HELLO!
I would like to say hi to all you lighthouse
enthusiasts out there and welcome myself to your Harbour Lights collectors forum.
My name is James Smith, I'm 41 years old,
and live in Rolla, Missouri with my fiancee Karen. Well, let me tell you what inspired
my "love" of lighthouses. It started with a
trip last summer going up to Shelby, Michigan
to visit Karens parents. While there, it was
suggested to us to go see Little Sable Point
lighthouse just several miles away from Shelby on the shore of Lake Michigan; we did,
and it was an experience I will never forget.
As we walked up to it,I was in awe over this
Simple but strongly built towering structure.
It brought out a deep inner feeling of
fascination and wonder that I was not aware of before ,even though I new they exsisted
and seen them in pictures. It was anything but little, and I believe I read it was the
tallest on Lake Michigan. Is that right?
I was sorry to see that the lightkeepers house was gone. Being the first lighthouse I
had visited and that it had such a impact on me, it would make me happy to see Harbour Lights produce and market this one. Maybe
even with and what the original lightkeepers house looked like. This summer we went up to
Shelby again to visit with Karen"s parents
and while there we toured two more lighthouses in the area, Big Point Sable and
White River. It was GREAT! And its just the
beginning for us with more on the way. We are
already now trying to plan a trip(with our work schedules permitting) up to Door County
Wisconsin to check out the lighthouses in that area. As you could probably tell I am very excited about my new found relationship
with lighthouses, not only for their rustic
beauty and the romance of it all from days gone by, but also what I have been learning
about, their real purpose of guiding ships safely through our waterways and doing their
part in the making of our country. And through my eyes lighthouses represent the
spirit and pride of mankind. I hope more and
more people become aware of lighthouses like I have and that every effort is taken to preserve them. Thankyou for your time. Oh ya,
one more thing I would like to add if I may
before I sign off; I"m gonna have a lotta fun watching my Harbour Lights collection grow!
YES!! Sincerely, James R. Smith



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Hello James,

Let me be the first to say welcome. The information and enjoyment you will get from this forum is endless. I have posted questions and so many members have been eager to help me learn more about HL's and lighthouses. Not only are these the most informed people on lighthouses, but they are also the nicest.

Joanne

Hi James!
Welcome to the world of some of the greatest people around. How couldn't they be, considering the love we all share. But be careful....they are addictive!

Hi there James -

Welcome to the most fun spot on the Internet that I have found. (Oh by the way do not get to confused by all the Jims around here, there must be about 8 or 10 of us here.)

It is nice to know that Michigan has claimed another Lighthouse fan. I am from Michigan and agree that many of our lighthouse are great. With over 100 lighthouses in the Great Lakes area you will have to make a lot of visits here.

You will find a lot of friends here and we all feel the same as you about lighthouses. Feel free to ask all your questions about real lighthouses and Harbour Lights, someone here will find the answer.

Come join us at the weekly chats, Wed. and Thurs. nights. Check the calendar on the Harbour Lights web page for all the information - dates, times, and links.

Have Fun Here

Jim Eich

Hello James and welcome. I sure enjoyed reading your post, reminds me of me. Sounds like you're a Wacko in process for sure!

James,

Welcome to the wonderful world of Harbour Lights and lighthouses! You picked a beautiful light for your first visit. Little Sable is truly a wonderful place to visit, as are Big Sable & White River. Did you visit Big Sable when they were busing people out, or did you get to walk? The long walks to visit lights give you a little idea of what the lightkeepers and their families had to enjoy.

Little Sable is among the tallest towers on Lake Michigan, but there are a few taller according to a quick browse in one of my books: Wind Point, WI at 108', Big Sable at 112", Grosse Point, IL at 113' and White Shoals, MI at 121'.

Door County has more lighthouses than any other county in the US! Here is a link that will give you a little more info:

http://www.usalights.com/lakes/doorcounty.htm

Be sure to check the Lighthouse Duty and Map Room forums further down this page. Lots of info there! Lots of people here who will be more than pleased to answer your lighthouse and HL questions.

Again, welcome to Harbour Lights!

Dave

Hello Jim and welcome to the forum.

Welcome to the Forum, James.



The Flame

Welsome James, I lived in Illinois for awhile and am familar with your area.

Again welcome, you will enjoy every minute that your with us.

Need any help, please just ask.

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Bob

Welcome Jim. This is a great group of people. Always fun & interesting and addictive. Enjoy.
George

Welcome, Jim. You indeed found a great lighthouse to see for your first one. It's a personal favorite of mine. Years ago, I took an art class, and the only thing I kept was my pencil drawing of Little Sable. It hangs in our family room.

