The Hastings -Lyman was built around circa 1895 as a hotel/lodging house for summer tourist who came to York Beach for it’s healthful atmostphere; they came mostly from Dover and Concord, NH. The main activities were bathing, hiking, golfing, playing tennis, dancing, watching baseball games played by teams made up of hotel employees, hiring carriages and horses for outings to Agamenticus, Chase’s  pond, etc., walking along the boardwalk, duck hunting on the Nubble, and canoeing the York River. Our present parking area was used as a crocket area. The Hastings-Lyman is built on Union Bluff, just a short walk north of the Union Bluff Hotel.

The present buildings were completely renovated and converted to private condominiums in the mid 80’s. The flagpole, displayed on this website”s Home Page,  is from the salvage remains of a ship that sunk in short sands bay.

Boone island on the left, which can be viewed from the condo, is 6 miles out at sea. It has a long history of lighthouse destruction thanks to the furious Atlantic. The first lighthouse on this granite outcropping was built in 1799 and lasted less than 5 years. This tower was replaced by one that lasted about 6 years, and again it was destroyed. This cycles goes on until 1852 when the Lighthouse Board came to the decision that a much more reliable and sturdy lighthouse should be built.

The final product is a 133 foot tall tower made from granite that has reinforcing iron rods that run along the side from the top to the bottom and are fastened by bolts. You cannot see them in the picture above.

In 1993 the lighthouse was converted to solar power and its magnificent second-order Fresnel lens was removed. It has been replaced by a modern optic that flashes white every five seconds.