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Most of you saw it on nationwide TV on April 18th, but before it was shown on nationwide TV, close to 200 lighthouse aficionados got to see it first. It was the American Lighthouses program of the History Channel’s Emmy Award winning series “Save Our History” that aired in the banquet room of one of southern Maine’s elite restaurants.

Not only was this event probably the first World Premiere of a television program in Maine’s history, it was an event that the History Channel intended to help promote The American Lighthouse Foundation’s (ALF) efforts to save and preserve lighthouse history. “And we need all the help we can get,” said Tim Harrison, president of the nonprofit preservation group. He went on to say that nationwide television program gave The American Lighthouse Foundation a lot of coverage and he hoped it would draw a lot of people to the ALF web site and hopefully some much needed donations.

As well as featuring ALF’s efforts at several New England lighthouses such as Maine’s Little River, Rockland Breakwater Lighthouses and Portsmouth Harbor Light in New Hampshire the program covered a lot of other lighthouses around the country. Special attention was given to the Great Lakes Lighthouse Keepers and their amazing restoration at St. Helena Light, the Outer Banks Lighthouse Society’s outstanding efforts to save Bodie Island, the controversy at Currituck Beach Light, and the amazing efforts of the St. George Reef Lighthouse Preservation Society’s often heart wrenching efforts to save and restore the remote and most expensive lighthouse in America.

Capt. Blaine Horrocks who is the Chief, Aids to Navigation and Waterways Management with the First Coast Guard District in Boston gave the opening remarks before the World Premiere was shown. He said that lighthouses can still provide mariners with a vital aid to navigation, but it is through the efforts of nonprofits like, The American Lighthouse Foundation, that greater public access can be provided to these historic structures. It was after that that Harrison said it should be obvious to everyone that in these trying times the Coast Guard needs to expend its energy in many other areas including being the “Guardian of our Shores.”

It was also announced at the World Premiere that the sales staff of Time Warner Cable of Maine donated nearly 5000 free 30-second TV commercials to the American Lighthouse Foundation to help them in their efforts. Plus the History Channel put an extra boost into the kitty with a donation of a $1000.00 check. Not missing a chance to raise some extra cash for ALF, volunteers were also busy selling ALF logo products as well as selling raffle tickets for items donated by A&E Television, and the History Channel.

This story appeared in the June 2002 edition of Lighthouse Digest Magazine. For subscription information about the print edition, click here.

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