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24 lighthouses, 4 lantern rooms, 6,271 miles, $1,011 for gas, 16 day #66133 07/06/08 01:49 AM
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Stan and I left CT on June 5th for the New Orleans Regional. We stayed in Tennessee Thursday and arrived in New Orleans, LA around 5 PM, having traveled 1,233 miles.

Being able to put a face to the name(s) of many of the people contributing to the CF was especially neat and I was really tickled to spend time with everyone. Dave is to be commended for the super great job he accomplished in setting up the agenda. Heather is a sweetheart and her parents have to be very proud of her. Gather from previous information that Stephanie (Shortcake) gets a big THANK YOU!! as well. Night driving is getting more and more difficult for both Stan and me and we opted out of joining the others on some of the stops. We did, however, manage to see everything that everyone else did, just a little earlier in the day(s).

Paul and others have posted pics of Port Pontchartrain, the site of the lost New Canal, Southwest Reef, Tchefuncte River, Mobile Bay, Sand Island, and Biloxi so I won’t duplicate theirs.

The Pass Manchac refurbished Lantern Room is now located on the grounds of the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Maritime Museum and is shown below. Pass Manchac was automated in 1941. In 1952 the dwelling was razed–tidal erosion by that time had the lighthouse located on an island. Abandoned by the Coast Guard in 1987 when the light was decommissioned, the Manchac Lighthouse Committee was formed in 1999 to take responsibility for the structure.

Its lantern room was removed for restoration in 2002 when phase 1 of a 2-phase restoration plan was initiated. The lantern room broke in two during the removal process. Mother Nature has submerged the base of the tower in several feet of water and drastic measures are necessary to save it. The tower is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and moving the tower would compromise the tower’s historical status, but it may have to be moved if it’s going to be saved.

There’s conflicting data on the lantern room: The historical marker for the picture shown below clearly indicates this is the refurbished lantern room from Pass Manchac. However, the information quoted below was gleaned from the internet during a search recently and I haven’t yet contacted either source to determine who has the authentic lantern room:

“The top of the 1868 Pass Manchac Lighthouse was recently saved, and is now on display on Louisiana Highway 22 in downtown Ponchatoula, Louisiana.”



Also on the grounds of the Museum is the refurbished Tchefuncte River Keeper’s Dwelling. The dwelling was moved to the town of Madisonville in the 1950s after the light was automated. A committee is working on fundraising and restoration efforts.



Stan and I left New Orleans on Tuesday and traveled to South Padre Island, TX to begin this odyssey.

First light seen on Wednesday was this faux light atop Knights Inn & Suites Hotel, South Padre Island:



Next stop was Point (Port) Isabel Light. This 50' brick tower exhibited its light for the first time in March of 1853. The original keeper’s dwelling was inadequate and a new one was completed in 1855. The lighthouse received a 3rd-Order Fresnel lens in 1857. The tower was deactivated during the War Between the States. Confederate soldiers used the lantern room (sans lens which they had removed for safekeeping) as a lookout for monitoring the movements of the Union forces. Union forces, however, were able to seize control but not before the opposing force caused considerable damage to the tower including damaging the clockwork mechanism used to revolve the lens. The ongoing war prevented repairs and the lighthouse was not reactivated until February of 1866. It received a new lantern room in 1881.

Decommissioned in 1905, the property stood vacant until 1927 when a private individual purchased it and then sold it to the Port Isabel Town Company for use in promoting the recently renamed city. The bluff surrounding the tower was lowered to form level city blocks, leaving the lighthouse perched on a small mound. Following bankruptcy of the town promoters during the depression, the State stepped in to save the lighthouse in 1947.

The square block on which the lighthouse stands is Texas’ smallest state park and is named Port Isabel Lighthouse State Historical Park. Fully restored in 2000, a replica of the keeper’s dwelling was built to house an interpretive display and the offices of the Port Isabel Chamber of Commerce.





Next stop was a boat trip offered by Kohootz Dolphin Encounters who sail past Aransas Pass (Lydia Ann) Light. Privately owned since 1955, its current owner purchased the property in 1973 and has fully restored the station..

A keeper’s dwelling and 55' octagonal brick tower were completed in the early part of 1857. Its 4th-Order Fresnel lens was illuminated later that year. After the start of the Civil War (1861), the lens was removed for safekeeping. Control of the tower passed repeatedly between Confederate and Union forces. Gradual repairs to Texas’ lights occurred and in the spring of 1867, Aransas Pass Lighthouse was the last principal light along the coast to return to service.

