The Hereford Inlet Lighthouse was built in 1874 and is located in North Wildwood, New Jersey. It was designed by Paul J. Pelz, architect of the US Library of Congress. This fourth order lighthouse was constructed for the sake of mariners to mark the entrance to the Hereford Inlet.
Listed on the New Jersey Register of Historic Places, 1976 and listed on the US National Register of Historic Places in 1977. Restoration funded in part by The Garden State Historic Preservation Trust Fund. The lighthouse is open seasonally and their hours of operation vary depending on the time of the year.
It's a popular FREE tourist attraction that you can visit. There are educational boards and historical markers located on the property that give you its history. You can walk through the beautiful botanical gardens located behind the building. There are park benches to relax on. Best time to visit the gardens is Spring, Summer and early Fall when the majority of the flowers are in bloom.
You want to stay on the marked paths that run through the gardens. If you're looking for beautiful places to take some photographs go down the path and head up onto the North Wildwood Seawall. You'll find additional park benches, wood lifeguard rowboats that you can sit in and beautiful views of the Hereford Inlet and the Atlantic Ocean.
If you want to go inside the lighthouse for a tour...there is an admission fee and a very small gift shop. In the gift shop you'll find books, postcards, and little souvenirs. Our tour started off with watching a mini video on the history of the lighthouse and it's keepers. You can then tour some of the inside rooms. The entire thing took 30-40 minutes, so it doesn't take long.
We enjoy visiting the Hereford Inlet Lighthouse every time we're down in Wildwood, New Jersey. They're always updating and changing things to make it even better. Throughout the year they host educational events and other gatherings that are open (most of the time) to the public. You can visit their website for a full list of those.
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