Nine miles offshore, at the entrance to the Boston harbor, stands Graves Light.
At 113’ tall the granite pier marks the treacherous Graves Ledge and has warned merchant mariners of its perils for the past century. Now privately owned, Graves has undergone extensive restoration including a gut renovation of the lighthouse, rehabilitation of the original oil house, construction of a 150’ stainless steel foot bridge, and the addition of a wharf.
We are lucky to have been among the many craftspeople who were invited over the years to lend a hand in this terrific undertaking. We played numerous roles throughout this project with our work culminating in the design and fabrication of a viewing deck that lives at the base of the oil house. Over the course of a summer the mahogany planking was meticulously scribed into the surrounding rock ledge, a fire pit was installed, and bench seating with hidden storage was constructed.
Mother Nature proved to be the true keeper of the lighthouse.
Graves Light is perhaps one of the most spectacular landmarks of New England. Its unique setting offers its guests unparalleled views—to the west is the Boston skyline and to the east is open ocean. But this does not come without its challenges: access to the site was, and remains, a constant hurdle. Anyone who works on the water knows a calm day can be a dream, but things change quickly. We regularly contested with the ebb and flow of tides, big seas, heavy rains, high winds, and low visibility. These variables required the utmost agility and preparedness—from personal gear and tools to planning and scheduling the nature of the site demanded we be highly adaptable.
Equipped with a rugged ex-coast guard vessel and an affinity for seamanship, we shuttled people and supplies between the East Boston docks and the worksite. The surrounding seabed geography rendered it near impossible to land a large vessel on the ledge. This meant that all tools and materials had to be transferred from the Defender A-Class to a small rubber dinghy, rowed ashore, and winched 20’ in the air and onto the dock.
The days were long and the work was hard but we were rewarded by a truly one of a kind end result. The viewing deck serves to help transition Graves Light into a new era—one that marks its evolution from a navigational asset to a private compound, all while seamlessly blending into its environment and keeping with its rich maritime history.