Electrified in 1928 using diesel generators brought to power a newly-installed radio beacon, the station was staffed by a civilian keeper and three Coast Guard assistants after 1939. Together, they shared the responsibility for the lighthouse and 40 minor beacons marking the channels in the area.

Its 4th-Order Fresnel lens is on display in the Port Aransas City Hall.



Re: 24 lighthouses, 4 lantern rooms, 6,271 miles, $1,011 for gas, 16 day #66134 07/06/08 01:50 AM
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Next stop was to photograph Halfmoon Reef Light located in Port Lavaca on Highway 35. Originally located above the water of Matagorda Bay, this screwpile lighthouse consisted of a wooden, hexagonal structure, 16' on a side, surmounted by a lantern room and supported by seven 25' iron piles. The piles had threads 2' in diameter on one end to facilitate screwing the piles into the shoal to a depth of 9'.

Completed in July of 1858, it had a fixed white light produced by a 6th-Order Fresnel lens. A ruby red glass chimney was used in the oil lamp to change the characteristic to red following complaints from mariners that the Matagorda Peninsula dunes would obscure the Halfmoon Reef light, creating a flashing signature like that of the nearby Matagorda Island Lighthouse.

The 1942 hurricane tore the walkway from the lighthouse and left it sagging on its pilings. The Coast Guard decided to sell the structure rather than repair it. Purchased privately, it was used as living quarters for the nightwatchman of a dredging business. Thirty-six years later, it was donated to the Calhoun County Historical Commission for use as a museum. A sizeable trust fund for maintaining the structure was also provided. It was transported across the Matagorda Causeway and restored in 1979 as an Eagle Scout service project. Placed on its present piers in 1985, the porch was added, 3 flag poles were erected, and a Texas Historical Marker was unveiled at the site by the generous donors of the lighthouse.





Thursday, 6/12/08, we traveled by catamaran (Capt. Bob Hill of Port O’Connor Charters) to Matagorda Island and views of Matagorda Island Lighthouse. Neither of us was up for bicycling to the station from the dock (3 miles), but Stan lamented not having done so when he saw the pictures.

The array of reflecting lamps in the brick-lined 55' iron tower’s lantern room was first seen in December of 1852. A series of upgrades would occur during the next decade– distinctive daymark of alternating white, red, and black horizontal bands; a wire enclosure around the lantern room to protect the glass plates and lens from birds; additional iron sections were cast and used to raise the lantern room an additional 24' giving the conical tower its distinctive long, straight neck; a rotating 3rd-Order Fresnel lens was activated in July of 1859.

Its lens was removed and crated for storage during the Civil War. Confederate soldiers were ordered to destroy the tower, but the explosive charge only succeeded in damaging 6 of the tower’s iron sections and removing a large chunk of its foundation. After the war ended in 1865, a temporary 3-story wooden tower fitted with a 5th-Order Fresnel lens was put into operation on the island to serve until the original tower was repaired. The original keeper’s dwelling did not survive the war and the keeper and his family lived in this temporary tower that leaked very badly. The encroaching surf threatened to topple the already damaged tower in 1866, so the lighthouse was disassembled and its pieces stored on one of the island’s high spots. The tower was reassembled 2 miles further inland and the lighthouse returned to service in September of 1873. It was painted solid black and outfitted with a new 3rd-Order Fresnel lens and fitted with 4 bull’s eyes.

Electrified in 1956 and automated shortly thereafter, its keeper served as a civilian custodian and was assisted by 2 Coast Guardsmen. Together, they made biweekly checks of 61 beacon lights around Matagorda Bay until the custodian retired in 1965. The Fresnel lens was removed in 1977. Public protests kept the solar-powered light in service until 1995.

The island is controlled by Texas Parks and Wildlife Department who maintains the land surrounding the lighthouse. Future plans call for the reconstruction of the keeper’s quarters. Its Fresnel lens can be seen at the Calhoun County Museum in Port Lavaca.





The balance of the day was going to be locating and photographing four faux lights, but we were losing steam and opted to just kick back at the Comfort Inn in Conroe, Texas.

Friday found us at Brazoria County Historical Museum, Angleton, Texas. Brazos River Lighthouse, an 1896-built 96' square pyramidal skeletal tower (sibling of Sanibel Island Light, FL) was demolished in 1967. Its lantern room is on the grounds of the Museum:





and its 3½ -Order Fresnel lens is inside:





Next stop was to photograph the Galveston Jetty Lantern Room located on the campus of Galveston College. Rescued from the wreck of the Galveston Jetty Lighthouse, it was dedicated in November of 2006 as part of Beacon square, a new “front door” for Galveston College whose vision is “A Beacon of Light Guiding Lifelong Learning.”



