Lighthouse keeper
Encyclopedia
Lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses or, in older times, from a fire, and used as an aid to navigation for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways....
, particularly the light and lens in the days when oil lamps and clockwork mechanisms were used. Keepers were needed to trim the wicks, replenish fuel, wind clockworks and perform maintenance tasks such as cleaning lenses and windows. Electrification and other automated improvements such as remote monitoring and automatic bulb changing made paid keepers resident at the lights unnecessary. In the US, periodic maintenance of the lights is now performed by visiting Coast Guard
United States Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...
Aids to Navigation teams.
The last civilian keeper in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Frank Schubert
Frank Schubert
Frank Schubert was the last civilian lighthouse keeper in the United States.Schubert worked for the United States Coast Guard since 1939; at the time of his death he was serving at the Coney Island Lighthouse in Sea Gate, Brooklyn, New York, where he had worked since 1960.He maintained the grounds...
, died in 2003. The last officially manned lighthouse, Boston Light
Boston Light
Boston Light is a lighthouse located on Little Brewster Island in outer Boston Harbor, Massachusetts. The first lighthouse to be built on the site dates back to 1716, and was the first lighthouse to be built in what is now the United States...
, was manned by the Coast Guard
United States Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...
until 1998. It now has volunteer "keepers" whose primary role is to serve as interpretive tour guides for visitors.
Recognition
To recognize the role of Lighthouse keepers in the nation's maritime safety, the US Coast Guard named a class of 175 feet (53.3 m) USCG Coastal Buoy Tenders after famous US Lighthouse Keepers. Fourteen ships in the "Keeper" class were built between 1996 and 2000 and are used to maintain aids to navigation, including lighthouses. The following 175 feet (53.3 m) WLMs are in service as of 2006:- USCGC Ida LewisIda Lewis (lighthouse keeper)Idawalley Zorada Lewis was an American lighthouse keeper noted for her heroism.-Biography:...
(WLM-551); Newport, Rhode IslandNewport, Rhode IslandNewport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War... - USCGC Katherine WalkerKatherine WalkerKatherine "Katie" Walker was an American lighthouse keeper.She tended the Robbins Reef Light in New York Harbor for many years after the death of her husband, John, who had been appointed keeper of the light in 1883. In 1886, John Walker died from pneumonia.-Legacy:A United States Coast Guard...
(WLM-552); Bayonne, New JerseyBayonne, New JerseyBayonne is a city in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. Located in the Gateway Region, Bayonne is a peninsula that is situated between Newark Bay to the west, the Kill van Kull to the south, and New York Bay to the east... - USCGC Abbie BurgessAbbie BurgessAbbie Burgess was an American lighthouse keeper known for her bravery in tending the Matinicus Rock Light, in Maine, during a raging winter storm in 1856. She tended the light for nearly a month while her father, the head keeper, was away from the island...
(WLM-553); Rockland, MaineRockland, MaineRockland is a city in Knox County, Maine, in the United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 7,297. It is the county seat of Knox County. The city is a popular tourist destination... - USCGC Marcus HannaMarcus Hanna (lighthouse keeper)Marcus Aurelius Hanna was an American lighthouse keeper famous for his heroism.-Biography:Hanna was born in Bristol, Maine, the son of the keeper of the Franklin Island Light. He spent his early years at the station before going off to sea at the age of ten. By 18 he had risen to the position of...
(WLM-554); South Portland, MaineSouth Portland, MaineSouth Portland is a city in Cumberland County, Maine, United States, and is the fourth-largest city in the state. Founded in 1895, as of the 2010 census, the city population was 25,002. Known for its working waterfront, South Portland is situated on Portland Harbor and overlooks the skyline of... - USCGC James Rankin (WLM-555); Baltimore, Maryland
- USCGC Joshua ApplebyJoshua ApplebeyJoshua Appleby was an American lighthouse keeper remembered for having lost his life in the Great Havana Hurricane of 1846....
(WLM-556); St. Petersburg, FloridaSt. Petersburg, FloridaSt. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. It is known as a vacation destination for both American and foreign tourists. As of 2008, the population estimate by the U.S. Census Bureau is 245,314, making St... - USCGC Frank DrewFrank Drew (lighthouse keeper)Frank Albert Drew was a lighthouse keeper. He was Assistant Keeper Pilot Island Light from 1899 to 1903, First Assistant Keeper, Green Island Light-Station from 1903 to 1909, and Keeper of Green Island Light-Station from 1904 to 1929....
(WLM-557); Portsmouth, VirginiaPortsmouth, VirginiaPortsmouth is located in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area of the U.S. Commonwealth of Virginia. As of 2010, the city had a total population of 95,535.The Norfolk Naval Shipyard, often called the Norfolk Navy Yard, is a historic and active U.S... - USCGC Anthony PetitAnthony PetitAnthony Petit was an American lighthouse keeper. In 1945 he was assigned to the Scotch Cap Light in Alaska as the head of a five-man crew...
