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Lighthouse to Draw Global Attention
Story ran on: April 11, 2001
From the: Milford Chronicle, Milford, DE
Author: Greg Layton
Milford - The plight of the Mispillion River Lighthouse may be known throughtout the world before the end of 2001.
On the front page of either its July or August edition, Lighthouse Digest will feature the structure east of Milford and discuss obstacles in the way of its preservation, said Timothy Harrison, the magazine’s editor and publisher.
The magazine, which is distributed in all 50 states and 22 countries, has 25,000 subscribers and 3 million online readers, Mr. Harrison said.
The magazine will use the article to designate the Mispillion River Lighthouse the most endangered lighthouse in America, he said.
That designation has helped other communities save other lighthouses. “There are 54 other lighthouses on the Doomsday List. Most are endangered because they have been abandoned and left to the elements and vandalism. However, most of these are in very remote locations with no population base to support restoration,” Mr. Harrison said.
“A recent success story is Crisp Point in Michigan with almost a zero population base, but it has been saved, thanks in part to a small but dedicated group of hard working volunteers. We helped in a small way with out stories. When we declared it the most endangered lighthouse in America, the group used that in their press releases which soon gained national publicity and the donations that they needed. Some of the largest donations came from local Indian Tribes from their casinos and the American Lighthouse Foundation.”
The Mispillion Lighthouse has been on the Doomsday List since 1994, he said.
Mr. Harrison said the lighthouse was promoted, or demoted, to most endangered status due to the sticky nature of its private ownership, which stymies intervention by state and federal government and non-profit groups.
According to deeds in the Sussex County Administration Building, the structure is owned by Galen W. Stauffer.
Recent attempts by the Milford Chronicle to reach Mr. Stauffer by telephone have been unsuccessful and a telephone message says the Bridgeville number listed next to his name in the Bell Atlantic Yellow Pages has been disconnected.
“(The Mispillion Lighthouse is the most endangered in America,) because there are no immediate plans to save it. Being privately owned, a local non-profit group would have trouble saving it. Unless they were to get some type of written agreement from the owner. The last I heard in was owned by a finance company or bank,” Mr. Harrison said.
Mr. Harrison is President of American Lighthouse Foundation, an organization dedicated to saving America’s lighthouses and their history, as well as co-founder of Lighthouse Depot Catalog, a lighthouse gift catalog, he said.
He has traveled the country visiting lighthouses, researching them, speaking to lighthouse and other related groups.
“I have co-authored several lighthouses books, including Lost Lighthouses, which is the best selling lighthouse in the country. My newest book, Endangered Lighthouses, features the Mispillion Lighthouse. I have appeared on numerous TV and radio shows, and even on ABC-TV’s Nightline,” he added.
He doesn’t think trying to save the Mispillion River Lighthouse is hopeless.
“First, a local group needs to be formed with the goal of saving the lighthouse. They need to apply for a non-profit status from the IRS which can take up to two years. In the meantime, they could operate as a chapter of the American Lighthouse Foundation,” Mr. Harrison said.
“They should have two immediate goals: One, start raising funds that could at least be used to stabilize the lighthouse. Two, contact the owner of the property, whoever that is, to work out some type of agreement that they would be allowed to restore the lighthouse. This can be tricky, since its not owned by the government or the community. What will the end result be if the lighthouse is restored and saved? Will it be available to the public for tours or a museum? Will it have a live-in caretaker? Who will maintain it after it is restored?”
Lighthouses are symbols of the best elements of humanity, he said.
“Lighthouses are among the oldest standing historic buildings in America. They must be saved for future generations to not only enjoy, but learn from. They are also monuments to the men and women who served at them and helped make our country the great nation that it is today,” Mr. Harrison said. “Lighthouses stand for everything that is good. That’s why so many churches use a lighthouse as a symbol. ‘Come to the lighthouse and you will be saved,’ ‘a sign of hope in trouble times,’ and more and more business firms across America are using the lighthouse as their logo to show strength. “Do business with us. We are a solid company.’
Lighthouses were built for one purpose only, to save lives. Now its our turn to save the lighthouse.”
Date Entered into online database: April 25, 2001
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