Lighthouse with Lewes tie goes on auction block

A piece of Delaware Bay maritime history with a strong historical tie to Lewes is on the auction block.

The Miah Maull Light Station off the coast of Cumberland County, N.J. – named for Lewes Delaware River pilot Nehemiah Maull – went up for bids July 1. An opening bid of $10,000 is required, but it's anticipated the actual selling price will be much higher.

As part of the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act, the U.S. General Services Administration is offering the lighthouse to the public through an online auction. Under the act, if a nonprofit agency willing to preserve a lighthouse does not come forward to take over a lighthouse at no cost, it can be offered at auction. The Miah Maull light was one of 12 offered by the GSA for sale from coastal areas in New York, Michigan, Florida and Puerto Rico.

According to historic records, Maull (1737-1780) had a distinguished career as a river pilot but met an untimely end in an ironic twist of fate on the Delaware Bay. In 1780, he was aboard a ship destined for England that ran aground on a then unnamed shoal, and he drowned. The shoal has long borne his name.

His father, John (1714-1753), was also a river pilot in the mid 1700s. John immigrated to the colonies from England in 1725 and made his home and raised his family in Lewes.

Nehemiah Maull has a family tie to Thomas Maull who lived on Pilottown Road, said Mike DiPaolo, executive director of the Lewes Historical Society. The Thomas Maull House – dating back to 1730 – is the oldest building in Lewes still in its original location. It was also the home of Joseph Maull, a state senator and governor for two months in 1846.

DiPaolo said that Nehemiah Maull was probably a cousin or nephew to Thomas Maull.

Lighthouse starts operations in 1913

The 59-foot cast-iron lighthouse became operational in 1913 as one of 50 such lighthouses in the northeastern United States. The Coast Guard took over operation of the lighthouse in 1939 and changed its color from brown to red.

Although Congress authorized construction of the lighthouse several years before, financial restraints held up construction until the total amount of $75,000 was dispersed.

As part of a series of lighthouses on the Delaware Bay in place before World War I, the Miah Maull Shoal light improved navigation and was critical to the success of Hog Island Shipyard, site of the current Philadelphia International Airport. By the end of the war, Hog Island had become the largest shipyard in the world, according to the lighthouse's National Register of Historical Places application approved in 1991.

The shoal was 800 yards wide and 3,000 yards long at a depth of 13 feet when the lighthouse was constructed. The lighthouse is 8 miles south of Fortescue, N.J., just east of the Delaware Bay's main shipping channel.

The lighthouse – the last off-shore lighthouse built on the bay – has three floors of living space including a kitchen and dining room on the first floor, two bedrooms and a bathroom on the second floor and two more bedrooms on the third floor. It has three outside decks and a watch deck on the fourth floor.

Lighthouse keepers occupied the living quarters until the lighthouse was automated in 1975. It has been upgraded by the Coast Guard to LED lighting.

One of the conditions of the sale is that the U.S. Coast Guard retain the lighthouse as an aid to navigation.

“Miah Maull Shoal Light Station is an important part of our regional and national maritime history. Through a public sale, GSA is looking for a passionate and capable owner to help us ensure that this architectural treasure will be preserved without burdening taxpayers,” said Robert Zarnetske, GSA New England regional administrator.

To date, more than 100 lighthouses have been sold or transferred out of federal ownership with 73 transferred at no cost to preservationists and 41 sold at public auction, said GSA spokesman Patrick Sclafani.

Just like with other real estate, sale prices of lighthouses are based on location. According to the GSA, one of the lowest prices paid for a lighthouse was for one on Fox Island, Maine, at $27,000 and the highest price paid so far has been $1 million for a lighthouse with a view of Boston.

Bidders can contact Barbara Salfity at 1-617-565-5696 or at barbara.salfity@gsa.gov. Additional information on the lighthouse auction can be found at realestatesales.gov.