U.S. Set to Give Away Six Lighthouses, Sell Four Others

If you've always wanted to own a lighthouse, this could be your chance to make that dream a reality. The country is set to give away six lighthouses and sell four others, it announced Friday.

The U.S. General Services Administration issued a statement on the price tag-free lighthouses, mostly located through New England.

"Lighthouses have long served as beacons for those at sea or on inland waters, marking dangerous coastlines and underwater hazards such as rocks and reefs as well as marking safe entries to harbors," the statement said.

"As technology advanced, and lighthouses became less essential to navigation, lighthouses often fell into neglect or were demolished," the statement adds.

The free lighthouses come with a catch: they need to be preserved, per the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act.

"The NHLPA recognizes the significance of historic lighthouses for maritime traffic, coastal communities, nonprofits and lighthouse enthusiasts," the statement continues.

The "lighthouses may be transferred at no cost to federal agencies, state and local governments, nonprofits, educational agencies, and community development organizations" that can afford to "maintain the historic light station, and make the station available for education, park, recreation, cultural, or historic preservation purposes for the public at reasonable times and under reasonable conditions," the statement adds.

Up for grabs are the Lynde Point Lighthouse in Old Saybrook, Connecticut; the Nobska Lighthouse (pictured above) in Falmouth, Massachusetts; the Plymouth/Gurnet Lighthouse in Plymouth, Massachusetts; the Warwick Neck Light in Warwick, Rhode Island; Little Mark Island and Monument in Harpswell, Maine; and the Erie Harbor North Pier Lighthouse in Erie, Pennsylvania.

Four other lighthouses — the Penfield Reef Lighthouse in Fairfield, Connecticut, the Stratford Shoal Light on Long Island, the Cleveland Harbor West Pierhead Light in Cleveland, and the Keweenaw Waterway Lower Entrance Light in Chassell, Michigan — will be sold at auction.

Since 2000, the government has unloaded 150 lighthouses.