Kilauea Lighthouse
The Kilauea Lighthouse is located on the beautiful island of Kauai. It is also a national wildlife refuge for many seabirds, including ‘Ā, Mōlī, ‘Ua ‘u kani, and the nēnē, the official state bird. The lighthouse sits on a cliff of a dormant volcano and provides protection to the birds that live there as well as a sanctuary in the water below for honu, ‘Ilio-holo-i-ka-uaua, and Koholā. The refuge helped bring the nēnē back from the verge of extinction.
The location was chosen because Kauai was the first landfall for ships coming from the west. The cliff at Kilauea was chosen because it meant the tower didn’t need to be as high, thus cutting costs. Kilauea Lighthouse was made of new, cutting-edge technology of structural reinforced concrete (which is apparently standard now).
An interesting little story from Kilauea Point National History Association site:
In 1927, the Kīlauea Point Light Station would play a role in aiding a new mode of travel, aviation. The first flight from the mainland to Hawai‘i overshot its intended destination in O‘ahu in bad weather. Lost in the night, the pilots finally spotted the double flash of Kīlauea Point, realizing they were over Kaua‘i. They circled the tower for an hour and a half, waiting for daylight. Then they made the 100 mile trip to O‘ahu.
The lighthouse went dark after the attack on Pearl Harbor and was not lit again until after the war. Soon after it was no longer necessary to man the lighthouse and in 1976 the light was turned off. In 2008 restoration work was started and completed in 2013.