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Managing Organization:
Ram Island Preservation Society
Telephone: 207-882-9721
Contact Address Information:
Box 123
Boothbay
Maine, 04537, United States
Notes:
The Coast Guard automated the light and removed their keepers in 1965, and the house fell into disrepair. The Grand Banks Schooner Museum Trust was given a lease on the station in 1983, except for the lighthouse. Under the Maine Lights Program in 1998 the lighthouse was transferred to the Grand Banks Schooner Museum Trust. The station is managed by the Ram Island Preservation Society, part of the trust. The buildings have been restored and caretakers live on the island in summer. In late 2002 the walkway from the tower to the shore was rebuilt.
Tower Height: 35
Height of Focal Plane: 36
Characteristic and Range: Six seconds red alternating with six seconds darkness.
Description of Tower: Cylindrical tower, white brick (upper part) and granite (lower part).
This light is operational
Other Buildings?
1883 1.5 wood frame keeper's house, 1898 brick oil house, barn, storage building, cistern.
Date Established: 1883
Date Present Tower Built: 1883
Date Automated: 1965
Optics: 1883: Fourth order Fresnel; now 250 mm. The original Fresnel lens is now at the Boothbay Region Historical Society's museum, 72 Oak St. in Boothbay Harbor, (207) 633-0820. The museum is open all year Sat. 10-2, with expanded hours in summer.
Fog Signal: Originally fog bell, now automated fog horn with one blast every 30 seconds.
Current Use: Active aid to navigation.
Open To Public? Grounds only.
Directions:
Only distant views of Ram Island Light are possible from the mainland. From ME 27 South in Boothbay Harbor, go left on ME 96 and drive about six miles to Ocean Point. The lighthouse can be seen from several points along the road at Ocean Point. Ram Island Light can be visited through occasional trips run by the Maine Maritime Museum in Bath. Depending on weather and tide conditions the museum's Midcoast Lighthouse Cruise lands at one of three lighthouse stations: Seguin Island, Burnt Island or Ram Island. The trip is run frequently on summer weekends; reservations are required. Call (207) 443-1316, ext. 0. To get to the Maine Maritime Museum from the south, take I-95 to exit 22. Follow US Route 1 North to Bath. Take the "Historic Bath" exit downhill to a traffic light. Turn right at Washington Street. Go south 1.6 miles past the Bath Iron Works to the museum. From the north, exit Route 1 at the "Front St./Bath/Phippsburg" sign. Bear left downhill to a traffic light; turn left at Washington Street. Go south 1.6 miles past the Bath Iron Works to the museum. Ram Island Light can also be seen from cruises leaving Boothbay Harbor, including those offered by Cap'n Fish's Whale Watch and Scenic Cruises. The cruises leave Pier One; call (207) 633-3244 or (800) 636-3244 for information.
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places
Keepers: Samuel John Cavanor (Cavenor) (1883-1913); O. G. Reed (1913); Almon Mitchell (1913-1925); Alonzo Conors (c. 1930s); C. N. Robinson (c. 1930s).
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