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By Timothy Harrison
Mr. Lighthouse back on track
Ken Black, Honorary Chairman of the American Lighthouse Foundation and founder of the Shore Village Lighthouse Museum, is now nearly recovered from his recent major surgery due to head injuries suffered from a fall at a lighthouse event on Cape Cod. He sends his sincere thanks to the many people who sent him cards and we’re happy he is back on track telling people to "be neighborly."
ALF’s Tenth Anniversary Dinner Cruise
Reservations for tickets to the American Lighthouse Foundation’s Tenth Anniversary Dinner Cruise and Fund Raiser on Sept. 11 in Portland, Maine are still available. Tickets are $75.00 per person and if you have not yet made your reservations, please do so at once. ALF needs your support, now more than ever before. Boarding is at 3:30PM and the boat leaves at 4PM on the Bay Mist from the Casco Bay Ferry Terminal in Portland, Maine. This includes a buffet dinner and live entertainment from Roll ‘N Go. Tickets can be ordered by calling 207-646-0245.
The Homestead Offers Lighthouse Weekend
The Homestead America's Freshwater Resort in Glen Arbor, Michigan is hosting its first Leelanau Lighthouse Weekend, September 24-26. The weekend's activities begin Friday evening with a presentation of "Lighthouses of Lake Michigan" by Dianna Stampfler, marketing and media director for West Michigan Tourist Association (WMTA). A member of the Great Lakes Lighthouse Keepers Association, the Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical Society and the Historical Society of Michigan, Stampfler will serve as the weekend tour guide. On Saturday, enjoy a scenic ride aboard Manitou Island Transit out to the rustic South Manitou Island. The day will include a 1-1/2 hour tour of the island, a climb to the top of the 1871 lighthouse and a boxed lunch. Sunday, the day starts with a drive along M-22, a designated scenic highway, to Northport and a tour of the 1852 Grand Traverse Lighthouse. The next stop, Point Betsie Lighthouse in Frankfort, where a picnic lunch will be served before touring the 1858 beacon. Enroute back to The Homestead, stop and tour the Sleeping Bear Point Maritime Museum in Glen Haven. Weekend packages start at $120 per person, per night based on double occupancy or $169 per person, per night, based on single occupancy. Both include two nights' lodging, two breakfasts per person, box lunch Saturday and picnic lunch Sunday, all ground transportation, ferry to South Manitou Island Saturday, entry fee to all lighthouses and Lake Michigan lighthouse presentation Friday evening. All taxes and gratuities are included. Located on over a mile of sandy Lake Michigan beach inside the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, The Homestead features four resort hotels with one to four bedroom condominiums and luxurious private homes. Space is limited to 50 people, call 231-334-5100 or www.thehomesteadresort.com
NELL Fall Meeting
New England Lighthouse Lovers fall meeting will be held in the Newburyport, MA vicinity on October 9 and 10. John and Noreen Waters and their committee have a wonderful two days planned. All members and those interested in joining the NELL chapter are invited to attend. NELL is a chapter of the American Lighthouse Foundation. The installation of new officers and Board of Directors will take place at this meeting. For more information contact John and Noreen Waters at johnnoreen76@yahoo.com.
Republic and museum to be on TV
One of Maine’s most popular and long running TV programs "Made in Maine" hosted by Lou McNally recently filmed a segment that will include The Republic of Boon Island and the Museum of Lighthouse History in Wells, Maine. The program will air on PBS-TV, in Maine, only this Thanksgiving Day at 7pm and again on Saturday night Thanksgiving weekend.
Outer Banks Lighthouse Society annual event
The Outer Banks Lighthouse Society will host its 2004 Annual Event at North Carolina’s Cape Lookout Lighthouse this October 21-24. Attendees will have a chance to climb the tower on Saturday Oct. 23. Other events include a lighthouse artifact auction, clambake and side-trip to historic Portsmouth, the Maritime Museum at Beaufort and much more. For reservations call Bett Padgett at 919-787-6378.
