Concord Point Lighthouse

Concord Point Lighthouse was built in 1827 of granite quarried up the river at Port Deposit, a durable local stone that has let the compact tower stand for nearly two centuries. It rises only a few dozen feet, but its position at the very head of the Chesapeake, where the wide Susquehanna meets the salt tide, made it a vital marker for the heavy river and bay traffic of the nineteenth century.

In that era Havre de Grace was a crossroads of water travel, with steamboats, sailing schooners, and the busy Susquehanna and Tidewater Canal all converging here. The little light warned vessels off the shoals at the river's mouth and helped guide them into safe water, a humble but essential job it performed for well over a hundred years.

The lighthouse is tied to the name O'Neill through John O'Neill, a Havre de Grace man remembered for defending the town during a British raid in the War of 1812. According to the local story, O'Neill stood almost alone against the attackers, was captured, and was later released, and the grateful community and government long honored his family.

For generations the keeper's post at Concord Point passed down through O'Neill's descendants, an unusually long stewardship by one family. The modest keeper's dwelling across the street from the tower still stands as part of the site, and together the two buildings tell the story not just of a navigation light but of the people who climbed its stairs every night to keep it burning.

Inside, a tight spiral of iron stairs winds up to the lantern room, where the reward is a sweeping view over the mouth of the Susquehanna, the wide upper bay, and the rooftops of Havre de Grace below. On a clear day you can trace the river as it fans out into the Chesapeake and watch boats work the channel.

The site is run by dedicated volunteers who keep the tower and keeper's house open on a seasonal schedule and share the history with visitors who climb up. Because it is a small, community-run landmark rather than a large attraction, the experience is personal and unhurried, the kind of place where a guide has time to answer questions.

The lighthouse anchors one end of Havre de Grace's waterfront promenade, a walkway that follows the shoreline past marshes, marinas, and views across the water. The town behind it is compact and full of character, with antique shops, galleries, and restaurants set among nineteenth-century buildings.

Nearby, the town's Decoy Museum celebrates the Chesapeake tradition of hand-carved waterfowl decoys, and the Maritime Museum tells the wider story of life and work on the upper bay. Together they make Havre de Grace a rewarding half-day stop, with the lighthouse as its most photographed landmark.

The closest Boutel™ stays, so you can turn this stop into an overnight. Each is an independently owned, editorially selected place to stay.