Merry Christmas! May your heart be filled with the love and joy of the one true light. I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. John 8:12 "Take Out Window" by Charles Wysocki.
Alcatraz Island and Lighthouse today, photo courtesy NPS The name “Alcatraz” brings to mind the notorious federal penitentiary from 1934 to 1963, home to noted criminals like Al Capone and Machine Gun Kelly. The prison was considered impossible to escape, with its position on a remote island in the San Francisco Bay. Of [...]
Thacher Island Twin Lights, photo courtesy Lighthousefrinds.com In 1864, a few days before Christmas, Maria Bray, wife of head lighthouse keeper of the Thacher Island Twin Lights, Alexander Bray, was in the keeper’s house, planning for the special day. She thought about what she’d prepare for Christmas dinner while she knitted a pair [...]
Bishop Rock, photo by Richard Knights, Creative Commons Have you ever wondered what it was like to be a lighthouse keeper at Christmas at one of the isolated lighthouses in the middle of the water? Here’s a story about how some lighthouse keepers in the United Kingdom spent Christmas. It was [...]
"The people walking in darkness have seen a great light." Isaiah 9:2 The light of the world has come! Merry Christmas!
A Present for the Sentinel by Charles Wysocki How did the lighthouse keepers get their Christmas packages delivered? Most were sent by ship because there were often no roads to the lighthouses, or if there were, they might be impassable during part of the year. Our lighthouse keeper in this picture by [...]
Les Casquets Lighthouse, photo by Juan Gutierrez Andres, courtesy of Wikipedia Commons. One of the blessings of writing about lighthouses is meeting other people who love lighthouses, especially those who work with them. Since there are few lighthouses that still employ keepers, it is quite a pleasure to meet a [...]
Hello Lighthouse Enthusiasts and Readers, I owe you big time. Please accept my apologies for not posting on this site as often as I used to. Believe me, I've wanted to, but other commitments have prevented me from doing so, and since it takes a lot of time for me to research each story, the [...]
Needles Lighthouse off the Isle of Wight, UK Over the past five years, I've gained somewhat of a reputation as the "lighthouse lady," the one who blogs about lighthouses and puts them in her novels. I'm by no means an expert, but I do love lighthouses and love to research them. What I [...]
Moose Peak Lighthouse (Mistake Island) Photo courtesy T.Bruce Jeffries and lighthousefriends.com. One day in 1905, the MacDonald brothers, both ministers, stood on top of Cadillac Mountain on Mount Desert Island, Maine. As they scanned the island-laden coastline, Alexander suddenly slapped his brother on the shoulder and exclaimed, “Angus, what a parish this would [...]
Diamondhead Lighthouse, Hawaii, photo courtesy lighthousefriends.com. Currituck Beach Lighthouse, photo by Rick Anderson Old Mission Point, MI Winter Island Light, Salem, MA Edgartown Lighthouse, Martha's Vineyard, MA "The people living in [...]
Cuttyhunk Lighthouse, 1891, photo courtesy US Coast Guard In August, 1944, the family of Cuttyhunk, Massachusetts Lighthouse Keeper Octave Ponsart planned a joint birthday and beach party to celebrate the birthday of Uncle Gene and cousin Connie. Due to sugar rationing, Mrs. Ponsart spent weeks saving enough sugar to make birthday cakes for [...]
Lately, I've read several lists of gifts for writers. While they may be practical, useful, and appreciated, I thought of several other things I'd like to have. Of course, being a writer, my imagination does sometimes run away with itself, so I realize the gifts on this wish list might be a bit difficult to [...]