Presque Isle Lighthouse (PA) is getting a facelift
The interior of the Presque Isle Lighthouse is getting a $70,000 facelift. Not since it was built in 1872 has the Presque Isle Lighthouse undergone extensive interior restoration. Previous restoration efforts have focused on the exterior of the lighthouse and its grounds. Now, Executive Director Emily Butler believes it’s time to turn attention to the inside.
The Presque Isle Light Station board wants to preserve the lighthouse to what Butler referred to as the “period of significance,” or 1900 to 1920 when Andrew Shaw Jr., the light station’s longest-tenured keeper, kept watch.
* * *
Point Bonita Lighthouse (CA) tour to begin charging fees
Evening tours of the Point Bonita Lighthouse could return as soon as May this year, allowing visitors a chance to see the historic lighthouse in action after sunset, but for the first time, the park is adding a fee for the tour.
The Golden Gate National Recreation Area announced it will begin charging or raising its parking fees at two other locations within the park to generate revenue for its operations.
* * *
Lighthouse preservationist and Egmont Key (FL) champion was a ‘fierce defender of history’
After he found the pattern for the old lighthouse keeper’s uniform, Richard Johnson’s wife went to a tailor, and soon, with his grandfather’s spectacles, Johnson was clothed in history. For several years, he dressed as an 1898 Egmont Key lighthouse keeper, greeting visitors who came annually to get to know the historic spot at the mouth of Tampa Bay that he and other volunteers fought to protect and keep open to the public. Johnson died unexpectedly Jan. 24, at age 75.
Dressed as the lighthouse keeper, Johnson shared the history of the place and the people who hauled oil up the spiral steps and kept the flames burning for generations. He answered questions. He posed for pictures. He told his wife he understood how Disney characters felt.
* * *
Door County Lighthouse Festival (WI) announced
The Door County Lighthouse Festival weekend (June 10-12) includes air, land-based, boat, and adventure tours that together reach all 11 of the historic lighthouses of Door County and 3 to the south. Many of the tours are unique to the Lighthouse Festival weekend, and provide visitors exclusive access to lighthouses not typically open to the public. There are tours for all levels of activity and accessibility. Boat tours depart from a variety of locations around the Peninsula. Ticket sales support the Door County Maritime Museum & Lighthouse Preservation Society. All tours sell out, so buy tickets early!
Click here for more info and tickets
* * *
Notice of Availability published for Keweenaw Lower Entrance Light, Michigan
On March 22, a Notice of Availability on the Keweenaw Lower Entrance Light on Lake Superior, announced the light has been determined to be excess to the needs of the U.S. Coast Guard, Department of Homeland Security. Pursuant to the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act of 2000, 4 U.S.C.305102 (NHLPA), this property is now being made available at no cost to eligible entities.
Click here for more information
* * *
Volunteers Needed at Twin Lights Historic Site (NJ)
The New Jersey State Park Service’s Twin Lights Historic Site will open its doors to visitors seven days a week this summer, increasing the need for volunteers, the Twin Lights Historical Society is inviting those interested in volunteering to attend the historical society’s annual Volunteers Day on Saturday, April 23, from 10 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
* * *
U.S. Lighthouse Society News is produced by the U.S. Lighthouse Society to support lighthouse preservation, history, education and research.
If you have items of interest to the lighthouse community and its supporters, please email them to Jeremy D’Entremont at Jeremy@uslhs.org
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