The United States lightship Chesapeake is a museum ship owned by the National Park Service and on a 25-year loan to Baltimore City. Operated by the Historic Ships in Baltimore Museum, she is one of a small number of preserved lightships. Since 1820, several lightships have served at the Chesapeake lightship station and have been called Chesapeake.
Built at Charleston Drydock & Machine Co. in 1930, Chesapeake was one of six ships in the LS 100 class. She initially served at the Fenwick Shoal station before being assigned to the Chesapeake Light Station in 1933, roughly 17 miles offshore from the entrance to the Chesapeake Bay. During World War II, she served as an Examination and Guard vessel out of Sandwich, Massachusetts, protecting the port of Boston.
In the 1960s, as automated buoys were introduced, Chesapeake left her station in September 1965. Her final tour of duty was at the mouth of the Delaware Bay from 1966 to 1970, where she was named DELAWARE. She was decommissioned in early 1971 and eventually moved to Cape May, New Jersey.
Today, Chesapeake is moored at Pier 3 in Baltimore's Inner Harbor. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 and designated a National Historic Landmark in 1989, she remains a major contributing element in the Baltimore National Heritage Area. Visitors can tour the ship today as part of the museum's collection.
Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons
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