Boothbay Harbor was a busy fishing port in the 19th and early 20th century when The Lighthouse Board Report for 1890 noted the need for a fog signal station to protect mariners seeking shelter in foggy or inclement weather. The report noted:

“The Cuckolds consist of two rocky islets rising about 59 feet above high water in the

westerly edge of the channel at the entrance to Booth Bay. They are dangerous of

approach on their southern side on account of the reefs in that direction, and the shoals

also extend half a mile to the westward of the western rock, but the eastward side of the

eastern rock is quite bold-to. The flood current sets right on these rocks. They are much

dreaded by mariners in thick weather and are a great peril to a large number of vessels.”

In 1892, $25,000 was appropriated for the building of a fog signal station and keeper’s house. To protect the buildings from the sea in heavy storms, a granite pier was constructed on the highest part of the island to support and raise the fog signal station structure above the storm waves. A light tower was added to the station in 1907, which was visible up to 13 miles. In June 2004, under the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act of 2000, the Federal government invited interested and eligible entities to apply to acquire the Cuckolds Fog Signal and Light Station. Deemed excess to the United States Coast Guard, and threatened with destruction, the Cuckolds was at a critical turning point.