The lighthouse was built by John Donahoo and had a range of 10 nautical miles (19 km; 12 mi).

The lamp was replaced in 1855 with a Fresnel lens upgrading the range to 11 nautical miles (20 km; 13 mi).

Exhibits at the Piney Point Lighthouse Museum focus on the lighthouse, the United States Coast Guard, the Piney Point area, and the story of the Black Panther U-1105 German submarine sunk in the Potomac that now serves as a shipwreck dive preserve.

The Potomac River Maritime Exhibit displays four historic wooden vessels in a separate building.

The nearby Piney Point Elementary School in Tall Timbers, Maryland is named after the lighthouse.