Re: 24 lighthouses, 4 lantern rooms, 6,271 miles, $1,011 for gas, 16 day #66135 07/06/08 01:50 AM
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Next stop was to photograph the Galveston Jetty 3rd-Order Fresnel lens housed in a specially designed exhibit in the Galveston County Historical Museum:





Next up was to photograph the remains of the Galveston Jetty at the end of which is purported to be the remains of the Galveston Jetty Lighthouse. In the 1800s a sandbar at the entrance to Galveston Bay prevented deep-drafted vessels from entering the bay–Texas’ busiest port. Their cargo had to be off-loaded to barges or small boats–both expensive and time-consuming. Two parallel jetties at the entrance to Galveston Bay were built in 1874. One was connected to the eastern end of Galveston Island; the other was extended from the western tip of the Bolivar Peninsula. By concentrating the bays’s outflow into a relatively narrow space, sediment would be carried farther out into the Gulf of Mexico, and a deep channel into the bay could be maintained.

Work on the jetties was finished in 1904 and work on the Galveston Jetty Lighthouse was begun. Fifty-three of the huge capping stones used in constructing the jetties were removed to allow nine foundation piles to be driven into the seabed near the end of the southern jetty. When the piles were set, rocks were placed around them to rebuild that portion of the jetty.

Lack of funds and storms delayed construction of the cylindrical, 5-story superstructure which was not begun until October of 1914. The platform on which the lighthouse was built hovered 42' above the gulf waters. The bottom floor of the lighthouse contained the oil room and engine room. The second floor had a kitchen, bedroom, an bathroom for the keepers. The third floor contained two additional bedrooms. The diameter of the bottom three levels was 21', 4". The upper two levels, the watchroom and lantern room, were somewhat smaller. The first layer of stucco applied to the structure contained cow hair that served as a bonding agent, while the outer layer included waterproofing material. When the 1915 hurricane damaged the support piles and washed away the construction wharf, the tower was about 50% complete. The upper portion of the lighthouse required only minor repairs. The lower portion of the support piles was encased in cement to provide additional support and protection after the hurricane.

A 3rd-Order Fresnel lens was installed in the tower during the latter part of 1917. Ruby-colored panels of glass were placed over every other bull’s-eye to produce a distinctive characteristic of alternating red and white flashes. The lighthouse was finished by June of 1918, but a coastal blackout imposed by the military during WW I, delayed its activation. On November 12, 1918, 14 years after on-and-off construction, the lamp was lit for the first time.

In 1949 additional pilings were driven adjacent to the tower to support a new, 1-story keeper’s dwelling.

A violent storm struck the lighthouse on May 2, 2000 and the rusted iron pilings gave way plunging the lighthouse into the water. Just six months before the storm hit, a local businessman had proposed moving the light to Galveston Island State park and turning it into a museum.






Next stop was Bolivar Point Light, Texas. We took the free ferry from Galveston across the mouth of the Galveston Bay and drove to the station. (I’m still quite impressed by the fact that the ferries are free.)

The original 65' tower’s iron sections were cast in Maryland, shipped west, and then erected at Bolivar Point. The keeper’s dwelling was completed in April of 1852, but work continued on the tower until October. The light was first shown in late-December of 1852. The lighthouse was increased by 24' and a 3rd-Order Fresnel lens was installed by the summer of 1858.

Texas joined the other southern states in seceding from the Union three years later. Most of the southern lighthouses were darkened during the Civil War, but the Bolivar Point Lighthouse was completely dismantled. Because no pieces of the original tower has ever been discovered, it is assumed that the iron sections were used as armor plating for ships or were melted down to produce military armaments.

After the war, a temporary 34' wooden tower was established near the site of the original lighthouse. The light from that tower’s 4th-Order Fresnel lens was first shown in August of 1865. Construction of a second iron tower on the point was begun following an appropriation of $40,000 by Congress in July of 1870. Patterned after Louisiana’s Pass a l’Outre, this tower is a 117' iron tower with a wooden keeper’s dwelling. Its 3rd-Order Fresnel lens was first lit on November 19, 1872. The tower was painted with black and white horizontal bands to provide a distinctive daymark. Complaints by mariners that the new beacon was not as bright as the original 1852 light resulted in bringing in a powerful 2nd-Order lens.

