Point Sur juts out from a rugged portion of the California coast 25 miles south of Monterey Bay. The Lighthouse Board had considered a lighthouse at Point Sur as early as 1856, but the terrain was daunting.

Point Sur, photo by Jeremy D'Entremont.

Congress finally appropriated $50,000 in 1886 and another $50,000 in the following year. Stone for the buildings was quarried near the site, and a steep railway—708 feet long—was built to transport supplies to the top of a volcanic rock that rises to a height of 361 feet. At the top, after a roadbed was blasted out of the rock, another 480-foot railway was built to the lighthouse site. The station went into service on August 1, 1889.

Point Sur Lighthouse, photo by Jeremy D'Entremont.

The light was automated and the personnel were removed in 1972. In 1984, the Coast Guard turned over most of the station to the California Department of Parks and Recreation, and the Point Sur State Historic Park was soon born.

Carol and John O'Neil

A nonprofit organization, Central Coast Lighthouse Keepers, was formed in 1993 to support the preservation of the light station. State Parks volunteers lead tours at Point Sur Light Station and operate the visitor center.

John and Carol O’Neil have been working as Point Sur State Historic Park volunteers for about 27 years, and John serves as chair of the Central Coast Lighthouse Keepers while Carol is the historian.

Carol wrote the book Point Sur, published by Arcadia Press in 2003.