With its harbor at the mouth of the Pequonnock River, Bridgeport, Connecticut, became a center of trade, shipbuilding, and whaling. This episode of Light Hearted features two interviews related to the history of lighthouses in the vicinity of Bridgeport, with Bruce Williams and Phil Blagys.
National Archives image 26-LG-11-22.
Captain’s Cove Seaport is a major attraction in Bridgeport, with a marina, restaurant, bar, fishing charters, and more. Bruce Williams is the son of Kaye Williams, founder of Captain’s Cove Seaport. Bruce is also a historian of the local area and the co-author of the book Bridgeport on the Sound.
Bridgeport’s Black Rock Harbor is sheltered by Fayerweather Island, which made the island an ideal place for a lighthouse to mark the harbor entrance. The island’s longtime nineteenth century keeper, Kate Moore, was credited with saving at least 21 lives. The lighthouse received a recent facelift thanks to the efforts of the City of Bridgeport and the Black Rock Community Council. Phil Blagys is a past president of the Black Rock Community Council and chair of the Black Rock Community Council History Program.
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U.S. Lighthouse Society Historian Jeremy D’Entremont is the author of 24 books and hundreds of articles on lighthouses and maritime history. He is a past president of the American Lighthouse Foundation and founder of Friends of Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouses, and he has lectured and narrated cruises throughout the Northeast and in other regions. He is also the producer and host of the U.S. Lighthouse Society’s weekly podcast, “Light Hearted.” He can be emailed at Jeremy@uslhs.org