Photograph as originally submitted to this page in the Historical Marker Database www.HMdb.org. Click on photo to resize in browser. Scroll down to see metadata.

Photographer: Cosmos Mariner
Taken: June 23, 2017
Caption: "About This Buoy" panel (enhanced readability rendition on right)
Additional Description: Why is it Here?
This retired navigation buoy was donated to the City of Gloucester by the U.S. Coast Guard. A veteran of many years at sea, it served as an important guide for Gloucester's fishing fleet in various locations. In 1999 The Gloucester Waterways Board converted the buoy into this landlocked guidepost to educate and inform boaters and visitors who use our Public Landings. Other buoys may be found on the City's Maritime Trail.

Shape and Color
This buoy's distinctive shape indicates that it was an especially important aid to navigation. Its green color reveals that it marked the left (port) side of a channel as boats approached from the sea.

Night and Fog
The green light at the top flashed in a distinctive pattern that could identity it from a distance at night. It also had a bell that helped to warn mariners during periods of poor visibility. The buoy's upper faceted surfaces served as excellent reflectors of radar waves transmitted by boats.

What You Don't See
Like an iceberg, much of a buoy is located below the water. The whole buoy was 26 feet long and weighed 12,000 pounds when in use. During renovation the 4,500 pound counterweight was cut off and recycled. The buoy has been buried up to the former water line to demonstrate how it would appear from a boat.

Look Around
Many similar buoys on “active duty” in the Harbor or Annisquam River can be seen from vantage points around the City.
Submitted: March 26, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
Database Locator Identification Number: p420540
File Size: 2.163 Megabytes

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