High atop Point Loma, overlooking the entrance to San Diego Bay, families once lived in one of the most isolated homes in Southern California. Their job was simple in theory but demanding in practice: keep the lighthouse burning every night so ships could safely find their way into the harbor.
Completed in 1855, the Old Point Loma Lighthouse was one of the first lighthouses built on the California coast after California became a state. Standing 422 feet above sea level inside what is now Cabrillo National Monument, it was built at what was then considered the highest lighthouse location in the United States.
The lofty location offered spectacular views, but it eventually created an unexpected problem.
Life at the lighthouse was far from easy.
The station was an isolated outpost where keepers and their families contended with strong winds, scarce supplies and the constant responsibility of maintaining the beacon. The grounds included living quarters, a barn, storage buildings, a chicken coop and water cisterns. Without running water, every drop had to be collected and carefully conserved.
For the families who lived there, the lighthouse served as both home and workplace.
One of the station’s best-known keepers was Robert Decatur Israel, who became keeper in 1873 after serving as assistant keeper. He remained in charge until the lighthouse was retired in 1891, making him the longest-serving keeper of the original Point Loma Lighthouse.
But his wife, María Arcadia Israel, was much more than a lighthouse keeper’s spouse.
Listed in federal lighthouse records as Mary A. Israel, she was appointed assistant keeper in 1873, making her one of the women officially employed by the U.S. Lighthouse Service in California during the 19th century.
While raising children at the remote station, María helped maintain the light, cared for the property and kept the household running under often difficult conditions. She also tended a garden despite poor soil and limited water, preserved food and created intricate shell artwork that she sold to visitors. Two of her shell picture frames remain part of the lighthouse’s historic collection today.
Two of her shell picture frames remain part of the historic collection. (Photo and caption info courtesy of National Park Service History)
Maintaining the lighthouse required constant attention. Keepers and assistant keepers cleaned and maintained the Fresnel lens, tended the lamp, replenished supplies, and ensured the beacon remained visible every night.
Robert and María shared those responsibilities, often working opposite schedules to make sure someone was always available to tend the light.
Ironically, the lighthouse’s greatest strength eventually became its biggest weakness.
Although its elevation provided sweeping views of the Pacific Ocean, it also placed the light within Southern California’s frequent marine layer. Fog and low clouds often obscured the beacon from ships approaching the harbor below.
In March 1891, the old lighthouse was retired after a new light station opened closer to the water, where the beacon could more reliably guide arriving vessels through the fog.
Although the original lighthouse was no longer needed as a navigational aid, it remained standing. Over the years, it served military purposes, fell into disrepair, and was eventually restored as one of San Diego’s best-known historic landmarks.
Today, visitors to the Old Point Loma Lighthouse at Cabrillo National Monument can step inside the restored building and experience the rooms where keepers and their families once lived. The carefully furnished lighthouse offers a glimpse into the demanding lives of the people who watched over San Diego’s maritime gateway during the city’s earliest years.
For Robert and María Arcadia Israel and the other keepers who called Point Loma home, the lighthouse was far more than a workplace. It was where they raised families, endured isolation, and faithfully maintained the beacon that welcomed ships safely into San Diego Bay for nearly four decades.
Gallery: The changing face of the Old Point Loma Lighthouse
Layout of Point Loma Light Station in 1882. (Photo and caption info courtesy of NPS History)
Read more history stories here.