(WLM-558);Ketchikan, AlaskaKetchikan, AlaskaKetchikan is a city in Ketchikan Gateway Borough, Alaska, United States, the southeasternmost sizable city in that state. With an estimated population of 7,368 in 2010 within the city limits, it is the fifth most populous city in the state.... - USCGC Barbara MabrityBarbara MabrityBarbara Mabrity was an American lighthouse keeper.Mabrity and her husband, Michael, were assigned to be the keepers of Key West Light in 1826. Michael died of yellow fever in 1832, at which point Barbara was formally appointed to take his place. She maintained the light through hurricanes which...
(WLM-559); Mobile, AlabamaMobile, AlabamaMobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest... - USCGC William TateWilliam Tate (lighthouse keeper)Capt. William J. Tate was the North Landing Lighthouse keeper from 1915 to 1939. He was also an aviation pioneer having helped the Wright Brothers assemble their aircraft at Kill Devil Hill on the Outer Banks....
(WLM-560); Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia, PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,... - USCGC Harry ClaiborneHarry C. ClaiborneHarry C. Claiborne was an American lighthouse keeper.-Biography:He was born in January 1859 in New Orleans. He began his career as assistant keeper of the Southwest Pass Light in Louisiana in 1887. In 1889 he was made head keeper of the Pass a l'Outre Light. In 1895 he was transferred to the...
(WLM-561); Galveston, TexasGalveston, TexasGalveston is a coastal city located on Galveston Island in the U.S. state of Texas. , the city had a total population of 47,743 within an area of... - USCGC Maria BrayMaria BrayMaria Bray was a 19th-century American maritime heroine of an incident during the first days of winter in late 1864.Bray was married to Alexander Bray, the lighthouse keeper at Thacher Island Light, off Rockport on Massachusetts' Cape Ann...
(WLM-562); Atlantic Beach, FloridaAtlantic Beach, FloridaAtlantic Beach, a city in Duval County, Florida, is the northernmost of the Jacksonville Beaches communities. When the majority of communities in Duval County consolidated with Jacksonville, Florida in 1968, Atlantic Beach, along with Jacksonville Beach, Neptune Beach, and Baldwin, Florida,... - USCGC Henry BlakeHenry Blake (lighthouse keeper)Henry Blake was the first New Dungeness Lighthouse keeper.A USCG Coastal Buoy Tender WLM-563 based in Everett, Washington is named after him.-External links:*http://www.uscg.mil/hq/g-a/awl/bclass/wlm/hblakebio.htm*...
(WLM-563); Everett, WashingtonEverett, WashingtonEverett is the county seat of and the largest city in Snohomish County, Washington, United States. Named for Everett Colby, son of founder Charles L. Colby, it lies north of Seattle. The city had a total population of 103,019 at the 2010 census, making it the 6th largest in the state and... - USCGC George Cobb (WLM-564); San Pedro, California
Further reading
- Crompton, Samuel Willard & Michael J. Rhein, The Ultimate Book of Lighthouses (2002) ISBN 1-59223-102-0.
- Hyde, Charles K., and Ann and John Mahan. The Northern Lights: Lighthouses of the Upper Great Lakes. Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 1995. ISBN 0-8143-2554-8
- Jones, Ray & Bruce Roberts, American Lighthouses (Globe Pequot, September 1, 1998, 1st Ed.) ISBN 0-7627-0324-5.
- Jones, Ray, The Lighthouse Encyclopedia, The Definitive Reference (Globe Pequot, January 1, 2004, 1st ed.) ISBN 0-7627-2735-7.
- Noble, Dennis, Lighthouses & Keepers: U. S. Lighthouse Service and Its Legacy (Annapolis: U. S. Naval Institute Press, 1997. ISBN 1-55750-638-8.
- Oleszewski, Wes, Great Lakes Lighthouses, American and Canadian: A Comprehensive Directory/Guide to Great Lakes Lighthouses. Gwinn, Michigan: Avery Color Studios, Inc., 1998. ISBN 0-932212-98-0.
- Penrod, John, Lighthouses of Michigan (Berrien Center, Michigan: Penrod/Hiawatha, 1998) ISBN 0-942618-78-5.
- Penrose, Laurie and Bill, A Traveler's Guide to 116 Michigan Lighthouses. Petoskey, Michigan: Friede Publications, 1999. ISBN 0-923756-03-5.
- Putnam, George R., Lighthouses and Lightships of the United States. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1933).
- Roach, Jerry, Ultimate Guide to Great Lakes Lighthouses, (2003).
- Thurston, Harry, Against Darkness and Storm: Lighthouses of the Northeast. Halifax: Nimbus, 1993. ISBN 1-55109-039-2.
- United States Coast Guard, Aids to Navigation, (Washington, DC: U. S. Government Printing Office, 1945).
- Wagner, John L., Michigan Lighthouses: An Aerial Photographic Perspective. East Lansing, Michigan: John L. Wagner, 1998. ISBN 1-880311-01-1.
- Weiss, George, The Lighthouse Service, Its History, Activities and Organization (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press, 1926).
- Wright, Larry; Wright, Patricia, Great Lakes Lighthouses Encyclopedia. Erin: Boston Mills Press, 2006. ISBN 1-55046-399-3.