Inspiring restoration project at Maine's Goat Island Light

I was fortunate to have the opportunity to attend the dedication ceremony on October 12 celebrating the completion of an amazing restoration project at Goat Island Light Station in Kennebunkport, Maine.

The station's historic fog bell tower (destroyed 1962) and covered wooden walkway between the house and tower (destroyed in a 1978 storm) have been completely reconstructed.








Here is a video of some of the celebration:

Reimbursement Act for Hurricane of 1938

My friend Seamond Ponsart Roberts of Louisiana, daughter of longtime Massachusetts lighthouse keeper Octave Ponsart, just sent me the fascinating document below. The hurricane of September 21, 1938, was the most devastating storm in recorded New England history; more than 700 people died in the region, including seven at lighthouses. Many lighthouse keepers requested reimbursement for their losses of personal belongings. To the best of my knowledge (and Seamond's recollection), none of them actually received reimbursement.

If anyone has more information on this sad footnote to history, I'd love to hear from you.

Special Maine Lighthouse Cruise this Saturday, Sept. 24!

COLLEGE OF THE ATLANTIC AND BAR HARBOR WHALE WATCH CO. PRESENT A LIGHTHOUSE TOUR BENEFIT CRUISE

Great Duck Island

Join COA faculty and local historians for a lighthouse and seabird history tour.

BAR HARBOR, ME—Maine’s outer islands hold many secrets, and its lighthouses are packed
full with stories. But there are an equal number of stories within the nests and burrows of the many
seabirds that shelter their young on these same islands—just ask John Anderson, College of the
Atlantic faculty member in biology.

Join Anderson and a host of his colleagues from 2:30 to 5:30 on Saturday, Sept. 24 for a benefit Lighthouse and Seabird History Tour. Proceeds will assist the college’s Marine Studies Program, and help with lighthouse and building renovations on Great Duck Island.

In addition to Anderson, the William H. Drury Chair of Ecology and Natural History, COA alumni, faculty, and staff Matt Drennan, Toby Stephenson, and Scott Swann, naturalists and natural storytellers all. Additionally, local historians Richard Sassaman and Zack Klyver will be aboard.

Each island has its own dramatic tale. Take Great Duck Island, one of COA’s two research stations. Its original boreal forest has been inhabited by waves of humans, from fishermen and farmers, to therapists and natural history researchers. And then there are the birds. Each summer Great Duck’s rocky fringe is home to hundreds of nesting auks, gulls, and ducks. Just beyond this granite shore stands a dense forest where, at the base of spruce trees, hoards of storm petrels burrow into the forest floor. Recently, eagles have been vying for space and dominion over this small island. Beyond the life-and-death dramas of birds and humans stands the abiding beauty of the island. As Stephenson, COA’s marine captain, notes, “The bold coast of Great Duck is back-dropped by the mountainous views of Acadia, the most majestic vista possible.”

Among the highlights of the cruise are the lights of Bear Island, Great Duck, Baker Island, and Egg Rock, in addition to Cranberry Island Life Saving Station and Thrumcap Island.

The journey will be aboard the Bay King III or Friendship V, of the Bar Harbor Whale Watch fleet. There’s a rain date for Sunday, Sept. 25. Feel free to bring lunch, though the snack bar, with snacks and drinks, will be open. The cost is $30 adults; $10 for those 14 and younger. Space is limited. To reserve seats, participants are asked to call the Bar Harbor Whale Watch Co. at 207-288-2386. A $5 reservation can be placed on a credit card with the rest to be paid in cash or check before embarking. Meet the boat at Harbor Place, 1 West St. in Bar Harbor.

Renovations completed to Neds Point Light, Mass.

Great to see that repairs and repainting have been completed at one of the prettiest lighthouses in Southeastern Massachusetts, Neds Point Light in Mattapoisett. Bravo to the Coast Guard and the local Coast Guard Auxiliary volunteers who care for the picturesque landmark in Veterans Memorial Park, and to the company that completed the work, Seacoast Scaffold and Equipment Corp.

Buzzards Bay / Vineyard Sound Lighthouse Cruise on October 1, 2011!

