Federal Law To Assess Michigan Beacons

Already approved by the U.S. Senate and now before the House is a bill that will appropriate $300,000 to assess the condition of Michigan’s 124 lighthouses and how to help them raise money from donations and draw more tourists. According to Michigan newspaper stories, the National Park Service opposes the bill saying that they already protect the state’s most important lighthouses. Yikes, who are they kidding? Most of Michigan’s 124 lighthouses are managed by nonprofits or "friends groups." And what about lighthouse studies for other states? Apparently the rest of the nation’s historic lighthouses are being left out in the cold with this federal legislation.

Neighbors Complain About Lightship

Some of the people living in close proximity of Michigan’s Port Huron Lightship have been complaining about the ships whistle, which is blown to greet passing tour boats, freighters and trolleys. Although some of the ships neighbors have no complaint with the whistle and some even enjoy hearing it, and obviously the trolley and tour boat people love it, the complainers have won. These ship whistle complainers are like the people who complain about foghorns at lighthouses. I love the sound of a foghorn. Not only does a foghorn save lives, it is historic, yet some foghorns have been turned off because of the complaints of people who’ve nothing better to do than whine and complain. I wonder what’s next? Will the people who live near airports want the planes to stop flying? And what about those noisy lawn mowers and leaf blowers? Maybe they should be outlawed; after all they make way too much noise. Will people who live near fire stations want the fire trucks and ambulances to stop using their sirens? One thing I do know for certain, it is always the few complainers that spoil it for everyone.

Eagle Harbor Blackened Out

It seems no one can leave anything alone these days. What was good for a hundred years is no longer any good today? Some of the windows of the lantern room of Michigan’s Eagle Harbor Lighthouse facing residences have always been blackened out. So, now more than half of the light’s nine glass windows have been blackened out by being painted over. Many are complaining that by changing the light it has diminished it as a tourist attraction that gave a certain sense of charm to community. But the Coast Guard said it was done for safety reasons. First it was the foghorn that was discontinued and now the lighthouse is changed. When are we going to learn to save and protect the charm we once had at lighthouses? Change is not always good.

Grosse Ile Lighthouse Photos Wanted

We are looking for historical images of the lost lighthouses of Grosse Ile, Michigan for a future story in Lighthouse Digest. Also of interest would be any historical information and photographs of any keeper’s or family members who tended the lighthouses. If you can help please contact, Editor, Lighthouse Digest, Lighthouse Digest, P.O. Box 250, East Machias, ME 04630 or email editor@LighthouseDigest.com.

Windmill Pointe Photos Wanted

We are also looking for photographs of Michigan’s original lost Windmill Pointe Lighthouse Station. The lighthouse was sometimes referred to as Grosse Pointe Lighthouse, not to be confused with other lighthouses with the same names in different areas. We are also looking for photographs of the keepers who served at the lighthouse and any type of recorded memories of life at the lighthouse. If any of our readers can help, please contact: Editor, Lighthouse Digest, P.O. Box 250, East Machias, ME 04630 or email editor@LighthouseDigest.com.

Morris Island To Be Saved

South Carolina’s endangered 158-foot tall Morris Island Lighthouse will be saved now that an agreement has been worked out. The Army Corps of Engineers hopes to award a contract that will begin phase one of foundation work that will protect the lighthouse before the beginning of next years hurricane season. Save the Light, the group that has been working so hard for this lighthouse is to be commended for their diligence.

Happy Disappointment

Washington’s Cape Disappointment celebrated its 150th birthday with a party this past October with festivities, book signings, exhibits, tours and a stamp cancellation. The lighthouse was the first beacon built in the Pacific Northwest.

Yaquina PATON

Oregon’s Yaquina Head Light, owned by the Bureau of Land Management may soon no longer be a Coast Guard Aid to Navigation. Officials claim that deactivating the light as a federal aid is the only way that ownership of the Fresnel lens in the tower can be transferred to the BLM. Who are they kidding? However, it could become a PATON, which means that it would become a private aid to navigation if so desired by BLM. It is amazing how much paperwork and work in general government officials can create.

In Search Of Clinton River Lighthouse Photos

We are looking for photographs of Michigan’s Clinton River Lighthouse that once stood at the mouth of the Clinton River on Lake St. Clair in Detroit. The lighthouse was destroyed by fire in 1908 and never rebuilt. If you can help us locate photos and information on the lighthouse, please write to us at Editor, Lighthouse Digest, P.O. Box 250, East Machias, ME 04630 or email:Editor@LighthouseDigest.com.

