John Donahoo


John Donahoo was a lighthouse builder active in Maryland for much of the first half of the nineteenth century.
Little is known of Donahoo's life, but he appears to have been an active citizen in Havre de Grace, Maryland, for much of his career; he was an election judge and town commissioner, and served on the school board. He was also an active businessman, with concerns in fishing and real estate. As a builder, Donahoo attracted the attention of Stephen Pleasonton, Fifth Auditor of the United States Treasury and overseer of lighthouse construction for the government; Donahoo's prices were low and the quality of his work was good. Consequently, he was awarded the contracts for a dozen lighthouses in Maryland and Virginia. Seven of these still stand:
He also constructed the following lighthouses:
Donahoo died in 1858, and was buried in Havre de Grace's Angel Hill Cemetery.