The Great Hurricane of 1900 swamped Galveston Island with 5' of water, destroying much of the city and causing the death of nearly 6,000 people. During the height of the storm, over 120 people sought protection in the iron lighthouse. Seated by twos on the tower’s spiral staircase, the people huddled together as 120 mph winds rocked the tower. The bodies of a dozen people who were unable to reach the safety of the tower were found after the floodwater receded from the base of the tower. A similar scenario happened during the hurricane of August, 1915 when 60 people were forced to seek protection on the tower’s spiral staircase.

Sold in 1947, the station has remained in that family’s name since then. The 3rd-Order Fresnel lens from the 1858 modifications can be seen at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History in Washington, DC.




Next stop was to photograph the faux light on top of the Kemah, Texas water tower:





followed by a faux light atop a restaurant next to the water tower.



Re: 24 lighthouses, 4 lantern rooms, 6,271 miles, $1,011 for gas, 16 day #66136 07/06/08 01:50 AM
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Next was the faux light at the South Shore Harbor Resort in League City, Texas:





followed by the Sabine Bank Lighthouse Lantern Room and a section of the tower located in Lions Park, Sabine Pass, Texas.

About 16 miles south of the entrance to the Sabine River in the Gulf of Mexico the 30 mile long, 5 mile wide Sabine Bank is hidden only 20' below the surface of the water. Metalwork for a lighthouse that would rest on a caisson foundation sunk into the shoal was supplied by a Detroit, Michigan company and shipped by rail to Port Arthur. The lower courses of the caisson were assembled onshore and towed to the offshore site in June of 1904. A wooden cofferdam was built in the bottom of the caisson and connected to a central airshaft. This watertight chamber was then pressurized to keep the seawater out and allow men inside to remove the sand and muck below the bottom edge of the caisson. On July 21, 1904 the caisson had sunk to the target depth of 20' into the shoal. It was then filled with concrete, allowing a cylindrical area at its top to hold the station’s water cisterns.

Built at a cost of $101,354, the tower first exhibited the light from its 3rd-Order Fresnel lens on March 15, 1906. The 1915 hurricane tore away 75% of the gallery-level veranda, hatches, storm shutters, and two of the station’s boats. Seawater penetrated the tower and contaminated the station’s drinking water. The light was relit on August 23rd. Repairs after that storm included enclosing the gallery level with ¾” iron plates dotted with 13 air ports.

Unmanned after 1922, the site fell into a state of disrepair. When the condition of the lighthouse threatened the safety of those sent to maintain its light, a decision was made to replace the tower with a steel, skeleton structure. The Coast Guard solicited bids for the reconfiguration of the Sabine Bank Lighthouse in March of 2001. The structure above the caisson foundation was to be demolished and removed. The structural main deck at the top of the caisson was to be replaced with a new 55' tall steel skeleton tower on the main deck. The caisson foundation was to be rehabilitated and all steel surfaces above the water line were to be blasted and painted and new access ladders and main deck handrails were to be installed. The estimated price range was between $500,000 and $1,000,000.

A Jacksonville, NC company was awarded the contract and began the work in late January of 2002. A section of the lighthouse tower and the lantern room were dismantled and returned to shore where they were refurbished and placed on display at Lions Park in Sabine Pass, Texas. The original 3rd-Order Fresnel lens can be seen at the Museum of the Gulf Coast in Port Arthur.





Stan had parked the car across the street from Lions Park on the grounds of the United Methodist Church. This faux lighthouse is located at that church. The sign beneath the bell indicates it is from the Sabine Pass Lighthouse and was purchased in 1897. I’ve written to the pastor of the church asking if she can provide additional information.





We were supposed to meet with Scotty Howell of Robinson Iron in Huntsville, AL to view the disassembled Mobile Point Lighthouse, but stormy weather prevented our taking a planned Saturday flight to view lighthouses in the Birdfoot Delta area. We opted instead to stay in Marrero, Texas another day (Stan got to watch Tiger’s matchup with Rocco Saturday and Sunday; I got to work on some of the pictures he’d taken since June 7th) and see if we could convince David Cusimo of Gulf Coast Aviation, Lakefront Airport, New Orleans, LA to take us out on Monday instead.

David was almost as excited about the lighthousing flight as I was–this was his maiden voyage for lighthouse viewing and, until he and I spoke in May, he wasn’t aware there was any interest in lighthouses! Gulf Coast Aviation is the only source I could locate offering any service that would allow for more than the pilot and a passenger. I’d given him the coordinates (thank you to Kraig Anderson and www.lighthousefriends.com for his help), so we climbed aboard for the 2½-hour flight on Monday, 6/16/08.

First pass was over Pass a l’Outre Light. The tall iron tower in use at Head of Passes farther upstream was dismantled and relocated to a channel leading east originally named Pass a la Loutre, meaning “otter pass” referring to the abundance of these pelt-bearing animals. The mouth of the Mississippi is known as the Birdfoot Delta because the river branches out into three main channels, resembling the familiar 3-toed imprint left by shore birds. Otter Pass eventually became known as Pass a l’Outre, which means the “pass beyond.” The reassembled tower’s Fresnel lens was lit for the first time in its new location in December of 1855.

Put out of commission during the Civil War when Union force removed the Fresnel lens and Confederate soldiers burned the keeper’s dwelling, the light returned to service in April of 1863. A new keeper’s dwelling was built and the iron tower received a new brick liner and a thick coat of coal tar for rust prevention.

The keeper’s dwelling rested on nine brick piers. By 1868 it had settled 3' into the soft ground. The tower also started to sink around the same time. The floor of the lighthouse was originally 8' above the ground. By 1876 water from high tides was flooding the tower floor. The floor was raised 5' and the doorway heightened to provide continued access to the tower.

The depth of the channel was reduced to just 7' by the end of the 19th Century. Alternative routes had to be taken by large vessels. The tower was given a spiral black and white daymark in its final years of service. Although the station was decommissioned in 1930, the Coast Guard used it as a lookout for spotting rumrunners during prohibition.

The spiral bands started to fade by the 1950s and the tower is only covered by rust and graffiti today. No outbuildings remain at the station. With less than 50% of its original height showing above ground, the marshlands are slowly swallowing this stoic sentry.

The nine brick piers that once held the keeper’s dwelling and the lantern room, loosened by Hurricane Katrina in 2007, can be seen in this overhead shot.





Next was South Pass Lighthouse. This tall iron tower is still active. Its 1st-Order Fresnel lens was replaced in 1951 with a modern beacon. Located at the entrance to South Pass, where water from the Mississippi River mixes with that of the gulf, this white skeletal tower is also known as Port Eads lighthouse. Port Eads was a bustling building camp in the 1870s when master builder James Eads put his experimental jetties in place. By constricting the outflow of South Pass, the jetties succeeded in scouring out the channel entrance to a depth of 30'. Large steamers could now access the river safely, saving millions of dollars annually in maritime insurance. During the 20 years following the completion of the jetties, trade at New Orleans doubled.

Though buried beneath layers of sand, the Eads Jetties still survive. In 1982 they were designated a National Historic Engineering Landmark and a commemorative plaque denoting this can be seen a few miles upriver at Fort Jackson.

This is the 4th South Pass Lighthouse. The first masonry tower was built by Winslow Lewis and its lamps were first lit in May of 1832. A storm in 1841 destroyed all signs of the station’s existence. Winslow Lewis also built a replacement–an octagonal wooden tower that used the original tower’s lighting apparatus. Completed in June of 1842, it was so decayed after just 5 years that another replacement was required. Another wooden octagonal tower (#3) rising to a height of 54' with a 40' x 30' Victorian dwelling built into its base was constructed at the pass.

The 3rd light was scheduled for deactivation following the completion of an iron tower at Southwest Pass, but when Eads’ jetties improved the channel at South Pass, the Lighthouse Board decided to place an iron tower at South Pass, too. Completed in 1881, the hexagonal tower is 105' tall and has a 2-story, iron-clad dwelling built into its base.



Re: 24 lighthouses, 4 lantern rooms, 6,271 miles, $1,011 for gas, 16 day #66137 07/06/08 01:51 AM
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Next pass was over Southwest Pass (1839). The one shown here is the second at the site. The first was built by Winslow Lewis, was a 65' conical brick tower and was put into service in April of 1832. A daymark that consisted of vertical black bands helped mariners identify this lighthouse, as did three windows built into the seaward side of the tower below the lantern room. Threatened by erosion during its first year of service, by April of 1837 the tower stood in 10' of water. The tower toppled over and disappeared later that year.

Funds were allocated in 1838 for a replacement brick tower. It had the same vertical markings of its predecessor, two bay windows which protruded from the gulf side of the tower were 25' below the lantern room. The windows held additional lamps–the light from the lantern room and the two bay windows formed a triangle if mariners approaching from the gulf aligned with the proper channel.

Not long after its completion, one side of the tower settled into the spongy land, leaving the tower 5' out of plumb. By 1850, the leaning tower was standing in a foot of water. Difficulties in securing funding and the outbreak of the Civil War delayed work on a new tower for years.