Sources:
National Park Service — Cabrillo National Monument
“The Lighthouses of Cabrillo National Monument”
National Park Service
“María Arcadia Israel”
San Diego History Center — Journal of San Diego History
“The Keepers of the Old Point Loma Light”
National Park Service History
“Point Loma Lighthouse History”
KEEPERS AND ASSISTANT KEEPERS OF THE OLD POINT LOMA LIGHTHOUSE
| KEEPERS | Date Appointed | Date Vacated | Salary | |
| James P. Keating | Dec. 28, 1854 | Feb. 1, 1859 | $1,000 | Removed |
| H. C. Wiley | Feb. 1, 1859 | 1,000 | Salary reduced to $800 on Sept. 1, 1859 | |
| J. N. Covarrubias | Oct. 9, 1859 | Mar. 13, 1860 | 800 | Resigned |
| Joseph Reiner | Mar. 13, 1860 | Nov. 16, 1860 | 800 | Resigned |
| James P. Keating | Nov. 16, 1860 | 800 | Resigned | |
| W. C. Price | Feb. 16, 1861 | Nov. 23, 1867 | 1,000 | |
| J. D. Jenkins | Nov. 23, 1867 | Apr. 24, 1871 | 1,000 | Removed |
| Isaac Swain | Apr. 24, 1871 | May 20, 1871 | 1,000 | Declined |
| Enos A. Wall | May 20, 1871 | |||
| James J. Ferree | Mar. 5, 1872 | June 27, 1873 | 1,000 | Resigned |
| Robert D. Israel | June 27, 1873 | 1,000 | Salary reduced to $800 on Jan. 1, 1880 | |
| George P. Brennan | Jan. 29, 1893 | 800 | Keeper of the new Point Loma light | |
ASSISTANT KEEPERS | ||||
| George B. Tolman | Jan. 29, 1855 | Jan. 29, 1856 | $650 | Resigned |
| Anthony Genan | Jan. 29, 1855 | Jan. 17, 1856 | 500 | 2nd assistant position discontinued |
| Julius Semen | Apr. 28, 1856 | 650 | Salary reduced to $500 on Sept. 1, 1859 | |
| W. C. Price | 500 | Resigned | ||
| Thomas Susk | Dec. 6, 1859 | Dec. 31, 1859 | 500 | Resigned |
| J. J. Serano | Dec. 30, 1859 | Mar. 13, 1860 | 500 | |
| W. C. Price | Mar. 13, 1860 | 500 | ||
| S. Fields | Feb. 16, 1861 | 500 | ||
| C. P. McAleer | Mar. 7, 1865 | $625 | ||
| Lewis McCoy | Feb. 5, 1867 | Nov. 23, 1867 | 600 | Resigned |
| Eliza Jenkins | Nov. 23, 1867 | May 20, 1871 | 600 | Removed |
| Robert D. Israel | May 20, 1871 | June 27, 1873 | 600 | Promoted |
| Mary A. Israel | June 27, 1873 | Feb. 15, 1876 | 625 | Removed |
| A. G. Walker | Feb. 15, 1876 | May 19, 1876 | 625 | Transferred |
| J. S. Craig | May 19, 1876 | Aug. 13, 1877 | 625 | Resigned |
| John Stone | Aug. 13, 1877 NOWRAP | July 30, 1881 | 625 | Salary reduced to $600 on Jan. 18, 1880. Resigned |
| Victor H. Richet | July 30, 1881 | Nov. 14, 1883 | 600 | Resigned |
| James Maloney | Nov. 14, 1883 | Sept. 15, 1884 | 600 | Resigned |
| Philip Savage | Sept. 15, 1884 | Aug. 14, 1886 | 600 | Resigned |
| *David R. Splaine | Aug. 14, 1886 | Apr. 15, 1889 | 600 | Transferred |
| Thomas W. Anderson | July 15, 1889 | Oct. 25, 1891 | 600 | Resigned |
| Haydon B. Cartwell | Oct. 28, 1891 | Feb. 23, 1894 | 600 | Resigned |
*Appointed first keeper of Ballast Point Light on December 1, 1894.
The above list was compiled from the following records of the National Archives:
“Record of Lights, Keeper’s Names, &c” v.1
“Record of Lights, Keeper’s Names, Birthplace, Whence Appointed, Annual Salary, &c.” v. 1A, 1853-1870
“Lighthouse Appointments, 1843-1880, Treasury Department,” v.2
“Keepers of Light Stations, 1864-1886, no. 3, Division of Appointments, Secretary of the Treasury.”
“Keepers of Light Stations, Dist. 5-13, 1862-1900, Division of Appointments, Secretary of the Treasury.”
“Keepers of Light Stations, Divisions of Appointments, Office of the Secretary of the Treasury,” Series V, vol. 6.
(Source: National Park Service History)