Kathy

Hello everybody,
I just got home from work and thought I
would check out the screen and it feels
GREAT to get all these welcome responses
from my Harbour Lights newbie topic.
Well, every response deserves a response:
To Joanne- I want to thankyou for my very
first welcome at HL.
To Jeff B-And yes,I agree, you all do sound like some of the greatest people around.
To Jim Eich-I did not know there was over
100 lighthouses in the Great Lakes area.
Wow, it sounds like I got a lot of exploring
to do.
To Lamar B- I dont know if I can handle it,
but I believe I feel like I"m turnin WACKO!!
To Dave H- Yes Dave, Karen and I took the
mile and a half walk to and from Big Sable
point lighthouse.The weather was perfect,
blue sky"s, mid 70"s which made it all the more enjoyable. Climbing to the top of Big Sable was surely a natural high for me. I
did'nt want to come down but it was past
6:00 pm and the keepers had to close.
To Mike Seewald- Hello to you to Mike.Thanks
To Flame- Hey Flame, I like that name.
That is hot. Maybe I needed a name like that
being that there's so many Jims.
To Bob StClair-You know Bob,I to am a
Illinois boy. I was raised there in a town
called LaGrange and moved to Missouri in '79
Are you familiar with it? It is a suburb
south of Chicago.It was more quiet and laid
back when I was growing up and then started
getting to hectic and fast paced. I have
country in my heart and enjoy the hills,
trees,clear streams and the rural atmosphere
of the Ozarks.
To QC-It sounds addictive,but a fun
addiction. OH YA!
To Al and Kathy- Nice to hear from you and
your admiration of Little Sable light.
Thanks again all. I know I will enjoy. From: James R. Smith. Jimmy's fine. Thats
what Karen calls me. I'm used to it.See ya.




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Hi James!

I just wanted to say welcome to the forums! We are glad to have you. It is always interesting to hear new opinions or views on Harbour Lights and lighthouses in general.

Little Sable has a special meaning to me as well. It is one of the very first lighthouses that I visited. I was young and on vacation with my family in the area. I remember seeing the lighthouse for the first time and over & over again on subsequent vacations. Little Sable used to be white in color in those days.

Anyway, Welcome again to the forums!

-Todd

Welcome, James, to this forum and to the great hobby of "chasing" lighthouses. I am glad to hear that you want to go up to see the lights in Door County, because WI is my home state, though I live in NH now, close to many, many NE lighthouses.

Door County is a superior popular place for tourism in general. So a word of warning -- be sure to get advance reservations for a place to stay, especially in summer and fall. I just clicked onto the Door County website that is given here in another post and there is lots of interesting information; but not all lighthouses were featured. Be sure to go to Sturgeon Bay, as HL has made a miniature of one of the lights; and the other is a beautiful bright red with the black iron railings going out. Makes a neat picture. Cana Island is a very stately one to visit.

When you drive up from MO, take the route that will eventually get you over into Kenosha on Lake Michigan. There is at least one lighthouse there. Then go north up the shore a bit to north of Racine to beautiful Wind Point (a HL miniature also). Work your way up the shoreline as there are some along the way until you get into Door County, and there are many to see there. Some will require trips out to the islands. If you contact the CH. of Com. ask about the Lighthouse Walk weekend which occurs every spring, where there are organized trips and boat cruises which enable you to more easily visit some of these lights.

If you can manage the time, continue across the top of the state into Superior, and Duluth, MN, to see their lights. Then up the shoreline of Lake Superior, for several, including dramatic Split Rock up on the cliff (also an HL miniature) Lots to see. And don't forget to order your Lighthouse Passport, to get it stamped whenever you visit a light (sold as a fundraiser by the US Lighthouse Preservation Society out of San Francisco, CA

Please read my post above about how you can become a wacko, buy a pin, and help save a lighthouse.

If you want help in navigating around Chicago, e-mail me for info. I just did it this summer, took 2 and 1/2 hours to drive 14 miles on I-80) Study your map carefully and I will give you a route.

Keep the Flame, Ladylightkeeper

Welcome James, (and fiancee)

Sorry I'm late to welcome you but when you're in a buying frenzy, some things just come first. I've been in since the beginning of summer and I have NEVER seen so many helpful, friendly people in one place. Best of luck in your light hunting and your upcoming marriage.

Tony

James--a hearty welcome to you from "TheLightkeeper"

"TheLightkeeper"

Hi James & Karen, It is great to see that you both enjoy lighthouses and collecting Harbour Lights. Mary Jane (my wife) and I have found that it is a wonderful hobby and we also plan most of our vacations around places with lighthouses. It's nice to have you as part of the Harbour Lights family of collectors who post on these forums. I look forward to reading your posts in the future.

Ron
(CT Keeper)

James and Karen,
Something about seeing your first lighthouse to set you on fire for them. My first was St. Augustine, and now vacations are planned around the ones we can get to next. Happy hunting.

I had a belated reaction. My first lighthouse was Portland Head, but it wasn't until 3 years later when I went to Hilton Head (Sea Pines) that I caught the bug. That was in April of this year and since then I've taken 6 trips that were at least partially planned around seeing lighthouses. I am up to 48 at this point and will add more in Oct when I go to Cape May and at least Hereford Inlet in NJ.I've also bought way too many, well not quite enough, Harbour Lights since May. Dennis

Dennis,

You can never visit too many lighthouses or own too many HL! There will always be another one to visit in real life, or another older HL to acquire! Those lighthousing get-aways are great. Hope you have an enjoyable trip to Cape May.

Dave

Hi James,

How are things in the Ozarks. Should be starting to get cool there. I've been to your neck of the woods a few times, my parents lived in West Plains for about 10 years. Dad retired there. Beautiful country. Especially in the fall.

I have to agree with Dave H. You can't visit lighthouses enough and you can't own enough harbour lights. Welcome to the forums.

Dale

Welcome to the Forum, James. You will find a lot of info and a lot of friends here. There are a lot of very helpful folks here and they are all most friendly.
foghornkeeper