Troubles At Beavertail

The caretaker and tenant at Rhode Island’s Beavertail Lighthouse has refused to leave, even after eviction orders were served on him. Richard Shutt, who has lived at the lighthouse rent-free for a number of years, has refused to leave because he said he couldn’t find reasonable housing. Shutt has been maintaining the lighthouse grounds and facility in exchange for the free rent. The lighthouse is owned by the Coast Guard and leased to the town and their officials state they have every right to have whomever they want live in the lighthouse.

Bureaucracy Hinders Great Captain

Great Captain Island Lighthouse in Greenwich, CT needs an estimated $1.2 million in improvements before town officials will open the lighthouse to the public, something they have been promising to do for more years than anyone can remember. A private group called "Return the Light" has raised $250,000 to return the beacon to the tower, which won’t happen unless the town comes forward to save the lighthouse. The town has owned the lighthouse for years and amid years of talks, meetings, and discussion nothing has been done even though the town was aware that they would need to maintain the lighthouse when they revived ownership of it. This is typical of small town government bureaucracy when it comes to historic preservation.

Hatteras Pedestal To Be Removed

The pedestal that once supported the Fresnel lens at North Carolina’s Cape Hatteras Lighthouse will be removed from the tower to be restored and put on display at the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum with the original lens that was once in the tower. Hundreds of people wrote the National Park Service to help convince them this was the correct thing to do.

Toledo Gets New Owner

Congratulations to the Toledo Harbor Lighthouse Preservation Society for being awarded ownership under the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act of the beautiful Toledo Harbor Lighthouse. Restoring the 4,000 square foot lighthouse seven miles off the shore of the western end of Lake Erie is estimated to cost $1 million. The group has already received a $10,000 grant from the Lake Erie Protective Fund to build an access dock and ramp.

Hintermeister Puzzle

Our thanks go out to Jo Puls of Cincinnati, Ohio, for donating the old and rare puzzle from Wilkie’s Picture Puzzle Company. The puzzle is from a lighthouse painting done by the father son team of Hy & Henry Hintermeister. The Museum of Lighthouse History in Wells, Maine is hoping that people will come forward and donate prints and paintings done by the famous painters. Also of interest would be photos of the them that could be used for future stories. They can be sent to Lighthouse Digest, P.O. Box 250, East Machias, ME 04630.

Navesink Honored

New Jersey’s Navesink Lighthouse Station has been honored by receiving National Landmark status. The designation was officially declared at ceremonies held at the lighthouse on October 28th. In 1841, the Twin Lights of Navesink, located in Highlands, NJ, were the first lighthouses in America to receive Fresnel lenses, and in 1883 they became the first lighthouses

to use kerosene as a fuel source. In 1898 they were the first lighthouses in America to be electrified. All of these historic firsts played heavily in having the light station being awarded the National Landmark designation.

Behind The Scenes Lighthouse Grab?

Scuttlebutt on the street is that the U.S. Fish & Wildlife is pressuring the Coast Guard for ownership of another of America’s historic lighthouses in what could soon be called "The Great Lighthouse Grab Up." This time it is Connecticut’s Faulkner’s Island Lighthouse that is now managed by the Faulkner’s Island Light Brigade, which raised $200,000 to restore the endangered lighthouse. The lighthouse is the state’s only active island lighthouse. In 1976 a fire destroyed the keeper’s house. Today the lighthouse is endangered by an eroding bluff and is only 30 feet away from the edge of the bluff. For years plans have been afoot to stop the erosion, which may soon take another step forward with a recent government request for proposals. But, in the long run will the lighthouse be saved?

Prime Time Cover

Congratulations to James Walker and Race Point Lighthouse for both were featured on the cover of Primetime Cape Cod magazine with a feature story about the lighthouse inside the magazine. Jim is chairman of the Cape Cod Chapter of the American Lighthouse Foundation, which restored the Race Point Lighthouse that is now available for overnight stays.

Next Issue of Lighthouse Digest

The Lighthouse Digest staff will be enjoying the holidays with our families which will delay production so we will be mailing the January/February issue about 2 weeks later than usual. We thank you for your understanding.

This story appeared in the December 2006 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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