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Lighthouse News of the Week – October 30, 2020

Emergency crews help two people stranded at Cleveland Ledge Lighthouse (MA) after their boat drifted

Cleveland Ledge Lighthouse, Massachusetts (Mattapoisett Fire Rescue)

Emergency crews assisted two people who became stranded at a lighthouse in Buzzards Bay after their boat drifted on Thursday. Buzzards Bay Marine Task Force and additional agencies responded to the Cleveland Ledge Lighthouse around 7:40 p.m., where they removed one of the stranded people. The second person decided to stay at the lighthouse, according to the Mattapoisett Harbormaster.

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The town says Graves Lighthouse is part of Hull, the owner says it isn’t in any town in Massachusetts

Graves Lighthouse, sitting about nine miles off the coast of Boston, has been around since 1905. The town that it’s part of, however, hasn’t become an issue until recently. Dave Waller bought the lighthouse in 2013 at auction and has been renovating it ever since. It wasn’t until five years into the project, however, that he claims he was hit with a $3,000 property tax bill from the town of Hull.

Graves Lighthouse; photo by Jeremy D’Entremont
Dave Waller; photo by Jeremy D’Entremont

“When we bought the place we hired a land attorney to see what the jurisdictions were and check with all the towns, and he couldn’t come up with anything about where we were,” Waller said. “On the deed that we bought the place from the government, it said it was on unincorporated State waters, so we kind of took it at that.”

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Click here to hear Graves Lighthouse owner Dave Waller interviewed in the USLHS podcast “Light Hearted”

Dave Waller interview part 2

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Biloxi (MS) Lighthouse Pier wrecked by Hurricane Zeta

A big tourist attraction in Biloxi, Mississippi, has been wrecked by Hurricane Zeta. There is little left of the Biloxi Lighthouse pier after tidal surge ripped through the area.

Biloxi Lighthouse, MS. USLHS photo by Tom Tag.

Click here for a video news report

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Photo Gallery: Toledo (OH) Lighthouse Restoration

Historic Toledo Harbor Lighthouse is being restored by the Toledo Harbor Lighthouse Preservation Society. Windows and shutters are being installed on the first and second floors. Brick work is being done. The first phase of the restoration will cost $638,000. A grant of  $500,000 from Lucas County and the Ohio Department of Transportation, along with $20,000 from Cleveland Cliffs, is funding that work. Total restoration cost is estimated at $2.5 million.

Toledo Harbor Lighthouse. U.S. Lighthouse Society photo.

Click here for a photo gallery

Click here for an interview with Sandy Bihn, president of the Toledo Harbor Lighthouse Preservation Society

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“Lighthouse Sunset Experience” in Key West, FL

Key West Lighthouse, photo by Jeremy D’Entremont

The Key West Art & Historical Society, which operates the Lighthouse Museum & Keeper’s Quarters in Key West, Florida, is making the top of the lighthouse available for rent for a champagne sunset gathering that can accommodate up to six people at a time.

The new Lighthouse Sunset Experience is available for 90 minutes, 45 minutes before and after the scheduled sunset.

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Cape George Lighthouse (NS) and Annandale Rear Range Lighthouse (PEI) are now protected under Canada’s Heritage Lighthouse Protection Act

Annandale Rear Range Lighthouse, PEI. Photo by Dennis Jarvis

Yesterday, the Minister of Environment and Climate Change and Minister responsible for Parks Canada, Jonathan Wilkinson, announced the designation of Cape George Lighthouse (Bras d’Or Lake) in St. Peter’s, Nova Scotia, and Annandale Rear Range Lighthouse in Annandale, Prince Edward Island, as heritage lighthouses under Canada’s Heritage Lighthouse Protection Act. With these new designations, a total of 102 lighthouses in eight provinces have now been protected under the Heritage Lighthouse Protection Act.

The Government of Canada continues to work in close collaboration with community groups and other levels of government to facilitate the designation of heritage lighthouses and ensure their protection.

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Santa Cruz (CA) Surfing Museum is open to public again

Santa Cruz Surfing Museum in Santa Cruz’s Mark Abbott Memorial Lighthouse has reopened. The museum had been closed since shelter-in-place orders began in March.

Mark Abbott Memorial Lighthouse/Santa Cruz Surfing Museum.
Photo by Jeremy D’Entremont.

Click here for details

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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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