Following the war, Congress approved a request for funds to replace the tower and work began in 1870.





Next was Southwest Pass (1871). The decision was made to construct a metal skeleton tower to replace the brick tower that served mariners at this site. The structure would be lighter in weight and disperse that weight over a wider foundation. It was hoped this would allow the tower to overcome the problems that plagued the previous towers. The tower’s central cylindrical spine was surrounded by a 2-story dwelling at the base and 8 supporting columns tied together with a web of iron rods. The tower is ½-mile from the brick tower it replaced and is secured to a foundation built on 185 piles driven to a depth of 33'. Its light was first activated in July of 1873.

A fire erupted in the dwelling portion of the tower in May of 1894. The heat caused the iron spiral staircase to melt. The lantern room and entire central column had to be replaced. A light and fog signal were established at the end of the east jetty–constructed at the entrance to the pass. The jetty light was upgraded to serve as the primary entrance light in 1953. It performed this function until 1965 when South Pass Entrance Light replaced it.





Southwest Pass Entrance Light was next on the flight. The modern Texas-tower that stood at the entrance to Southwest pass was put in-place in 1965. It was an 85' 6-sided cylindrical steel tower centered on a 2-story hexagonal reinforced concrete keeper’s quarters mounted on pilings. Its light source was a DCB-224 aerobeacon. The tower and lantern were painted red with white trim, keeper’s house painted white. The station had an array of weather instruments as a NOAA C-MAN station. It was placed in the waters just off the jetties constructed at the entrance to the pass. It had a boat dock and a helicopter landing pad and rested on a lattice of concrete pilings anchored in the floor of the gulf. Demolished by the Coast Guard in the fall of 2007 and replaced by a slender triangular skeletal tower mounted on a platform supported by 3 steep piles; the platform and pile are painted orange.





Last flyover for the flight was to photograph the remains of West Rigolets Light. Located at the eastern end of Lake Pontchartrain where it meets The Rigolets, this 1855 lighthouse was a square dwelling with a hipped roof, surmounted by a circular lantern room. Active until July of 1861, it was darkened due to the Civil War. Reactivated in November of 1862, its light came from a ship’s lantern.

A 5th-Order Fresnel was returned to the lantern room in 1863 when the station was completely overhauled. In 1917 the lighthouse was raised 6' and placed on a new foundation of concrete pilings to escape the encroachment of the muddy water of the Rigolets.

Abandoned in 1945 when an automated electric light was established nearby, the structure was sold to a private owner for $2,500. The lighthouse, a brick oil house, and two large circular brick supports that once held the station’s wooden cisterns were lost to Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005. Of the 700 homes located on the island where the West Rigolets Lighthouse stood, only 12 survived Katrina.





We then traveled by car to Biloxi to photograph Beau Rivage Harbor Light, a faux light that, had we been looking, we could have seen with the group when we all stopped to photograph Biloxi! It and the Broadwater Beach Hotel Marina Channel Light are a stone’s throw in opposite directions from Biloxi Light.

Beau Rivage Harbor Light, MS:


Re: 24 lighthouses, 4 lantern rooms, 6,271 miles, $1,011 for gas, 16 day #66138 07/06/08 01:51 AM
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Broadwater Beach Hotel Marina Channel Light, MS:




We then drove to Pensacola, checked in and drove to photograph Pensacola before dark. She is one of the prettiest stations we’ve seen and was reopened to the public for climbing on Friday, June 11, 2008 per the family admiring the site when we were there. They suggested we make a point of coming to the site for the 1-hour practices of the Blue Angels held every Tuesday and Thursday morning at 7 AM. Apparently they’ve set up bleachers for civilians to view the practice sessions somewhere nearby. If we were going to be in the area longer, we probably would have done just that, but we already had reservations and a long day ahead of us.





Tuesday, 6/17/08 we traveled to and photographed many of the same lights that Paul and Sue Brady have already posted, so I won’t duplicate Cape San Blas, the reconstructed Cape St. George, or Crooked River.

We did find St. Joseph (Point) Bay in Port St. Joe, FL. The first lighthouse on St. Joseph Peninsula was built in 1838 at the entrance to the bay. The height of the tower was 50'. It was abandoned in 1847 in favor of the Cape San Blas Lighthouse and washed away in 1851.

