It is a two-story frame dwelling raised on iron screw-piles, with the lantern placed in a cupola at the peak of the roof.

Phosphate ore from the Peace River area became an important cargo in the 1890s, and the construction of the Charlotte Harbor and Northern Railway to Port Boca Grande in 1909 resulted in increased traffic.

In 1999 the Historic Port Boca Grande Lighthouse and Museum opened to the public and is operated by the Barrier Island Parks Society [4] The light is considered an Aid to Navigation and the lamp room is maintained by the U.S. Coast Guard Station St. Petersburg Aids to Navigation Team.

When the two lights, which flashed at different rates, lined up, the ships' navigators knew it was time to turn to enter Boca Grande Pass.

The society commissioned a restoration of the lighthouse, including the installation of a replica of its original fresnel lens.