture on the clay cliffs in Aquinnah since 1856, a beacon for mariners and a Martha's Vineyard icon. With erosion putting the brick lighthouse perilously close to the edge of the cliffs, it will be moved 135 feet inward in a much-watched effort to preserve the landmark for generations to come.

Just before noon on Thursday the Gay Head Light departed the spot where it has stood for 159 years. The Island’s oldest lighthouse is now headed for its new home about 175 feet from the eroding clay cliffs. The brick-and-mortar lighthouse is rolling slowly along a 100-ton steel frame.

Read the full story at the Vineyard Gazette>>

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Jessica Hathaway is the former editor in chief of National Fisherman.

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