In the News

Lighthouse Legends was the story that appeared in the September issue of Michigan Living Magazine. The magazine with a circulation of over one million centered its story around the Great Lakes Lighthouse Festival.

Did you see the recent segment on Good Morning America about lighthouses in Maine? Although it's always good to get any type of lighthouse coverage on the national television, the story was poorly done. Now we know why Good Morning America is third in the ratings of the morning TV shows.

The USA Today ran a nice story on lighthouses in their October 2nd edition called, "Great Places to see the Light" centering around the PBS TV presentation of Legendary Lighthouses. We were glad to see that a national publication is showing interest in lighthouses.

Harbour Lights, makers of limited edition replica lighthouses, was ranked by Giftbeat Magazine as the number one Lighthouse Gift Line in the United States. They were also ranked number 6 in the Men's gift giving listing and number 5 in the retail collectibles category of gifts in the $50-$100 range. Giftbeat Magazine is a highly respected subscription based magazine that accepts no paid advertising. Congratulations to Harbour Lights.

In September, AAA of Michigan suggested some of the best spots to see the states fall colors were at some of the states lighthouses. They suggested visits to the following lighthouses: Copper Harbor at Fort Wilkins State Park, Au Sable Light at Pictured Rocks State Park, Whitefish Point near Paradise, Grand Traverse in Leelanau State Park, Point Betsie near Frankfort, Little Sable in Silver Lake State Park, Grand Haven Pier Lights in Grand Haven State Park, Old and New Presque Isle near Presque Isle, Tawas Point near East Tawas and Pointe Aux Barques south of Huron City.

Shop Talk

The new book, Lighthouses of the World is about the "100 Most Significant Lighthouses in the World" as designated by the International Association of Lighthouse Keepers. Of those 100 only four are in the United States - they are: Boston Harbor Light, Massachusetts; Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, North Carolina; Spectacle Reef Light, Michigan and Heceta Head Light in Oregon. Interestingly South Africa has five on the list and four of those will be seen on the Lighthouse Depot South African Lighthouse Tour. They are Robben Island; Cape Agulhas; Green Point; Roman Rock and Bird Island. The book is now available from Lighthouse Depot as item #31701 for $24.95 by calling 1-800-758-1444

Another new book - Lighthouses and Life Saving Along the Massachusetts Coast has just been released. Our good friend and author James Claflin combines an extensively researched text with a fantastic collection of many never before published photographs, many from his private collection. This book is an absolute must for any true lighthouse aficionado. It is a soft cover book with 128 pages and approximately 200 black & white photos, it retails for $18.95 plus shipping. It is available from Lighthouse Depot as item # 91873 by calling 1-800-758-1444.

Shipwreck Season is another new book that we have enjoyed. The 215 page hard cover book tells the story of sixteen year old Daniel sent by his mother to spend the summer of 1880 at the "Perkins Hollow" Life Saving Station on Cape Cod, Mass. Although Perkins Hollow is a fictitious name, the story is based on the actual Cahoons Hollow Life Saving Station which still stands today. This is an excellent story, and well researched into what life at a United States Life Saving Service station was like. Exciting fiction, it is highly recommended by Lighthouse Digest. Shipwreck Season is available from Lighthouse Depot as Item #91874 for $15.00 plus shipping by calling 1-800-758-1444.

Lighthouse Preservation

The October issue of Yankee Magazine did a nice story on the American/New England Lighthouse Foundation and its efforts to save lighthouses. We hope more national publications will start doing some stories.

Holland Michigan's Holland Harbour Lighthouse better known as "Big Red" will gets its fog horn back announced U. S. Rep. Pete Hoekstra. The fog signal was silenced in 1994 when a cable broke. Rep. Hoekstra stated that the Coast Guard will re-establish the fog signal at Big Red in conjunction with the recommissioning of other Coast Guard fog signals on Lake Michigan in the spring of 1999. United States Senator Spencer Abraham of Michigan said with more boaters in Michigan than any other states, it was critical that fog horns be maintained to protect and guide vessels. Rep. Hoekstra said that the Coast Guards finding of places to save money should not include turning off fog horns.

Tender Keep: A Lighthouse Legacy, also known as Experiences in the Lives of Lighthouse Keepers' Families, was presented as fund raiser for the Lighthouse Preservation Fund for Wisconsin's Wind Point Lighthouse. The performance took place at the Prairie School Auditorium and was viewed by over 200 people.

Tidbits

When the folks at Oregon's Cape Meares Lighthouse went to open the security gates one recent Monday morning they saw a boat looming through the dense fog. The boat was perched on some rocks having previously capsized while attempting to enter the bay. A man and woman were rescued by Coast Guard helicopter. The boat which appeared to be a total loss was towed away.

Lynn Marvin of Marvin Aerial Photography has a great page on the World Wide Web for you Internet users. Lynn also has aerial photographs for sale of every Great Lakes Lighthouse. Check out his home page at http://www.GreatLakesLight houses.com. You won't be disappointed. His photo of White Shoals is my favorite.

Speaking of White Shoals Light, we are looking for some indepth historical information on the light as well as photographs of keepers that were stationed there. If you can help us, please write to Editor, Lighthouse Digest, P.O. Box 1690, Wells, Maine 04090.

Rose Island Gets

$400,000 From the State

The Rose Island Lighthouse Foundation will receive $400,000 from the State of Rhode Island to bolster its efforts to purchase the rest of the island that the historic lighthouse sits on. The Foundation has already raised $100,000 on its own toward the money needed to buy the island.

The CMTS partnership which owns the bulk of the island is asking 1.75 million dollars for the property, which is appraised at only $300,000. The partnership apparently figures that some big developer would gladly pay that much for an island to build a hotel, yacht club or condominiums on it, something the folks with the lighthouse group do not want to happen. It would certainly take away from the charm of the island which once housed a fort.

Charlotte Johnson, executive director of the Rose Island Lighthouse Foundation wants to negotiate a deal with the partnership. However, John F. Maloney, one of CMTS partnership's five members said "The asking price is $1.75 million dollars and $500,000 isn't even in the ballpark."

Cover Photo

This month's cover photo is of Michigan's Little Sable Point Lighthouse taken by Allan Schollenberger of Dearborn, Michigan.

The isolated Little Sable Point Lighthouse was built in 1874 and automated in 1954. When the lighthouse was automated the Coast Guard demolished the Keepers house. The lighthouse is located on the grounds of the Silver Lake State Park.

The Governor of Rhode Island said the $400,000 being given to The Foundation is among four towns and non-profits to share in nearly $1.36 million in open space bond grants.

This story appeared in the November 1998 edition of Lighthouse Digest Magazine. The print edition contains more stories than our internet edition, and each story generally contains more photographs - often many more - in the print edition. For subscription information about the print edition, click here.

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