The Marlowe Family Lighthouse House Abandoned After Fishing Industry Collapse

The Marlowe family moved to Seawick Point in 1905 after Henry Marlowe accepted the position of lighthouse keeper and built a home beside the station. The two-story residence housed three generations, including Henry, his wife Anne, their children, and later grandchildren who assisted with lighthouse duties and coastal work. The family’s income came from Henry’s keeper wages, fishing permits, and small coastal trade.

Records from the period describe a maintained home where the lighthouse office, kitchen, and family rooms operated together before changes in shipping and local employment weakened their financial security.

The first warning sign came in 1927 when the Marlowes received a delayed payment notice for lighthouse supplies and repairs. After commercial shipping routes changed, the government reduced staffing support, and Henry lost additional income from coastal services. By 1930, the family closed the upper bedroom and stopped repairing the damaged porch and shutters. The fishing industry collapse during the early 1930s removed another source of earnings, leaving unpaid property costs and maintenance bills. Henry and Anne eventually left Seawick Point in 1933, moving inland with their youngest child after the lighthouse position was discontinued.

The Marlowe Lighthouse House was officially abandoned in 1934 after the lighthouse station closed and ownership transferred through government records. No restoration occurred, and no Marlowe descendants returned to reclaim the isolated property. Documents noted unresolved maintenance responsibility and continued coastal deterioration. The remaining rooms, lighthouse passage, and family belongings stayed untouched as storms damaged the structure. Over the following decades, salt exposure, broken windows, and water damage weakened the house. The residence remains empty beside the abandoned lighthouse, continuing to deteriorate on the coastal cliff with no confirmed restoration plans.