Funds were appropriated in 1898 to build a new structure on the mainland instead of the peninsula. Built at Beacon Hill, it was called the St. Joseph Light Range Station and consisted of a house with a beacon on top. The building was completed in 1902, its 3rd-Order Fresnel lens was 96' above sea level and could be seen 13 miles at sea. A second beacon was established 600' seaward of the lighthouse near the beach. Together the beacons functioned as range lights.

Replaced by a light on a 78' iron tower in 1960, the dwelling was sold for $300. While being moved to a farm 3 miles inland, the lantern room was dropped and destroyed. At its new home, the lighthouse was used first as a dwelling and later relegated to serve as a barn. The current owners purchased it in 1979, transported it 20 miles south to its present location. The owners have meticulously restored and renovated the dwelling to fit their needs and it is believed they will be placing a replicated lantern room on the hipped roof in the near future.

We located the dwelling and photographed it from the highway:





Wednesday, 6/18/08 we traveled to and photographed St. Marks (as did Paul and Sue)–looks like everybody wants the same shot of the station reflected in the nearby water:





We tried to coax two young men to take us out to see Seahorse (Cedar) Key Light in their boat when they docked and they said they’d have to think about it while eating their lunch. They went to their truck to eat while we sat waiting for about a half hour and we left before they made their decision. Pace in the south is a bit taxing to my patience level.

Was really hoping to find the locations of the 10th and 11th seahorses, Paul. Maybe you’ll help the rest of us locate the missing two??

We then traveled to Tarpon Springs, FL and Anclote Key Lighthouse. Built on the southern tip of Anclote Key to guard the mouth of the Anclote River. This key is the largest of a collection of small island found 3 miles offshore from Tarpon Springs. The name Anclote is Spanish for anchor and these islands were so-named due to the method Spanish vessels would use to navigate the shallow channels in the area–mariners attached a line to a kedge anchor (to pull [a ship] along by hauling on the cable of an anchor carried out from the ship) and dropped at a distance in the desired direction of travel and use the line to pull the boat to the anchor.

Similar to Cape San Blas Lighthouse, the tower was prefabricated in the north and shipped to the island. The tower’s lantern room is supported by a central cylinder that houses a spiral staircase and 4 supporting columns. The columns slope outwards to form a square, pyramidal structure. Four levels of horizontal braces connect the central cylinder to the supporting columns. First lit in September of 1887, a revolving 3rd-Order Fresnel lens was used in the tower to produce 4, grouped white flashes every 30 seconds. In 1899 the signature was changed to one red flash every 30 seconds.

Two nearly identical keeper’s dwellings were built north of the tower. Automated by the Coast Guard in 1952, the station was discontinued in 1984 when a tall smokestack in Tarpon Springs equipped with strobe lights would serve as a night light for boaters.

The station deteriorated rapidly, but a grassroots restoration effort was launched. Over a million dollars was secured to restore the lighthouse property. An 8-month restoration project began in January of 2003 and culminated in a relighting ceremony on September 13, 2003. In November of 2004, the modern beacon that was being used in the lantern room was replaced with an accurate replica of a 4th-Order Fresnel lens. Part of Anclote Key Preserve State Park, a dwelling was constructed north of the lighthouse to house a state park ranger who will help protect the restored tower from any further acts of vandalism. After 50 years without a keeper and 20 years without a light, the Anclote Key lighthouse is back in service and people are welcome to come out to the island to enjoy its beaches and visit its tower.




This is the tall smokestack in Tarpon Springs that served as a night light for boaters after Anclote Key was discontinued in 1984:



Re: 24 lighthouses, 4 lantern rooms, 6,271 miles, $1,011 for gas, 16 day #66139 07/06/08 01:52 AM
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sandy Offline OP
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Last stop on this trip was Egmont Key Lighthouse, Tampa Bay, FL. This 1858-built, active 85' tower has 3' thick brick walls and replaced an 1848 tower. Egmont Key became a National Wildlife Preserve in 1974 and the lighthouse joined the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. Automated, a radiobeacon is emitted from a 133' antenna located next to the lighthouse.

A fixed-light produced by a 3rd-Order Fresnel lens was exhibited from a focal plane of 86'. A struggle for control of the lighthouse during the Civil War resulted in the lens being crated and moved to Tampa by the keeper. After the war a 4th-Order lens was used until 1893 when it was replaced by a 3rd-Order lens with a red sector.

During the Spanish-American War, Fort Dade was constructed on the island. The fort, along with Fort DeSoto on Mullet Island to the northeast, stood watch over the entrance to Tampa Bay. The fort was staffed during WW I as well, and by the time it was deactivated in 1923, a movie theater, bowling alley, tennis courts, and miles of brick roads were found on the island.

The upper portion of the lighthouse was removed in 1944, as was the Fresnel lens. A Double Head DCB-36 Rotating Beacon was placed on top of the capped tower in 1989. The remaining keeper’s dwelling was demolished in1954 and replaced by a 1-story barracks. Florida’s Park Service and the US Fish and Wildlife Service manage the island today.





The plan had been to travel to Boca Grande for those lights, then finish up with Cape Canaveral before heading home, but I opted instead to leave Egmont Key and head back to CT. I’d called the tour bus company in Cape Canaveral and was told there was only one trip passing the lighthouse daily and that trip left at 1:30 PM. Had we gotten on board for that trip on Friday our return to CT would have taken another day, so we put Cape Canaveral and the Boca Grande lights on a back burner and see them on a trip to Florida that we’ll probably take in February. Hope you’ve enjoyed this journey–we’ve enjoyed the company. . . .

Re: 24 lighthouses, 4 lantern rooms, 6,271 miles, $1,011 for gas, 16 day #66140 07/06/08 10:29 AM
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MtnHkr Offline
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Sandy,

Wonderful pictures and Narration (Going to take me a week to digest all that's there). Thank you for bringing us along on what must have been a wonderful trip.


Bert

No mountain is too tall if your first step is belief. -Anonymous
Re: 24 lighthouses, 4 lantern rooms, 6,271 miles, $1,011 for gas, 16 day #66141 07/06/08 01:08 PM
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Lighthouse Loon Offline
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Wow !!!

Sandy, Great photos and narritive!!! Almost feels like we were there with you. cool


Stan M
New Jersey Lighthouse Lovers
------------------------------------
Harry Wishlist: Tinicum Rear Range, Miah Maull Shoal, Finns Point, Bergen Point, Cross Ledge, Old Ambrose Lightstation, Romer Shoal, Barnegat Lightship, Liberty Lightship.
Re: 24 lighthouses, 4 lantern rooms, 6,271 miles, $1,011 for gas, 16 day #66142 07/06/08 06:06 PM
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Bill and Judy Offline
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Thank you, Sandy, for all the information. This will be very helpful when we attempt to take in the Texas lights. We did see the Kemah light and Bolivar but those are the only ones in that state. Your narration and photos are terrific.

Judy

Re: 24 lighthouses, 4 lantern rooms, 6,271 miles, $1,011 for gas, 16 day #66143 07/07/08 12:49 PM
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Dave H Offline
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I just wish that Sandy would include more information in her travelogues . . . . .

Seriously, you and Stan certainly had quite the adventure on your trip. It was great having you along on our part of the trip, and so glad that you are home safely. Your photos of the off shore lights of Louisiana are ones that we will seldom see, and most of us will never see in person. One of the great things about folks like you so willing to share your adventure.

When you go back to Pensacola, don't forget the fantastic Naval Aviation Museum across from the lighthouse. Very cool old base.

Re: 24 lighthouses, 4 lantern rooms, 6,271 miles, $1,011 for gas, 16 day #66144 07/08/08 04:38 PM
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kikigl Offline
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Really enjoyed your pictures and narration, Sandy.


Kay
Re: 24 lighthouses, 4 lantern rooms, 6,271 miles, $1,011 for gas, 16 day #66145 07/09/08 10:00 AM
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Bob Taylor Offline
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Great job Sandy and Stan in finding and sharing all these lighthouses by land, boat and air. It was a pleasure to meet both of you in New Orleans. I hope you don't give us a test on all the information!

Bob Taylor

Re: 24 lighthouses, 4 lantern rooms, 6,271 miles, $1,011 for gas, 16 day #66146 07/09/08 10:20 AM
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sandy Offline OP
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Not to worry, Bob. I wouldn't know if the answers were right--memory's the first to go. . . .

Sandy

Re: 24 lighthouses, 4 lantern rooms, 6,271 miles, $1,011 for gas, 16 day #66147 07/09/08 11:34 AM
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wheland Offline
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Sandy,

Always a pleasure to read one of your narratives and look at the fine pictures that come with it.

Dennis

Re: 24 lighthouses, 4 lantern rooms, 6,271 miles, $1,011 for gas, 16 day #66148 07/10/08 05:42 PM
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Tybee_Sullivan Offline
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Nice photos! Your narration is very good. I really liked this one:

http://www.lighthousekeepers.com/uploads/files/ducks2076@hotmail.com/PILHTX.jpg

It kind of looks like the Amelia Island lighthouse.


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