Designated by Parks Canada in 1961 as a National Historic Site; plaque installed in 1982.
Fisgard Lighthouse National Historic Site and lieu historique national du Phare-de-Fisgard identified in "Canada's Geographical Names Approved in English and in French" published by the Canadian Permanent Committee on Geographical Names, August 1994. The French form of the name was subsequently corrected to "Lieu historique national..." (ie. upper case L ) The expanded forms Fisgard Lighthouse National Historic Site of Canada and Lieu historique national du Canada du Phare-de-Fisgard are identified in "Canada's Geographical Names Approved in English and French" published August 2003 by the Geographical Names Board of Canada.

Source: BC place name cards, or correspondence to/from BC's Chief Geographer or BC Geographical Names Office

"Fisgard Lighthouse NHS commemorates the national significance of the first lighthouse on Canada's west coast. Fisgard Lighthouse has been an important symbol of sovereignty - British, Colonial and Canadian - since 1860. Along with Race Rocks Lighthouse, Fisgard provides a guide for mariners to Royal Roads anchorage, Esquimalt Harbour and its naval base, and points the way to Victoria harbour.........." (excerpt from Parks Canada National Historic Sites website, June 1999)

Source: included with note

"Fisgard Island: Named after H.M. frigate Fisgard, 42 guns, 1069 tons, on this station 1844-1847 under command of Captain John A. Duntze. When the survey of Esquimalt Harbout was made by Lieutenant Commander James Wood, H.M. surveying vessel Pandora, the points and islands in the harbour were named after the captain and officers of the Fisgard. The site for a lighthouse on this island was selected 10 August 1859; the building, designed by H.O. Tiedemann of the Surveyor-General's office, was completed in June 1860, and the light established on 1 December of that year. Built by the Imperial government at a cost of £3000. The iron stairway in the tower of the lighthouse is of a unique pattern, there being none like it on this continent except at Toronto. It was designed by John Wright, the builder of the tower, and was cast at San Francisco, the makers giving Wright the sum of $300 for the copyright of the design (Victoria Colonist, 9 June 1860 and 29 January 1861). The rock lying in the harbour entrance, close off Fisgard lighthouse, was found by H.M.S. Bacchante, flagship of Sir Thomas Maitland, striking on it while entering Esquimalt in July 1862 (Victoria Colonist 23 July 1862)."

Source: Walbran, John T; "British Columbia Coast Names, 1592-1906: Their Origin and History"; published for the Geographic Board of Canada, Ottawa, 1909 (republished for the Vancouver Public Library by J.J. Douglas Ltd, Vancouver, 1971)