St. Croix Island, Maine
The wind howled through the cracks as snow blew in, chilling the group of French settlers huddled together in their primitive buildings. Winter had come early to the tiny island named L’Isle Sainte Croix by its discoverer Pierre Dugua, Sieur de Monts when he landed in June of 1604. Hoping to establish a French settlement in the new world, he and the king’s geographer, Samuel de Champlain, had outfitted two ships with provisions for the 77 men that traveled with them across the ocean.
What they didn’t count on, however, was the poorly irrigated sandy soil on the island which didn’t sustain the crops they planted. As the water surrounding the island froze, the settlers were forced to live on melted snow water and salt meat.
Yet in even such dire conditions, the two Roman Catholic priests and the Protestant minister who accompanied the group conducted a Christmas service, committed to keep the French tradition.
Move forward 250 years to 1859 when the first lighthouse was built on St. Croix Island. The island sitting at the entrance to the mouth of the St. Croix River between the United States and Canada was the ideal place for a lighthouse. For a hundred years, American light keepers tended the light on the deserted island, the French settlement long since passed from existence. Light keepers like Elson Small and his wife Connie celebrated Christmas where the French had so many years before.
St. Croix Lighthouse, US Coast Guard photo
In 1959, the light station was automated and the keepers were removed. Twenty years later fire destroyed the buildings.
The island is now deserted with little evidence of its former inhabitants. Survivors from the early French settlement moved north to Nova Scotia, while the American light keepers returned to American mainland, taking with them the traditions of Christmas which are still enjoyed today.
Indeed, the things of this world will not last, but God’s story and His salvation through His son Jesus Christ will endure. Which of these are you placing your trust in?
“But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of His heart through all generations.” Psalm: 33:11
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