Join the American Lighthouse Foundation and Friends of Flying Santa on a cooperative fundraising lighthouse cruise of Buzzards Bay and Vineyard Sound!

 

 

 This unique 6-hour cruise will sail to 10 Massachusetts lighthouses: Palmer Island, Butler Flats, Clarks Point, Gay Head, Tarpaulin Cove, Nobska Point, Cleveland Ledge, Wing's Neck, Bird Island, and Ned's Point. This is a rare opportunity to see these historic offshore lighthouses up close, as well as the picturesque Elizabeth Islands.

The narrator will be lighthouse author and historian Jeremy D'Entremont. The boat will depart from New Bedford, Mass.,  at 10:00 a.m. 

 

You are welcome to bring a lunch. On board you will find a fully licensed beer and wine bar, espresso bar with lattes, cappuccino, coffee, and teas, also light snacks including fresh baked specialties and a selection of soft drinks and waters.

 

The Vessel 
19kt maximum speed
16kt cruising speed
Heated cabin
Upper deck with outdoor seating 

2 restrooms

All proceeds go to support the American Lighthouse Foundation and Friends of Flying Santa. Seating is limited so make your reservations today! 

 

Tickets are $65.00.  

Click here to purchase tickets.

Fundraiser for Documentary on lighthouse heroine Ida Lewis

The following comes from the Jane Pickens Theater in Newport, Rhode Island --

R.I.'s Historic Lighthouses –  A Fundraiser for Documentary about Lighthouse Keeper and Heroine Ida Lewis of Newport
  

Beavertail Light

Join us on Monday, August 22, 2011, at 7:00 p.m. for a one-night showing of Rhode Island’s Historic Lighthouses, a 47-minute documentary made by local filmmaker Jim Karpeichik of Ocean State Video. Rhode Island's Historic Lighthouses is a comprehensive look at the history, decline and rebirth of the beacons that grace our shoreline. It covers all 30 of the lighthouses that were built in Rhode Island and includes stories of tragedies and heroism, buildings lost and lighthouses restored.

Click here for ticket information ($15 per person)

This film will be followed by a sneak peek of another documentary currently in production – America’s Forgotten Heroine: Ida Lewis, Keeper of the Light. This film, produced by Goodnight Irene Productions in association with Ocean State Video, will resurrect the forgotten story of Ida Lewis from Newport, this country's most famous lighthouse keeper and national heroine from the 19th century. 

Writer/Director/Producer Marian Gagnon of Goodnight Irene Productions will introduce the trailer and speak briefly about her plan to restore the national memory of Ida Lewis as an American icon and return her to her rightful place in history. Read more about this film project at www.goodnightireneproductions.com

Also in attendance Monday evening will be Lenore Skomal, author of The Lighthouse Keeper’s Daughter: The Remarkable True Story of American Heroine Ida Lewis. Skomal will read a few excerpts from her book and be available for a book signing at the end of the program.

The Lighthouse Keeper’s Daughter is the absorbing, painstakingly researched story of Ida Lewis, born in Newport in 1842, and the fearless rescues she made at Lime Rock Lighthouse. Skomal is a veteran author, career journalist, public speaker with 30 years experience, and author of 15 commercially published books. She can be reached at www.lenoreskomal.com

Ida Lewis

More about Ida Lewis:
Beginning at the age of 15, Ida took over the lighthouse duties at Lime Rock in Newport in 1853 when her father suffered a stroke. At 16 she made her first daring rescue and in her lifetime she saved more than 18 people from certain peril. Before long, the 103-pound Ida Lewis, a darling of Civil War heroes, was heralded as "the bravest woman in America." Tens of thousands flocked to meet Ida on the island each summer. President Ulysses S. Grant and General Sherman came to Newport just to shake Ida’s hand as did Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton who tried to enlist her for the women’s movement.

