Welcome To Bandon Visitors Guide 2012

• Hughes House & Cape Blanco Lighthouse

Published: Tuesday, May 13th, 2008 Hughes House & Cape Blanco Lighthouse For those who appreciate late Victorian architecture and old-time lighthouses, the Hughes House - built in 1898 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places - and the century old Cape Blanco Lighthouse are open for tours.


Cape Blanco Lighthouse
The Cape Blanco Lighthouse is perched high atop a cliff and protrudes out over the ocean. Its bright beacon guided mariners past jagged and hidden rocks for more than 100 years. Today the romance of the lighthouse draws thousands of visitors to learn its history and secrets through a partnership between the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, Oregon State Parks, the Confederated Tribes of the Siletz Indians, the Coquille Indian Tribe, Curry County and the Friends of Cape Blanco.

To explore Oregon's Cape Blanco lighthouse and see what separates it from other lighthouses, tours are conducted from April 1 through Oct. 31 at 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday, and on Mondays during the Memorial Day, Fourth of July, and Labor Day weekends.

Those interested in the lighthouse can call (541) 332-2207 for further information.


Hughes House
The majestic Hughes ranch house is a two-story, eleven room structure built of 2x8 old-growth Port Orford cedar that covers more than 3,000 square feet and was originally constructed for a mere $3,800.

The house stands on a terrace on the north side of Cape Blanco. This location protects the house from the worst of the winter southwesters, but the northwesters are still frequent occurrences. Visitors, now as in the past, enter the front hall where the sharp odor of homemade furniture polish lingers in the air and the soft lighting from a rose-colored gaslight is reflected in the dark polished wood spindles and shiny balusters of the central stairway. The front parlor was the most significant room of a Victorian home, and the Hughes House parlor reflects the wealthy status of the Hughes family with a shallow firebox designed to burn coal rather than cheaper - and more abundant - firewood.

The house also contains a men's parlor, a spacious kitchen - complete with a great cast iron wood cook stove - and a unique chapel that has the original altar and a hand-painted ceiling.

Hughes House tours are conducted from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Tuesday through Sunday, and on Mondays during the Memorial Day, Fourth of July, and Labor Day weekends. Tours are managed by The Friends of Cape Blanco with cooperation of Oregon State Parks and Recreation Department. Those interested in the Hughes House can call (541) 332-0248 for further information.



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