In 1881, the first light station placed on Hilton Head Island consisted of a pair of range lights. The larger of the lights was placed atop a 95 foot steel skeleton tower (pictured on the left) built to withstand gales and hurricanes. The tower was fitted with a Fresnel Lens and its light could be seen more than fifteen miles at sea. Access to the lantern room was made available by a tight-sprial staircase consisting of 112 steps located in the center cylinder of the tower.
The smaller of the lights was placed at the top of a small house which was constructed in such a way so that it could be moved to realign the lights as the channel moved. Both of the lights were decommissioned in 1932.
The tower grounds are said to be haunted by a lady in a blue dress, who was one of the keeper's daughters. It is said that during a hurricane in 1898, the keeper suffered a heart attack as the light was blown out by the wind. The keeper pleaded for his daughter to relight the lamps. She did so and her father died, then a few weeks later, she died due to grief. People say that sobbing can be heard near the old skeleton tower and occasionally some say they have seen her wandering the area.
The lighthouse grounds are open to enjoy, but the lighthouse is closed to climbing.
To visit the Hilton Head Rear Range Lighthouse, special permission must be obtained to enter the gated community of Palmetto Dunes, which is where the lighthouse is located. A vehicle pass can be obtained by calling (803) 785-1106. Make sure that you ask for the address of the office where you are to pick up your pass and use mapquest to get good directions to the office. We had a difficult time finding it.
