Digest>Jul/Aug 2018

Photo Caption:

The 1894 Wolf Trap Lighthouse in the Chesapeake Bay near Mathews, Virginia as it appeared in 1955 when Floyd Earl Crewe served there as the last civilian lighthouse keeper of the light from 1954 to 1968 when he retired. John Filmore Hudgins also served at Wolf Trap Lighthouse, but much earlier, from 1908 to 1909. On the lower level of Wolf Trap Lighthouse were two diesel generators and a bank of 12 batteries. The second level contained a combination kitchen-dining room and communications center, which housed the radio beacon clocks and distance finding station. The third level was taken up by three bedrooms, including keeper Crewe’s combination bedroom office. As befitting his position, Crewe’s room had a single bed, while the other two contained double-decked iron bunks. One time keeper Crewe and his men launched the 24-foot lighthouse boat to search for cabin cruiser that had been reported floundering in the area. The cruiser was still afloat when they found it, but just barely. There were two persons onboard; a man and a women. Crewe recalled, “The woman was sitting on the bow of the boat with a fifth of vodka in her hand. I guess she figured if she had to go, that was the best way.” When a reporter asked keeper Crewe if the couple were grateful for their rescue, he said that they were - until they found out that their names had go into his official report. It seems that although the two of them were married, they were not married to each other. (Lighthouse Digest archives.)
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Story:

Grave Markers Placed by Chesapeake Group
Back to the edition of: Jul/Aug 2018

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