Exploring Rose Island Lighthouse in Newport, Rhode Island
Part museum, part overnight destination, the Rose Island Lighthouse in Newport, Rhode Island, gives visitors a special look at a restored New England landmark.
Climb the stairs (carefully) up to the light and admire the perfect summer views of Narragansett Bay and the Newport Bridge.
Photo Credit : Aimee Tucker
Rose Island Lighthouse in Newport, Rhode Island, is a lovingly restored lighthouse that’s been keeping watch over Narragansett Bay since 1870. It’s also one of the few lighthouses in New England you can sleep in. Here’s a closer look at this unique Ocean State landmark.
Rose Island Lighthouse in Newport, Rhode Island. Photo Credit : Aimee Tucker
History of Rose Island Lighthouse
Located a mile offshore, Rose Island sits in the middle of the East Passage of Narragansett Bay. As shipping traffic in the Newport area increased during the 19th century, Congress appropriated funds for a lighthouse, which was completed on the island’s southwest corner in 1870. When the Newport Bridge opened a century later, in 1969, the lighthouse fell out of use and into disrepair. Fearing its demolition, a group of volunteers formed the Rose Island Lighthouse Foundation and rallied to save it. In 1984 they successfully restored it to its 1912 appearance, while also installing environmentally conscious methods of electricity, water, sewer, and heat. On August 7, 1993, the beacon was relit, and the light could once again provide aid in navigation.
Things to Do on Rose Island
Spending a night or a vacation week in one of Rose Island’s guest rooms (there’s an apartment and a handful of single rooms available for rent in the summer) is the best way to make the most of a visit to the island, but day-trippers will still find plenty to admire and enjoy. Tour the historic lighthouse and Fort Hamilton barracks (guides are on hand during the summer months); stroll the walking paths after August 15, when the protection for nesting birds is lifted; beach-comb; fish off the rocks; enjoy a picnic lunch; or read a book in one of the island’s many ocean-facing Adirondack chairs. Bird-watchers, take note: Egrets, snowy egrets, and glossy ibis, plus many species of gulls and geese, all call Rose Island home.
ROSE ISLAND LIGHTHOUSE IN NEWPORT, RI | PHOTOS
Eighteen-acre Rose Island (with its terrific view of the Newport Bridge, aka the Claiborne Pell Bridge) is home to a wildlife refuge, the lighthouse, and the Fort Hamilton barracks. Photo Credit : Aimee TuckerIf you have your own boat, you can tie up at the dock, as we did. If you have a sailing dinghy, canoe, or kayak, you can land on the beach. A short path leads to the lighthouse. Photo Credit : Aimee TuckerAn arc of Adirondack chairs curves beside Narragansett Bay. Inside, the museum depicts the lighthouse as it looked in 1912. Photo Credit : Aimee TuckerThe museum part of the lighthouse features a restored living room and semi-equipped kitchen, plus two no-frills double bedrooms, both available for rent. A separate entrance leads to the keeper’s apartment, a more modern and private option, which has a master bedroom, living room with pullout sofa, full kitchen, bathroom, and wood stove. Photo Credit : Aimee TuckerArchival photos of the lighthouse’s history adorn the walls in the museum living room. Photo Credit : Aimee TuckerPeriod antiques (some working, some doing their best) and Rose Island mementos give visitors plenty to take in. Photo Credit : Aimee TuckerThe Curt Bunting Room, with views of the Newport Bridge, is one of two bedrooms available for rent on the first floor of the museum side of the lighthouse. Photo Credit : Aimee TuckerClimb the stairs (carefully) up to the light and admire the perfect summer views of Narragansett Bay and the Newport Bridge. Photo Credit : Aimee TuckerOriginal keeper John Bailey Cozzens lit the island’s first light on January 20, 1870. Photo Credit : Aimee TuckerCan’t you just smell the ocean breezes? Photo Credit : Aimee Tucker
Getting to Rose Island
Rose Island and the lighthouse museum are open to the public from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Admission is $5 per person. Note: Parts of the island are restricted from March 1 to August 14 because of nesting birds. The best way to travel is via the Jamestown-Newport Ferry, unless you have your own boat, which you can tie up at the dock (or, for smaller craft, land on the beach).
Planning a longer visit to Newport, Rhode Island? Check out our Favorite Things to Do in Newport and our Guide to the Newport Mansions.
This post was first published in 2017 and has been updated. Note: We visited Rose Island Lighthouse in a season 2 episode of Weekends with Yankee, our public television show in collaboration with WGBH. Check the Weekends with Yankee site to learn more about the series, plus when and where to catch episodes.
Aimee Tucker
Aimee Tucker is Yankee Magazine’s Home Editor and the Senior Digital Editor of NewEngland.com. A lifelong New Englander and Yankee contributor since 2010, Aimee has written columns devoted to history, foliage, retro food, and architecture, and regularly shares her experiences in New England travel, home, and gardening. Her most memorable Yankee experiences to date include meeting Stephen King, singing along to a James Taylor Fourth of July concert at Tanglewood, and taking to the skies in the Hood blimp for an open-air tour of the Massachusetts coastline.
