Join the Lilac Lighthouse Tender for its 89th birthday celebration and season opener on May 28.
The last of a dying breed, the Lilac is the only surviving steam-propelled lighthouse tender in America and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Lilac’s transformation into a museum ship recalls its former glory and breathes new life into the vessel that was launched in 1933. The Lilac is located at Pier 25 at Hudson River Park in Manhattan, New York.
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With gas prices soaring, a “Staycation” may be just for you this Memorial Day weekend. Sometimes we forget ,like Dorothy, “there’s no place home.”
From Art Deco buildings, an original Frank Lloyd Wright, there's a host of unique architectural treasures on Staten island. Discover miles of sandy shores at Staten Island. Explore 35 miles of coastline. Stroll along a 2.5 mile pier. Midland Beach and South Beach are popular destinations when the temperature heats up. South Beach’s Ocean Breeze fishing pier is one of the largest in New York City. Although the Coast Guard considers lighthouses excess property, abandoned lighthouses are not completely friendless. In every country there are many people who honor the relics of past adventures and who count aged light towers among their nation’s most important monuments.
In fact, lighthouses are enjoying a surge of popularity. They have been looked upon as romantic structures, representative of the very best instincts of humankind. Lighthouses have never had an image problem. Many people dream of buying lighthouses. These dreams aren’t far-fetched. Three Florida Lighthouses were recently put up for sale. The Sombrero Key Lighthouse was recently auctioned for $575,000, the Carysfort Reef Lighthouse sold for $415,000. The high bid for American Shoal Lighthouse is $700,000. Owning a lighthouse is no easy task. Lighthouses require expensive upkeep. The St. Augustine Lighthouse Tower is undergoing restoration despite being $400,000 short of funding the entire project. Outside, painting typically occurs every five to six years, but for the first time in 30 years, the inside of the St. Augustine Lighthouse is being restored. The full restoration project includes painting, metal and cast-iron work and rust removal. In addition, four steps will be replaced. elainemarieartist.com Encyclopedia of Lighthouses by Jay Jones. Lighthousefriends.com The state of Maine stirs up strong emotions among its residents. Imagine their shock when the State’s Historic Office approved the blowing up of one it’s historic landmarks.
When a team of military frogmen received permission from Maine’s State Historic Office to blow up a 1903 lighthouse keeper’s house, it sparked outrage and concern about the fate all Maine Lighthouse faced after being automated. While automation is cost effective, it takes its toll on historic lighthouses. Without keepers to watch over them, their windows, walls, and delicate lens have been damaged by the weather or vandalized. Some have deteriorated beyond repair. In the 1990s a group concerned largely with the culture and ecology of Maine’s rugged coastal island, entered negotiations with the Coast Guard about the future of some of Maine lighthouses. The highly innovative Maine Lights Program was the result. The Coast Guard agreed to make those lighthouses available to qualified nonprofits and other government agencies. The Maine Lights Program brought about the transfer of more than thirty lighthouses from federal ownership to local communities, other government agencies and nonprofit groups. Two years after the completion of the transfers, Congress passed the National Lighthouse Preservation Act. |
AuthorWhen I am not traveling to or painting lighthouses, I am writing or researching lighthouses. Archives
December 2022
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