The Breakwater

The Burlington breakwater at dusk during the fall of 2011. Photo by Claire Polfus.

Although you can see part of the structure above water, the largest part of the Burlington breakwater is found underwater. The breakwater in Burlington Harbor was built through a series of Congressional Acts from 1834-1875 in order to protect the harbor and the barges from waves and weather. Three main phases of construction occurred in 1836, 1866 and 1875. It was built from wooden crib structures filled with stone. At the time white pine was significantly more expensive than hemlock, so most of the structures were built with the cheaper material.

Since its main construction in the 1800’s the breakwater has undergone a series of repairs. Unstable areas were secured with stone in the early and mid-twentieth century. The stone we can see today is Barre granite and was put in place during the repairs of 1941. Most recently, the breakwater was repaired in 2001-2002 by adding more stone to the failing wooden structures. For more information, check out the Army Corps of Engineers’ page on the Burlington breakwater.