The Graves (Massachusetts)

The Graves Light is a lighthouse located on The Graves, the outermost island of the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area, and 9 miles (14 km) offshore of downtown Boston, Massachusetts, USA.At 113 feet (34 m), it is the tallest lighthouse in the approaches to the Port of Boston, and is an important navigation aid for traffic to and from the port. It was built at the same time that the North Channel into Boston Harbor was dredged to become the principal entrance for large vessels. The Graves are the outermost rocks near the outer end of the North Channel.It was added to the National Register of Historic Places as Graves Light Station on September 28, 1987, reference number 87002041.

Outer Brewster Island, also known as Outward Island, is one of the outer islands in the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area and is situated some 10 miles offshore of downtown Boston. The island has a permanent size of 20 acres, and consists of exposed bedrock covered by fertile soil bounded by a rocky shore with steep cliffs. It provides a nesting habitat for coastal water birds, including cormorants, gulls, common eider ducks, glossy ibis and American oystercatchers. The birds are aggressive during their nesting season and access by humans, which is by private boat only, is discouraged during this period. Like the neighboring islands of Great Brewster, Little Brewster and Middle Brewster, Outer Brewster Island is named after William Brewster, the first preacher and teacher for the Plymouth Colony. The relative barrenness and rocky shoreline of Outer Brewster has resulted in limited human usage. A granite quarry was operated on the island in the 19th century, and a coastal defense battery, known as Battery Jewell, was built on the island during World War II. Both are now disused and abandoned.In 1798 Nathaniel Austin bought Outer Brewster Island from David Wood for $400. Austin built an artificial harbor on the island and hoped to establish a profitable quarry. He built the house at 27 Harvard Square and 92 Main Street in Charlestown from stone mined on Outer Brewster.The island was acquired by the US government from a private owner in 1913. Its primary use was in World War II as part of the Brewster Islands Military Reservation for a long-range 6-inch gun battery, named Battery Jewell and completed in 1943 along with a radar station. The island was abandoned by the Army in 1947 and subsequently sold to a private owner, becoming a state park in 1973.In 2005, Virginia energy company AES Energy proposed placing a liquified natural gas terminal on the island. Political opposition from environmental, recreational and boating interests succeeded in preventing the proposal from moving forward.

Green Island, also known as North Brewster Island, is a rocky outer island in the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area, to the north of Calf Island and Hypocrite Channel. The island has a permanent size of 2.5 acres (10,000 m2), plus an intertidal zone of a further 15 acres (61,000 m2), and is exposed from the east and northeast with little soil or plant life. The island is named after Joseph Green, a well-known merchant, who owned the island during Colonial times. Green Island is a nesting area for herring gulls, black-backed gulls, cormorants, barn swallows, red-winged blackbirds, and rats. The island is a popular location for striped bass fishermen during the summer months. However, access by humans is difficult, and especially discouraged during the birds' nesting season.

The Hypocrite Channel is a small channel in Massachusetts Bay, located within the city limits of Boston. It's also located within the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area. The channel runs between the islands of Half Tide Rocks, Calf Island, Little Calf Island, and Green Island.

Little Calf Island is a small rocky island in the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area, some 9 miles offshore from downtown Boston, Massachusetts. The island has no vegetation and no history of human occupation. It is used for nesting by gulls and cormorants which can be aggressive during their nesting season. Access by humans is by private boat only, and is discouraged.

Middle Brewster Island is a rugged outer island in the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area, located 9 miles (14 km) offshore from downtown Boston. The island has a permanent size of 13 acres (53,000 m2), reaches a height of 52 feet (16 m) above sea level, and is bounded by sharp cliffs and sunken crags. It has only sparse vegetation and serves primarily as a nesting site for gulls and cormorants. The birds are aggressive during their nesting season and access by humans is discouraged during this period. Access is difficult due to the lack of beaches and inlets, and is only accessible by private boat.Like the neighboring islands of Great Brewster, Little Brewster and Outer Brewster, Middle Brewster Island is named after William Brewster, the first preacher and teacher for the Plymouth Colony. During the 18th century the island hosted a fisherman's colony, and was used as a summer retreat by some Boston residents during the 19th century. Remains of the homes remain, including fireplaces, stone walls, and an arch that once supported a bell.