Ida’s story still has great universal appeal particularly because of the rich juxtaposition of Ida’s independent and fearless choices within societal norms during the Victorian era as well as within the circles of the Newport elite. This film will focus on Ida’s intriguing life story, her myriad decisions which led to a life of both fame and isolation, her unexpected celebrity in Newport as well as across the U.S., and the impact she inadvertently had on the early feminist movement. It will provide an intimate portrayal of Ida’s life from age 15 to 69 (from 1857 to 1911) and the passion and moral fiber she intrinsically brought to her work as a lighthouse keeper and unlikely heroine.
As John Williams Haley, author of The Rhode Island Historian wrote in 1939: “Ida Lewis may very well be the most famous Rhode Island woman who ever lived.” 

This evening’s multi-faceted event is a fundraiser for the Ida Lewis film and proceeds of ticket sales will go toward completion of this documentary.   

Click here for more on the Jane Pickens Theater and Event Center

Long Island Head Light transferred to National Park Service

Just received this press release: 

National Park Service Receives Long Island Head Light from U.S. Coast Guard in Transfer

In a ceremony on Saturday, June 25, 2011, the US Coast Guard handed over the management of Long Island Head Light to the National Park Service. Lighthouses have become vestiges of maritime culture. GPS devices and other navigational equipment have become stand-ins for the towering beacons and the position of lighthouses has ultimately transitioned to being historical landmarks. This transferring of lighthouses from the Coast Guard to others is part of the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act of 2000. This act allows for lighthouse ownership transfer to other Federal Agencies or local government agencies as well as non-profit corporations or educational institutions, all of which must be committed to cultural or historic preservation.

Long Island Head Light became one of the first cast-iron lighthouses in the US in 1844 and has been in and out of service since the early 19^th century. It is currently operational after a renovation in 1985. The National Park Service was glad to receive the historic, centuries-old lighthouse. It seemed only natural that the light’s ownership should be passed to the Park Service since Long Island is already one of the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area’s thirty-four islands. The National Park Service was offered the lighthouse back in 2010 and preparations for the transfer culminated in the ceremony when Rear Admiral Daniel A. Neptun, First Coast Guard District Commander for the US Coast Guard, handed the Long Island Head Light key to Bruce Jacobson, the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area’s park superintendent.

The Park Service is excited to receive the lighthouse in hopes to get the public out to the light on an occasional basis. Long Island is city-owned and a restricted area. Now, with the park’s new addition, Long Island Head Light will be open to the public for special trips and programs organized by the park. The Park Service is currently making moves to assess the lighthouse’s overall safety before organizing excursions for the public. Jacobson feels that ownership of the lighthouse fits perfectly under the Park Service’s goals and mission as he explained at the ceremony, “Our [The National Park Service’s] primary function is preservation, making sure that natural and cultural resources are protected so that the next generation and the next generation can also come and enjoy these resources.”

The US General Services Administration’s Regional Administrator of New England, Bob Zarnetske, also attended the ceremony, saying, “This is a way for America to preserve its maritime history and when it ends up in the National Park Service we can be guaranteed it’s going to be not only a preservation of the history, but an asset the public can come see, enjoy, and learn about.” The ceremony itself took place on city soil thanks to the help of Antonia Pollak, Commissioner of Boston Parks and Recreation, who also attended. The land transfer was a mere 0.06 acres of land between the two government agencies and is the only piece of land currently owned by the National Park Service within the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area.

The US Coast Guard has been maintaining Long Island Head Light with the assistance of the Coast Guard Auxiliary. The Auxiliary currently assists with maintenance on Boston Light located on Little Brewster Island, another island part of the Boston Harbor Islands. The Long Island Head Light’s grounds are being maintained with great efforts by the Auxiliary Flotilla 53-Constitution and hopefully Flotilla volunteers will continue their work after this transfer. The beacon itself will still continue to be run by the US Coast Guard.

          This event is exciting for the Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area providing the public with a look at Boston’s unseen history which the lighthouse will now shed light on. As Admiral Neptun noted at the ceremony, “I think it builds confidence when people get a chance to see that light out at sea—It lets them know exactly where they are.” Long Island Head Light will continue to be celebrated and revered by those who will be able to look upon it and will remain a guiding light for mariners who sail in and out of Boston Harbor.