| Disputed island | |
|---|---|
 Machias Seal Island on the horizon | |
 | |
| Geography | |
| Location | Far Northern region of the Gulf of Maine |
| Coordinates | 44°30′0″N 67°6′4″W / 44.50000°N 67.10111°W[1] |
| Archipelago | Grand Manan Archipelago (disputed) / Machias Seal Island & North Rock Archipelago (disputed) |
| Area | 8 ha (20 acres) |
| Administration | |
| Province |  New Brunswick |
| Claimed by | |
| Province | New Brunswick |
| State |  Maine |
| Demographics | |
| Population | None (Two Canadian Coast Guard lighthouse keepers occupy the lighthouse on a rotational basis; temporary population increases in the summer with University of New Brunswick researchers and a Canadian Wildlife Service observer) (1995) |
| Additional information | |
| Machias Seal Island Lighthouse | |
 The island with the lighthouse in the centre | |
| Constructed | 1832 (twin tower first) 1878 (second) |
| Foundation | concrete base (current) |
| Construction | wooden tower (first) concrete tower (current) |
| Height | 19.8 m (65 ft), 25 m (82 ft)  |
| Shape | tapered octagonal prism tower with balcony and lantern[2][3][4] |
| Markings | white tower, red lantern roof |
| Power source | solar power |
| Operator | Canadian Coast Guard |
| Heritage | recognized federal heritage building of Canada, heritage lighthouse |
| Fog signal | two 3s. blasts every 60s. |
| First lit | 1915 (current) |
| Focal height | 18 m (59 ft) |
| Range | 17 nmi (31 km; 20 mi) |
| Characteristic | Fl W 3s |
Machias Seal Island is an island in disputed water between the Gulf of Maine and the Bay of Fundy, about 16 km (10 mi) southeast from Cutler, Maine, and 19 km (12 mi) southwest of Grand Manan Island, New Brunswick. Sovereignty of the island is disputed by the United States and Canada. The Canadian Coast Guard continues to staff a lighthouse on the island; the first lighthouse was constructed there in 1832.
The island has also been claimed by the ancestors of "Tall Barney Beal", particularly Barna Norton, who ran boat tours to the island.[5]
- ^ "Machias Seal Island". Geographical Names. Natural Resources Canada. May 8, 1995.
- ^ List of Lights, Pub. 110: Greenland, The East Coasts of North and South America (Excluding Continental U.S.A. Except the East Coast of Florida) and the West Indies (PDF). List of Lights. United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. 2015. p. {{{page}}}.
- ^ Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of Canada: Southern New Brunswick". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved March 23, 2017.
- ^ Machias Seal Island, NB Archived February 25, 2017, at the Wayback Machine Lighthouse Friends. Retrieved March 23, 2017
- ^ Giamo, Cara. "The Man Who Went to War With Canada". Atlas Obscura. Atlas Obscura. Retrieved August 1, 2024.