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Telephoto view, Warrior Rock and Warrior Rock Lighthouse, Sauvie Island, Oregon.
The Warrior Rock Lighthouse sits on Warrior Rock and is visible from the mouth of the Lewis River. Sauvie Island is in the background. View from Austin Point.
Image taken March 29, 2007.
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Warrior Point and Warrior Rock ...
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Warrior Point, the northern tip (downstream tip) of Sauvie Island, was named in 1792 by Lieutenant William Broughton of the British expedition under Captain George Vancouver. On October 28, 1792, Lieutenant Broughton anchored off the point and found himself surrounded by 23 canoes of natives, each carrying 3-12 people dressed in war gear and prepared for combat.
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"...
About three miles an a half from Oak point Mr. Broughton arrived at another, which he
called Point Warrior, in consequence of being there surrounded by
twenty-three canoes, carrying from three to twelve persons each, all attired in their war garments, and in every other respect prepared for combat. ...
..."
[Broughton/Vancouver, October 28, 1792]
On the east side of Warrior Point just off the tip lies a feature called "Warrior Rock", a basalt outcropping of Grande Ronde Columbia River lava.
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Warrior Rock Lighthouse ...
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Four lighthouses have been located near the mouth of the Columbia River and two more were located inland. They are the
Cape Disappointment Lighthouse (1856), Point Adams Lighthouse (1875),
North Head Lighthouse (1898), and the Desdemona Sands Lighthouse (1902), and inland were the Warrior Rock Lighthouse (1888), at the lower mouth of the Willamette River, and the Willamette River Lighthouse (1895), at the upper mouth of the Willamette.
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"... On a case-by-case basis Congress appropriated funds for design and construction of important facilities. These included lighthouses: Cape Arago (1866), Cape Blanco (1870), Yaquina Bay (1872), Cape Foulweather (1873), Point Adams (1875), Tillamook Rock (1881), Warrior Rock (1888) at the mouth of the Willamette River, Cape Meares (1890), Umpqua River, Heceta Head, Coquille River (all 1894), and Desdemona Sands (1905 [error ???, 1902, see below]). The goal was to create a system of stations with interlocking lights. On a clear night at sea, a mariner might expect to sight at any point a distinctive beacon on shore to pinpoint the location. Fog signals powered by steam engines blasted warnings from a number of the stations to tell captains to drop anchor or beat a retreat until the mists cleared. ..."
[Oregon State "BlueBook" website, 2006]
The Warrior Rock Lighthouse is located to the southeast of Warrior Rock. Two structures have been built there. The first lighthouse was a small two-story wooden-framed structure built in 1889 on a square sandstone base. In the 1930s the lighthouse was replaced with a 28-foot concrete tower. The lighthouse was in use until 1969 when it was severely damaged by a barge.
From the 1942 NOAA "Coast Pilot":
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"... Warrior Rock Light, near the northern end of Sauvie Island, and one of the few watched lights on the upper river, is shown from a white pyramidal structure on a stone pier. The light is 24 feet above water. A fog signal is sounded on a bell, operating continuously except that it is not sounded from June 1 to August 31, each year. ... Vessels seldom attempt to pass Warrior Rock Light in a thick fog, anchoring either above or below this point until the weather clears. ..."
The Warrior Rock bell at the time was the oldest fog bell in the Pacific Northwest, at first having served at Cape Disappointment Lighthouse until coming to Warrior Rock in 1889. Today the bell resides at the Columbia County Courthouse in St. Helens, Oregon, and
a replica of the first lighthouse is at the edge of Columbia View Park in St. Helens.
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Views ...
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The best view of the Warrior Rock Lighthouse is either from a boat, or from the Sauvie Island beach. It is a seven-mile roundtrip hike to the lighthouse and back. For non-hikers, the lighthouse can be seen from the Washington side of the Columbia at Woodland at Austin Point. Austin Point is located at the mouth of the Lewis River.
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Warrior Rock and Warrior Rock Lighthouse, Sauvie Island, Oregon.
The Warrior Rock Lighthouse sits on Warrior Rock and is visible from the mouth of the Lewis River.
Image taken March 29, 2007.
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- Fog Bell ...
- Replica, First Warrior Point Lighthouse, St. Helens, Oregon ...
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Fog Bell ...
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Entrance new section, Columbia County Courthouse, St. Helens, Oregon.
Fog bell on the right is the original bell from Cape Disappointment.
Image taken February 17, 2007.
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Cape Disappointment Fog Bell, Columbia County Courthouse, St. Helens, Oregon.
Image taken February 17, 2007.
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Cape Disappointment Fog Bell, Columbia County Courthouse, St. Helens, Oregon.
Image taken February 17, 2007.
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Scripture reads:
"Cast by J Bernhard & Co
No.78 N 6 St
Philada 1855"
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Replica, First Warrior Rock Lighthouse, St. Helens, Oregon ...
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On the northeastern corner of the Columbia View Park at St. Helens, Oregon stands a replica of the first Warrior Point Lighthouse. A life-size model of Captain Lewis's dog Seaman is next to the lighthouse.
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Columbia View Park, St. Helens, Oregon.
On the left is a replica of the original lighthouse at Warrior Rock on Sauvie Island. On the right is a statue of "Seaman", Captain Lewis's dog who made the Lewis and Clark journey.
Image taken October 31, 2006.
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Warrior Rock Lighthouse replica, St. Helens, Oregon.
The replica is of the first lighthouse located on Warrior Rock.
Image taken February 17, 2007.
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Columbia County Courthouse, St. Helens, Oregon.
View from the Washington side of the Columbia River, just downstream the mouth of the Lewis River, Washington, showing both the old (left) and the new (right) Columbia County Courthouse. The replica of the first Warrior Rock Lighthouse is nicely seen.
Image taken March 4, 2007.
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From the Journals of Lewis and Clark ...
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