Page 73 - WINE DINE AND TRAVEL MAGAZINE SUMMER 2021 DISCOVERING MENDOCINO

Mendocino Village and other towns along the
coast - the 1850 sinking of the clipper ship
Frolic just north of Point Cabrillo. Historians
consider this the most significant shipwreck on
the west coast. Divers discovered the wreck in
the 1950s, but a formal archaeological survey
didn’t take place until 2003. The site is now a
California State Underwater Park.
That event and subsequent discovery of the
area’s redwood forests created towns and lum-
ber mills up and down the Mendocino coast. It
also spawned a coastal shipping industry that
suffered many shipwrecks conveying lumber and
other goods to cities north and south. And that
led to the construction of the lighthouse in 1908.
Lighthouse staff and Coast Guard officers and
their families continued to live in the keepers’
houses until the California State Coastal Conser-
vancy took possession in 1992. The restoration
took place from 1995 to 2001 included the light-
house, the three Lightkeeper’s residences (avail-
able for overnight stays), and three buildings
behind the residences. The lighthouse houses a
gift shop and museum with exhibits showcasing
the history of the building and the Native Ameri-
cans who once inhabited the land. We also ap-
preciated the spotless bathroom facilities behind
the quarters.

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