The Pirates are Coming to North Carolina
The Meka II Pirate Ship will be sailing into the Bald Head Island Marina around 5:00 p.m., Friday, August 6. It is expected that pirates from Blackbeard's Crew will try to prevent the Meka II from docking. Thus begins a weekend of pirates and history, all for the benefit of North Carolina's oldest lighthouse, Old Baldy in Southport, North Carolina. Come for one day or for all three. Details can be found on Old Baldy's web site, www.oldbaldy.org or by calling 910-457-7481.

Open Houses at Ned's Point Lighthouse
Members of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary Flotilla 63 will open up Ned's Point Lighthouse in Mattapoisett, Massachusetts for rare tours of the tower. The tours will take place July 22 and 29 from 10 am to 11:45 am and then on August 5, 12 and 19 from 4 pm to 5:45 pm. All tours are weather permitting.

Lighthouse Cruises on the Delaware Bay
The Delaware Bay Lighthouse Keeper's and Friends are offering some neat lighthouse cruises on Delaware Bay this summer. The dates are July 24, August 15 and August 28. The cruises on onboard the Bonanza II at the State Marina in Fortescue. FMI visit their website at www.DelawareBayLightkeeper-friend.org or call Jean Jones at 856-825-3386 or Elma Gardner at 856-825-0123.

Trouble at White River Lighthouse
Township officials informed the curator at Michigan’s White River Lighthouse that she was no longer allowed to give free admission to the lighthouse to members of the Friends of White River Lighthouse. Not only has free admission been one of the perks in being a member, it has encouraged members to help promote the lighthouse. One has to wonder what is going through the minds of the officials of Fruitland Township that own the lighthouse. They seem more concerned about creating problems in a power struggle, than solving them.

Whaleback Exhibit
In an effort to raise awareness of the deteriorating Whaleback Lighthouse, located in the waters off the coast of the border of Maine and New Hampshire, a new exhibit has opened at the Discover Portsmouth Center in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. The exhibit is open seven days per week from 10am to 5pm and will run through September 11.

Cape Lookout Open Again
North Carolina’s diamond marked Cape Lookout Lighthouse has opened to the public again after being closed since the beginning of 2008. The lighthouse received a $500 million grant for restoration and renovations. At 163 feet tall, you will need to climb the 207 steps to the top for the spectacular view.

More Lighthouses Free to Good Owners
The General Services Administration has declared a number of additional lighthouses as excess property under the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act. This means that any federal, state or local governments can apply for ownership of them as well as any qualified nonprofit organization. They are Sturgeon Bay Ship Canal Pierhead Lighthouse, Wisconsin; Moose Peak Lighthouse, Maine; Great Beds Lighthouse, New Jersey; Cleveland Ledge Light, Massachusetts; Cleveland Harbor West Pierhead Lighthouse, Ohio; South Haven South Pierhead Lighthouse, Michigan, Middle Island Lighthouse, Michigan, and the Frankfort North Breakwater Lighthouse in Michigan.

Open House at Nobska Lighthouse
The United States Coast Guard will host an Open House at Cape Cod's Nobska Lighthouse from 9:30am to 11:30 am on July 29, August 5, August 14, August 19, and December 4. Adults and children must be over 45 inches tall to be allowed to climb the tower. All Open Houses will be held weather permitting.

The Fall Color Lighthouse Cruise
A one day, 10 hour excursion will depart from Charlevoix, Michigan on September 25. On this trip you will see Charlevoix Pierhead, Ile Aux Galets, Gray's Reef, Waugoshance Point, St James Harbor, Beaver Head, South Fox Island, South Manitou Island, North Manitou, and Grand Traverse Point Lighthouses. Eleven lighthouses in total along with some of the most scenic Lake Michigan shoreline are sure to make this cruise sell out fast. The cost of this cruise is going to be $140 per person. This price includes continental breakfast, hot lunch, and hors'd'oeuvres served aboard the ship as well as non-alcoholic drinks. For more information or to make reservations please contact the Kewanaw Star at (231) 237-9365.

This Issue's Trivia Questions

1. Although painted a different color, what is the name of the Badger State lighthouse that is a near architectural twin to Holland Michigan's famous "Big Red" lighthouse?
2. What United States lighthouse looks like a space rocket ship?
3. What was the name of the second Commissioner of the United States Bureau of Lighthouses?

