A memorial to Maine’s Curtis Island Lighthouse Keepers was dedicated in Camden Maine this past Memorial Day weekend.

A fog bell, on long tern loan from the United States Coast Guard, with attached plaque was dedicated to the men and women who served at the lighthouse from 1836 to present.

The memorial almost did not come to pass when members of three different town committees could not agree what to do with the fog bell that was donated by the Coast Guard. At one point it was even suggested that the bell, since was not the original bell from Curtis Island Light, be returned to the Coast Guard.

However local volunteers, including our good friend Ted Panayotoff of the Elms Bed and Breakfast in Camden, persisted in their efforts.

The Curtis Island Lighthouse began was first lighted in 1836 and automated in 1972. In 1973 ownership of the island and keepers house was transferred to the town of Camden for use as a public park. In 1997 the town established a caretaker to care for the island and the buildings.