Digest>Archives> August 2001

Keepers Korner

Tid-bits from the Tower

By Timothy Harrison

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New Book on Cape Meares

The Tillamook County Pioneer Museum has a new book available about the Cape Meares Lighthouse. Titled Cape Meares and its Sentinel and authored by Clara Fairfield and M. Wayne Jensen, Jr. the book is packed with information on the Cape Meares Lighthouses. Plus it includes over 100 photos on how the Cape Meares Lighthouse came to be and photos and facts of other Oregon lighthouses. It is available for $14.95 plus $1.50 shipping from Tillamook County Pioneer Museum, 2106 Second Street, Tillamook, OR 97141.

Pepper’s legacy will continue

The lighthouse community lost a dear friend with the recent passing of Paul Pepper at age 91. Pepper's name appeared many times over the year in Lighthouse Digest. He and his wife were the driving force behind the restoration and maintenance of Delaware’s Fenwick Island Lighthouse. The group he founded, Friends of Fenwick Island Lighthouse will live on as a tribute to him.

Barnegat still in trouble

Barnegat Light, New Jersey may soon be known as the “Leaning Lighthouse”. It seems that all the shoring up of the channel that the Army of Corp of Engineers has been doing has not solved the erosion problems by the lighthouse. The tower is now leaning 22 inches. We’ll keep you posted.

Lightning strikes tower

Florida’s St. Augustine Lighthouse was recently struck by lightning, which damaged the motor that rotates the lens in the lantern room. The bolt also hit the keepers house and the museum causing minor damage to the electrical system. The light has been repaired.

Vanderhoop dies

Capt. Charles W. Vanderhoop Jr. 79 of Aquinnah, MA has passed away. Capt. Vanderhoop Jr. was born at Gay Head Lighthouse where his father was head keeper. He and his sister made pottery out of the clay on the cliffs by the lighthouse to sell to tourists. During his interesting lifetime he served in the merchant marine and at one time he operated the University of Rhode Island research vessel Trident traveling to the Galapagos Islands and worked with top research scientists from around the world.

Mississippi Lost

We are looking for photographs, old postcards, and historical information on lighthouses along the Mississippi River. (Please do not send information on the Mark Twain Memorial Lighthouse, which we have an extensive file on.) If anyone can help us out, send info to Tim Harrison, Lighthouse Digest, P.O. Box 1690, Wells, Maine 04090 or email to Timh@Lhdigest.com.

Coast Guard vessels

We have been trying for quite some time to obtain blueprints of various Coast Guard Cutters so Lighthouse Depot can make some high quality replicas of them. If any of our readers can help us please send to Tim Harrison, Lighthouse Digest, P.O. Box 1690, Wells, Maine 04090. One that comes to mind is the Coast Guard Cutter Taney now docked in Baltimore as a museum.

Claflin Awards

Congratulations to Jim Claflin. Two of his books have won Lighthouse Book Awards from the Foundation for Coast Guard History. The books honored were Lighthouses and Life Saving Along the Massachusetts Coast and Lighthouses and Life Saving Along the Maine and New Hampshire Coast. Both books are available from Lighthouse Depot.

Lighthouse Caskets

Southern Caskets Direct of Atlanta Georgia is now offering casket that is decorated with lighthouses. It was bound to happen sooner or later.

Grand Haven Keepers

We are looking for photographs of any of the keepers of the lighthouses of Grand Haven, Michigan and old historic photographs of the lighthouses. If any of our readers can help us, please write to Editor, Lighthouse Digest, P.O. Box 1690, Wells, ME 04090 or email Timh@Lhdigest.com

Plum Island Bricks

Orders are still being taken for commemorative bricks at Massachusetts’s Plum Island Lighthouse. These bricks are being incorporated into the walkway to the tower at the lighthouses. They are custom crafted and engraved with monument style lettering for high visibility and are highlighted with a high durable resin. Due to the size of the brick, the inscription may only contain up to 3 lines with a maximum of 14 letters including spaces and punctuation per line. To order, please print clearly what you want the bricks to say and send $50.00 to Friends of Plum Island Light, P.O. Box 381, Newburyport, MA 01950.

Australian stamps

Australia is going to release some new lighthouse postage stamps in March of 2002. They will feature Macquarie Lighthouse, Cape Bruny Lighthouse, Troubridge Island Lighthouse and Cape Naturaliste Lighthouse.

PEI repairs

Canada’s Prince Edward Island’s Tourism Authority is going to pay for repairs at six of the provinces lighthouses. They will be spending $20,000 primarily for safety purposes such as fences at the edge of cliffs etc. The money will be spent at Cape Bear, East Point, Pennaure Island, Point Prim, Victoria by the Sea, and Wood Islands lighthouses.

Capt Lewis gone

Captain John R. Lewis, president of the Block Island Historical Society (RI) has passed away at age 83. He was also the honorary co-chair of the committee, which saved the Southeast Lighthouse from toppling over the cliffs. In 1997 he told the Providence Journal in an interview, “We each have a purpose in this world. It’s not to make a lot of money. It’s to lead useful lives. We’re each only here a short time and I think it’s our duty to pass our national resources to our next generation, as much as possible.”

New Flag

The City of North Wildwood, NJ has a new city flag. The flag, which features Hereford Inlet Lighthouse in the center, will be displayed at various locations throughout the city.

This story appeared in the August 2001 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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