Will Morris Island be saved?
The North Georgia Beacon Brigade and the Southern Lighthouse Keepers will be hosting a joint meeting on the status of South Carolina’s Morris Island Lighthouse. The meeting will take place on Sept. 18 at 1PM at the Chamber of Commerce in Commerce, GA. Everyone is invited and encouraged to attend. For more info visit www.ngbb.org/Events.htm or contact Tony Allen at 770-889-0215.
Rockland accepts lighthouse collection
Although the collection has always been there, Rockland, Maine’s City Council officially voted to accept the lighthouse collection of the Shore Village Museum. If the necessary funds can be raised, the collection will be moved to a new waterfront location and renamed, Maine’s Lighthouse Museum. Former Coast Guardsman Ken Black founded the museum. A more detailed story will appear in the October issue of Lighthouse Digest Magazine.
ARLS to host annual convention
The third annual Amateur Radio Lighthouse Society will be held Oct 8-10 at the Clarion Hotel on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. For more info contact Lee Graves, 4341 Southeast Satinleaf Place, Stuart, FL 34997 or visit their web site at www.arls.com.
Harbour Lights signing at Lighthouse Depot
It’s only a few days until Bill Younger’s autograph signing at Lighthouse Depot. Bill is the cofounder and creator of Harbour Lights award winning collectibles. He will appear at Lighthouse Depot from 1pm - 3pm on Saturday, Sept. 18 to autograph Harbour Lights replicas. At the end of his autograph signing there will be lots of door prizes given away. A Bill Younger event is always a fun time and this is a wonderful opportunity to get your photo taken with him. However, you do not have to be present to obtain an autographed replica. Orders are still being taken by phone at 1-800-758-1444 or mail or on the web site at www.LighthouseDepot.com. The special event piece that will only be available for sale at the signing is Three Sisters #42668 for $69.95. After that, it will never be available for sale from Lighthouse Depot again, so you’ll want to be sure to order your replica now. Some of my favorite Harbour Lights replicas are Little River Lighthouse #42305, Marshall Point Lighthouse #42258, Raspberry Island #42307 and of course the Lighthouse Depot exclusive replica of the Mt. Greylock Memorial #42903. Some of the limited editions that are close to being sold out are Rockland Breakwater #42248, Boon Island #42273, Fort Gratiot #42253 and Whitefish Point #42254. Also this would be a great time to join the Harbour Lights Collectors Society #42911 or renew your society membership and receive a replica of Maine’s Cuckolds Lighthouse, which is included with your membership. The entire line of Harbour Lights collectibles can be viewed on our web site at www.lighthousedepot.com.
Vintage Advertising
One of my favorite new items now in the Lighthouse Depot catalog are the vintage lighthouse label towels that feature advertising from a bygone era that used a lighthouse to promote their products, Item #10339. We are always looking for original vintage products that used a lighthouse in their advertising for the Museum of Lighthouse History. So, if you come across any let us know by emailing editor@LighthouseDigest.com.
Pagoda Lighthouse
One of the most unusual lighthouses in the world is the Mahota Pagoda Lighthouse in China. A Harbour Lights replica of the lighthouse is now available through Lighthouse Depot as item #42310 for $84.95. Be sure to look for a story about the lighthouse in an upcoming issue of Lighthouse Digest Magazine. If you are not yet a subscriber to Lighthouse Digest you can subscribe on line today at www.LighthouseDigest.com or by calling toll free to 1-866-643-4227.
Lighthouse Depot Tours
The first Lighthouse Depot Maine Lighthouse Tour is now over and the second and third sold out tours are about to begin. From the comments we have received from tour participants on the first tour, everyone had a spectacular time! Dates are now being set up for the next Lighthouse Depot Ultimate Lighthouse Tours. The dates for next year’s Maine lighthouse tours are June 10-19, Sept. 9-18, and Sept. 30-Oct. 9. Also, the Lighthouse Depot will be having a Cape Cod and Rhode Island Lighthouse tour June 19-16. Other national and international tours will be announced in the upcoming weeks. For more information call 1-800-370-0888 Ext. 215. A percentage of all the Lighthouse Depot lighthouse tours are donated to the American Lighthouse Foundation.