Half Tide Rocks are a group of small barren rocks in Massachusetts Bay, located within the city limits of Boston, United States (and just outside the Town limits of Hull). The rocks are east of Aldridge Ledge, southeast of Devils Back, southwest of Green Island, northeast of Little Calf Island, and northwest of Calf Island. It borders the northwestern edge of the Hypocrite Channel.

Calf Island, also known as Apthorps Island, is a windswept island situated some 9 miles (14 km) offshore of downtown Boston in the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area. The island has a permanent size of 18 acres (73,000 m2), plus an intertidal zone of a further 16 acres (65,000 m2), and has a thin layer of soil that supports vegetation including wild cherry, beach plum, grasses, chives, and mock orange. Access is by private boat only.In the 17th century the island was granted to William Brewster of Plymouth Colony, after whom the adjacent islands of Great Brewster, Little Brewster, Middle Brewster and Outer Brewster are named. Subsequently, it was owned by Charles Apthorp who also owned Long Island and other property in the harbor. Over the years, several huts and houses were built on the island, including a colonial style summer estate built by Benjamin P. Cheney, Jr. and his wife, actress Julia Arthur, in 1902. Today only ruins remain.Illegal boxing matches were staged on the island in the late 19th century.In the 1920s, the Army planned to install a pair of 16-inch (410 mm) guns on Calf Island as part of the Harbor Defenses of Boston, along with 16-inch (410 mm) gun batteries on Deer Island (now underneath the Deer Island Waste Water Treatment Plant) and Hog Island (now called Spinnaker Island), to cover the seaward approaches to Boston Harbor. The battery on Calf Island was never built.

Shag Rocks are barren rocks situated 8 nautical miles offshore of Custom House Tower in downtown Boston, in the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area and within the city limits of Boston. The rocks are northeast of Little Brewster Island and east of Great Brewster Island and have been the site of several shipwrecks. Boston Light on Little Brewster Island warns mariners to steer clear of the rocks. Public access is impractical.

Devils Back in Massachusetts, USA, is a very small and barren rock in the Atlantic Ocean located within the city limits of Boston. The rock is northeast of Aldridge Ledge, southwest of Commissioners Ledge, northwest of Half Tide Rocks, west of Green Island, and just east of the South Channel.

Boston Light is a lighthouse located on Little Brewster Island in outer Boston Harbor, Massachusetts. The first lighthouse to be built on the site dates back to 1716, and was the first lighthouse to be built in what is now the United States. The current lighthouse dates from 1783, is the second oldest working lighthouse in the United States (after Sandy Hook Lighthouse in New Jersey), and is the only lighthouse to still be actively staffed by the United States Coast Guard, being automated in 1998 though there is still a keeper acting as tour guide. The structure was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1964.

Great Brewster Island is one of the outer islands in the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area, situated some 9 miles (14 km) offshore of downtown Boston. The island has a permanent size of 18 acres (73,000 m2), plus an intertidal zone of a further 49 acres (200,000 m2). Unlike the other outer islands, which are low-lying outcroppings of bedrock, Great Brewster is a drumlin which reaches a height of over 100 feet (30 m) above sea level. It has vegetation cover consisting of Apple Trees, Pear Trees, Sumac, Beach Roses, Grasses and Common Reeds, together with a large Gull colony. The birds are aggressive during nesting season and access by humans, which is by private boat only, is discouraged during that time.Like the neighbouring islands of Little Brewster, Middle Brewster and Outer Brewster, Great Brewster Island is named after William Brewster, the first preacher and teacher for the Plymouth Colony. In 1891, in what was considered a radical action for the time, four women spent two weeks on the island and documented their visit. More recently the island has been home to summer cottages for local families and for soldiers who staffed an observation post as part of the Brewster Islands Military Reservation during World War II. The military post included 90 mm rapid-fire guns, searchlight stations, and a command post that aided in controlling the harbor's minefield.