The beautiful brickwork and cast iron spiral stair case are the masterpiece of 19th century workers. Great pride in workmanship are apparent to any visitor as you enter the 27 foot diameter base. The walls near the bottom measure about 8feet thick of solid brick. The structure is marked as an official fallout shelter. The stairway is worn from the many years of climbing by lighthouse keepers and their helpers. Part of the keepers job was to carry fish oil or kerosene from the oil storage house near the base to the top every day to replenish the supply to assure that the light would burn each night. The builders incorporated an elaborate ventilation system in the walls to allow fresh air into the structure. This was necessary to give the oil lamp in the lens oxygen to support combustion. At the top of the lighthouse is an exhaust to let out heat and gases from the burning wicks. The system supplied air for combustion without opening any windows that may have caused the flame to be blown out by the wind.

More pictures of the interior of Assateage Lighthouse below: