This lighthouse was initially built as a daymarker without lights to indicate the entrance to the South Channel of the Savannah River.

It housed a fixed white light from five lamps with 14 inch reflectors that shone 9 miles (14 km) at a height of 25 feet (7.6 m) above sea level.

The light was extinguished for a time during the American Civil War during the battle that brought the defeat of Fort Pulaski.

The United States Coast Guard relinquished control of this lighthouse to the National Park Service on August 14, 1958.

Starting in 1995 and lasting until 2000, the upper portions of the lighthouse were restored, although the foundations still require protection from wave action and tidal erosion.