Send your answers to one, two, or all three of the trivia questions listed above to: . One name from each of correct answers to each trivia question will be randomly drawn for a prize from Lighthouse Depot. The winning names and the answers to the above trivia questions will be published in next month's Depot Dispatch.
When submitting your answers, be sure to include your full name and mailing address so we can mail your prize to you should your name be drawn from among the correct answers.
Please submit only one answer per person per trivia question. Multiple entries will not be accepted; correct answers without a mailing address will not be accepted, and only one answer per trivia question will be accepted. Since winning entries are drawn at random, one person could possibly win more than one prize.
Have fun researching lighthouse history and good luck!

Last Issue's Trivia Questions and Winners

1. What is the name of the southern lighthouse that was taken down and moved from the state of its original location to another state where it sat in storage for many years, and was then returned to its original state, re-erected and then taken down again and now remains in storage, rusting away, while waiting to be restored and rebuilt again, near its original location?
   The correct answer is Alabama's Mobile Point Rear Range Lighthouse. The full story was in the June 2010 issue of Lighthouse Digest. Unfortunately, no one submitted the correct answer.
   
   
2. What is the name of the person from whose paintings many of the U.S. Lighthouse Postage Stamps were designed?
   The correct answer is Howard Koslow. Congratulations to Kevin Powrozek of Valparaiso, Indiana whose name was randomly selected from among the correct answers submitted.
   
   
3. The Maine Lighthouse Museum in Rockland, Maine has the largest collection of lighthouses lenses and other artifacts of any lighthouse museum in the United States. What was the original name of the museum?
   The correct answer is the Shore Village Museum. Congratulations to Kathy Dreclicharz of Des Plaines, Illinois whose name was randomly selected from the correct answers submitted.

Congratulations to our winners! We wish to thank everyone who entered the trivia contest. The winners' prizes will be mailed to them within the next few days. Our trivia contest can be fun for anyone interested in lighthouses and history. Please pass the word around and encourage others to sign up for the Depot Dispatch.

Ideal for Home or Office
Have you ever wanted a large indoor lighthouse to decorate your home or office, but never had the room? We now have the solution for you. It is a Lighthouse Coat Rack designed after the Cape Hatteras lighthouse, America’s tallest lighthouse. At an amazing 71 inches in height, it may not be as tall as the real Cape Hatteras Lighthouse, but it is still quite impressive. It is available from Lighthouse Depot as item #30338.

The Perfect Gift for any Lady
The Light of Hope diamond pendant is the perfect gift for any lady in your life: mother, daughter, wife, daughter-in-law, sister, girl friend, aunt, grandmother, friend or neighbor. It is available from Lighthouse Depot as item #11688. They'll love you for it! Also available are matching earrings for pierced ears as item #11689.

Stuck on Space
For those of you who don't have the space for the larger Harbour Lights replicas, Lighthouse Depot has the largest selection in the world of Harbour Lights Little Lights. They are perfect for small apartments, retirement homes, motor homes and tight places. Reasonably priced from $16.95 to $21.95, if you haven't started collecting them yet, you will not be disappointed. They also make perfect gifts! You can view them at www.LHDdepot.com/LittleLights

New Ghost Lights Book
Ghosts Lights of Lake Erie is the second book in the Ghost Lights series by Timothy Harrison that is now available from Lighthouse Depot. This book is packed with rare and many never before published photographs of the lost and forgotten lighthouses of the Lake Erie that border the states of Pennsylvania, Ohio, and New York as well as the southeastern tip of Michigan and the Detroit River. It can be ordered as item #99793. Other books by Timothy Harrison that are available from Lighthouse Depot are Ghost Lights of Michigan #99809, Lighthouses of Bar Harbor and the Acadia Region #99834 and Lighthouses of the Sunrise County #99841.

Interested in Learning More About Lighthouses?
If so, may we recommend subscribing to Lighthouse Digest, the Lighthouse News and History magazine? You can subscribe at www.LighthouseDigest.net.

Visit Us in Maine - The Lighthouse State
If you are planning on visiting Maine this summer or fall, be sure to stop in and visit us on U. S. Route 1 in Wells, or at the Maine Lighthouse Museum in Rockland. While at the Maine Lighthouse Museum, be sure to say hello to Dot Black, the widow of the museum's founder, Ken Black. Dot is generally at the museum four days a week or more.

Clearance Central
Be sure to visit the Lighthouse Depot Clearance Central for an ever changing selection of discontinued and close out items.

Lighthouse Depot is dedicated to helping save lighthouses, one gift at a time.

We support the efforts of The American Lighthouse Foundation. You can too!

Lighthouse Depot
P.O. Box 427
Wells, ME 04090
1-800-758-1444