August 7, 2021
Last year most lighthouses were closed like many other public venues due to the Covid scare.
But this year, lighthouses have re-opened, giving us a chance to observe these icons of history in person.
If last year has taught us anything, it’s that we should take advantage of opportunities we have while we can. The people (mostly volunteers) and entities that maintain these lighthouses do so out of love for them, and the upkeep of these lighthouses relies on donations and visitor tours.
Ponce de Leon Inlet Lighthouse. Photo by Chuck Turk
How many lighthouses are in your state? Have you seen or climbed them all? Do you have a favorite? Even though I’ve visited over 100 lighthouses myself, I hate to admit I still haven’t seen all the lighthouses in my own state, but I’m working on it, having visited the Key West Lighthouse a few months ago. In celebration of lighthouses, today I’m posting pictures of some of the lighthouses I’ve visited. I’d love to hear which ones you have.
Au Sable Lighthouse, MI, photo by Chuck Turk
Boston Light with Fog Bell, photo by Logan Lyttle
Montauk Lighthouse, photo by Chuck Turk
New Canal Lighthouse, Flickr, Creative Commons
Key West Lighthouse, photo by Chuck Turk 2020
Cape Hatteras Lighthouse
North Point Lighthouse, WI, photo by Rosemary O’Connor
Point Betsie Lighthouse, MI, photo by Chuck Turk
Beavertail Lighthouse, RI, photo by Chuck Turk
Sand Hills Lighthouse, photo by Chuck Turk
Little River Light, lantern room, photo by Chuck Turk
Crisp Point Lighthouse, MI, Photo by Chuck Turk
Currituck Lighthouse, photo by Chuck Turk
Dearest Marilyn,
My most favorite light is the one nearest and dearest to my home. Marblehead Lighthouse sits on a very rocky outcropping on Sanduskey Bay. This beautiful gal is the oldest continually operating light on this side of the Great Lakes. The limestone tower was built in 1820. Her Fresnel Lens was first lit in 1822. She is 49 feet tall and makes her home in the Marblehead Lighthouse State Park on the Marblehead Peninsula.
This fine Lady has protected sailors from the dangerous rocky shore since her light first was lit. Marblehead Lighthouse has also been featured on a U.S. postage stamp when a series was created by an artist. Marblehead is the closest light to my childhood home in Ohio. If you are familiar with Cedar Point Amusement Park you can see it from the shore of the lighthouse. The light is open for tours and the lightkeeper’s home is also open and houses a lovely museum of fine artifacts from the keeper’s family legacy.
If you ever have the opportunity to tour this magnificent lighthouse be sure to visit this treasure.
I still haven’t made it to that one yet, but I hope to! Thanks, Pamela.
What great pictures. I have been to a few of the ones you posted. Not as many as you, though.
My favorite lighthouse is the Au Sable in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. I’m prejudiced since that’s my birth state and where I grew up. I was a teenager when I climbed the many, many stairs up the tower. Love the views of our lovely Lake Superior and the Great Pictured Rocks park. Would love to go back n see it now. I loved seeing all your different sites n lighthouses. They’re very majestic in their own way.