Eastern Point (Dog Bar Breakwater)

Dog Bar breakwater extends a quarter mile into the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of Gloucester’s Outer Harbor. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) constructed the 2,250-foot breakwater between 1894 and 1905. The project was intended to mitigate rough wave action coming from the south into the Inner Harbor, and included a small lighthouse at the tip of the barrier to prevent ships from running aground on the reef. The structure was built using rubble, grout, broken granite, and granite refuse from quarries on Cape Ann.¹ The USACE has repaired the breakwater several times, with most work focusing on its ocean-facing side.²

Today, the breakwater is a popular fishing and day-hiking spot. The Massachusetts Audubon Society owns the fifty-three-acre preserve, while Eastern Point Lighthouse is under the federal jurisdiction of the United States Coast Guard. The breakwater and both lighthouses are vulnerable to sea level rise and storm surge, which have already displaced some granite pieces that are part of the superstructure.³ Residents have suggested that Dog Bar could be elongated or made taller in lieu of a proposed hurricane barrier across the Outer Harbor, which would sit behind the existing breakwater structure.⁴⁵ Dog Bar is not an effective defensive measure against a strong hurricane, as evidenced by the massive destruction of the fishing fleet during the Hurricane of 1938, when ships were moored around Ten Pound Island instead of further back in the Inner Harbor.

During the Great Storm, the Back Coast of Gloucester is vulnerable to high winds, and the infilled central area — which was historic marshland — is at risk of flooding. This would turn part of the Back Shore, including Eastern Point, into an island at the head of the Outer Harbor.⁶ The lighthouse, which has been automated since 1985, is necessary for passing ships, but the roads leading to the structure are damaged from past storms and will be washed out in the event of significant storm surge.