The port of San Luis, California, developed into a major shipping point in the 1870s. A lighthouse at Point San Luis began operation on June 30, 1890. The beautiful Victorian building consists of a square wooden tower attached to a keeper’s dwelling. The Point San Luis Lighthouse Keepers, a dedicated group of preservationists established in 1995, spearheaded a 15-year restoration effort that led to the lighthouse being opened to the public. Docent-led tours are available year-round.

Point San Luis (San Luis Obispo) Light Station in 1894. (U.S. Coast Guard Historian's Office)

Kathy Mastako is a docent and historian for the Point San Luis Lighthouse Keepers. She has written numerous articles for the organization’s newsletter, for the Avila Beach Life newspaper, Lighthouse Digest magazine, and for the U.S. Lighthouse Society’s quarterly journal, The Keeper’s Log. Kathy’s new book The Lighthouse at Point San Luis, has just been published by the U.S. Lighthouse Society. The book tells the stories of the keepers and families at the Point San Luis Light Station, civilian and Coast Guard, from 1890 to its 1975 automation.

Buy the book on Amazon