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Lighthouse News of the Week

News of the week October 14, 2022

“Demolition by neglect”: Historic 150-year-old Stepping Stones (NY) lighthouse could be lost without major restoration

LONG ISLAND, N.Y. — A Long Island lighthouse on the National Register of Historic Places could be lost. Preservationists warn that decades of decay could doom the 150-year-old Stepping Stones Lighthouse. 

Stepping Stones Lighthouse, photo by George Dorner

Corrective work was planned, but it’s on pause what the cost to taxpayers is assessed, CBS2’s Carolyn Gusoff reported Thursday. 

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‘Foreboding’ Sabine Pass (LA) Lighthouse was site of Civil War gunfight

Sabine Pass Lighthouse has its share of eerie paranormal sightings, which can be traced back to its usage during the Civil War.

Sabine Pass Lighthouse, USLHS archives

There have been claims made by lighthouse visitors that they see soldiers pacing from afar and guarding the lighthouse, the smell of campfire smoke and what sounds like glasses clinking.

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What can you learn from this New Canal (LA) lighthouse?

This teacher teaches you about the Louisiana coast.

New Canal Lighthouse, USLHS archives.

 WGNO Good Morning New Orleans features reporter Bill Wood says this lighthouse has a history.

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Anclote Key (FL) Lighthouse standing tall after 135 years, opens for visitors this weekend

TARPON SPRINGS — The Anclote Key Lighthouse still stands tall after 135 years, and it’s because of people like Babara Hoffman and Bobby Gause.

Anclote Key Lighthouse, photo by James Hill

They are both part of the Friends of Anclote Key State Park and Lighthouse.

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3 of Michigan’s most haunted lighthouses

As witnesses to centuries of Great Lakes history, Michigan’s lighthouses have plenty of stories within their walls — including some ghost stories, too.

Seul Choix Point Lighthouse, USLHS archives

Author and historian Dianna Higgs Stampfler has brought many of those stories to light in her books “Haunted Great Lakes Lighthouses” (2019) and “Death & Lighthouses of the Great Lakes: A History of Misfortune & Murder” (2022).

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Will Hudson-Athens (NY) Lighthouse be preserved?

A nearby community’s need to save a treasured asset brought an incumbent congressman and first-time candidate from neighboring districts together to come up with ways to work together and save it. 

Hudson-Athens Lighthouse, photo by Ralph Eshelman

The Hudson-Athens Lighthouse was approved by Congress in 1872 and was put into operation in 1874. It served a dire need to steer ships away from the navigational hazard known as the Middle Ground Flats. Now 148 years later, preserving the lighthouse serves a dual purpose. 

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Fall Harvest at Tawas Point (MI) Lighthouse offers family fun

EAST TAWAS — The grounds surrounding the Tawas Point Lighthouse were abuzz with spooky costumes and fun activities for those enjoying the weather and fall colors.

Tawas Point Lighthouse, photo by Chad Kaiser

Zimmel says the lighthouse is the reason the state of Michigan is where it is today. It was central to the economy. Today, lighthouses provide a historic and communal role for Michiganders.

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Looking Up Toward an Oct. 29 Barnegat (NJ) Lighthouse Relighting

Barnegat Lighthouse’s beacon will be relit on Saturday evening, Oct. 29, as part of an observance of the 10th anniversary of Superstorm Sandy.

Barnegat Lighthouse, photo by Ed Hewitt

Barnegat Lighthouse State Park is holding the relighting sometime between 6:45 and 7 p.m. during a campfire storytelling night that will continue from 6:45 to 9 p.m., park officials said.

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Today in history | Hampton’s Thimble Shoal (VA) Lighthouse was lit for the first time

The lighthouse sits at the southern end of the Chesapeake Bay and was nicknamed the “Bug Light” by Fort Monroe troops.

Thimble Shoal Lighthouse, photo by Mike & Carol McKinney

According to the Hampton History Museum, the lighthouse, which sits at the southern end of the Chesapeake Bay, alerted ships of the shallow waters at the mouth of the Hampton Roads harbor. 

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St. Augustine (FL) Lighthouse celebrates 148th birthday with boat launch

On Saturday, October 15, the St Augustine Lighthouse celebrates the 148th birthday of its initial lighting with the launch of a replica 1760 Royal Navy yawl boat built by the Heritage Boatworks volunteer program.

St. Augustine Lighthouse, USLHS archives

Historic City News subscribers can attend the Saturday launch at 1:00 p.m. at the Lighthouse Park boat ramp, located at 446 Ocean Vista Avenue, St. Augustine, FL 32080. Participating in the launch is the local reenactment crew of the HMS Belisarius along with reenactors from Fort Mose who will perform a militia muster.

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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

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