Episode 106 – Halfway Rock is a windswept, rocky ledge far out in Maine’s Casco Bay, about nine miles east of Portland Head. A 76-foot granite lighthouse tower was built on the ledge in the summer of 1871. It’s now privately owned and has been restored in recent years. Tim Bailey joined the Coast Guard after graduating from high school. In this interview, he discusses his experiences as a light keeper in the early 1970s at Halfway Rock and Seguin Island. Joining in on the interview is Ford Reiche, the owner of Halfway Rock Lighthouse. Also in this episode: another installment of “Photo Tips with Mike Leonard.” Mike discusses night photography of lighthouses.
Episode 107 – Dan Spinella began his Fresnel lens research and restoration work in 1992, and Dan’s company, Artworks Florida, began creating full-scale reproduction Fresnel lenses in 2004. To date, 40 reproduction Fresnel lenses have been manufactured. Some of his lenses are installed in lighthouses as aids to navigation and some are on exhibit in lighthouse museums across the country. Also in this episode: Alan Dunlop is one of the UK’s leading architects and a respected educator. Last year, when the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted his work, he created a visual diary of his family’s life during lockdown. For his latest sketches, he’s focused on the Scottish lighthouses designed by the famous Stevenson family of engineers. U.S. Lighthouse Society Executive Director Jeff Gales co-hosts this episode.
Episode 108 –Tybee Island’s Lighthouse is the oldest and tallest in Georgia, and it’s one of the most intact historic light stations in the U.S. A lighthouse at Tybee Island has been guiding shipping into the river since 1791. Under the guidelines of the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act, the Tybee Island Light Station became the property of the Tybee Island Historical Society in 2002. The Tybee Island Historical Society’s board named Sarah Jones their new executive director in 2014. In 2019, Sarah authored a book of historical postcards of Tybee Island for Arcadia Press.
Episode 109 –The brightly striped red and white tower on Sambro Island, near Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, is the oldest lighthouse in the Americas. The first act passed by the Nova Scotia House of Assembly, on October 2, 1758, authorized the lighthouse. The Nova Scotia Lighthouse Preservation Society succeeded in having the lighthouse designated as a classified federal heritage building in 1996. A major restoration project was carried out in 2016. Joe Flemming is a past president of the Nova Scotia Lighthouse Preservation Society, and he has played a large role in the preservation of Sambro Lighthouse. Chris Mills is a former lighthouse keeper and the author of two books on lighthouses and keepers, and he was a founding member of the Nova Scotia Lighthouse Preservation Society.
Episode 110 – Sandy Neck is a half-mile wide, six-mile long peninsula on the north side of Cape Cod, marking the entrance to Barnstable Harbor as well as the approach to the small harbor at Yarmouthport. A light station at the eastern tip of Sandy Neck went into service on October 1, 1826. The original lighthouse was replaced in 1857 by the 48-foot brick tower that still stands. the property was sold at auction in 1933, and it was bought by the Hinckley family in 1950. Since 2000, Ken Morton has managed the light station for the family.
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Jeremy D’Entremont is the author of more than 20 books and hundreds of articles on lighthouses and maritime history. He is the president and historian for 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 podcast, “Light Hearted.” He can be emailed at Jeremy@uslhs.org