Four lights to open for Younger
Cape Cod’s Nauset Light and Three Sisters Lights will be open for tours in honor of Harbour Lights cofounder Bill Younger’s visit on Sept. 19. The tour will start at the northeast corner of the Cape Cod National Seashore’s Nauset Lighthouse parking lot at 4:45PM on that day. Tours are by reservation only and if you wish to attend the open house email budgriffin@surfglobal.net.
Last month’s trivia winner
Last month’s trivia questions was, "I am the oldest working lighthouse in North America. What is my name?" The answer is, Sambro Island Lighthouse in Halifax, Nova Scotia Canada. Built in 1760 it is still an active aid to navigation. Although the tower has been restored, the other buildings at the site are in poor condition. Congratulations to Helen Clark of Brooklyn, New York who is the winner of last months Depot Dispatch Trivia contest. Helen’s name was randomly selected from among the winning answers. We sent Helen the hard cover book on Lighthouses of Australia as her prize.
This issue’s trivia question
I was a former U.S. Revenue Service Cutter. In 1840, I was transferred to the U. S. Lighthouse Establishment and I became the first official lighthouse tender vessel. What was my name? Send your answer to Dee@LHDigest.com and we will randomly pick one name from the winning entries to receive a prize from Lighthouse Depot. Be sure to include your name and mailing address when submitting your answer. After, if you win, we need to know where to ship your prize.
Prospect Harbor Lighthouse being saved
The American Lighthouse Foundation is saving Maine’s Prospect Harbor Lighthouse. The lighthouse, which is one of only a few conical wooden towers left in America, was in danger of collapse. Water damage had seeped into the tower causing the lantern room deck and timbers to rot. The entire tower was in imminent danger of collapse from the heavy weight of the metal lantern room on the rotted deck and timers. The lantern room was removed and new deck has been built. Rotted timbers have also been replaced. Watch for the full story in upcoming issues of Lighthouse Digest Magazine and Tower Notes, the official publication of the American Lighthouse Foundation.
Lighthouses in danger
Although there has been immense progress in saving lighthouses in recent years, the lighthouse preservation movement is in itself in danger. Today, there are a large number of lighthouses that are in imminent danger of being lost forever. Some lighthouses have caretakers and others do not. Although some of the lights have caretakers, those groups or communities are having difficulty raising money. There are other lighthouses that are being excessed that no one wants because they are too remote or too dangerous to attempt to restore. What will happen to them? Some will be offered for sale. If so, who would buy them? Even if they are sold, the same strict covenants that are in the deed as provided by the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act will still apply. In fact, some states are requiring even more strict covenants, which will make it impossible to restore and save some remote lighthouses. These lighthouses will then become a hazard to the public and will eventually have to be demolished. Some, on their own, will collapse or vandals will surely cause their demise. To save our lighthouses, as well as the history associated with them, financial help must be provided. Time really is running out for many of our nation’s lighthouses. But some will be saved, if you can help. Tax-deductible donations, as allowed by law, can be sent to the American Lighthouse Foundation, P.O. Box 889, Wells, ME 04090.
Lighthouse to serve as wedding chapel
The lighthouse facsimile built by Nancy Silverman for her husband Irving in Bernard, Maine will now serve as a wedding chapel. Known as the Family Lighthouse it has become a major attraction on Mount Desert Island since it was built and has even appeared on calendars. Silverman says it would also be a great spot to renew wedding vows. Silverman says he will help plan the ceremony and officiate as Notary Public. For more information about the Lighthouse Wedding Chapel you can call Mr. Silverman at 207-244-5192.
Be sure to visit Lighthouse Depot’s Clearance Central for many great deals on discontinued items - at www.lhdepot.com/clearance.cfm.
Lighthouse Depot; Helping to save lighthouses, one gift at a time. 
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