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Money for Oswego

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has awarded a nearly $5 million contract to Dean Marine & Excavating of Michigan to do major repair work on the foundation of the Oswego Harbor Breakwater Lighthouse and the stone breakwater that leads to it. Also known as the Oswego West Pierhead Lighthouse, the 1934 structure is located at the entrance to Oswego Harbor in Lake Ontario, in Oswego, New York. )

Piney Point Gets $1.9 Million

Maryland’s St. Mary’s County Department of Public Works is getting $1.9 million from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Emergency Coastal Resilience Fund to combat ongoing shoreline erosion and flooding issues along with habitat deficiencies, in order to protect the lighthouse and the six-acre-park area surrounding it. The 1836 Piney Point Light Station is located on the Potomac River in Piney Point, Maryland.

Hudson-Athens Needs Millions in Repairs

New York’s 1874 Hudson-Athens Lighthouse needs $6 million in underwater repairs. The lighthouse is held up by 200 underwater wooden pilings, that give the lighthouse the illusion of floating on water. A recent 159-page engineering study concluded that that the weight of the lighthouse on the old foundation could soon cause the entire structure to collapse into the water. The lighthouse, located in the Hudson River in Hudson, New York, is cared for by the nonprofit Hudson-Athens Lighthouse Preservation Society.

Presque Isle Light Gets Interior Facelift

The interior of the 1873 Presque Isle Lighthouse in Erie, Pennsylvania received a $70,000 facelift to bring it back to the era of 1900 to 1920 when Andrew Shaw Jr. was the station’s lighthouse keeper. However, they also blended in modern exhibits. (Photo by Jackie Tammaro)

Light’s Out at Cutler’s Little River Lighthouse

Concerned neighbors in Cutler, Maine, who have a direct view of Little River Lighthouse, have been reporting to the Coast Guard that the light has been out since at least early May. According to the Aids to Navigation Team who services the light from Southwest Harbor, the solar battery components need a part which the team has been waiting on from their approved supply source these many months. They said they could not put a temporary light in place because they “didn’t have one.” We wonder why the Coast Guard has no temporary beacons available for lights they maintain. (Photo by Kathleen Finnegan)

Money for Montauk

New York’s 225-year-old Montauk Point Lighthouse has received money for its $1.8 million restoration. Some of the recent donations that they have received are $390,700 from the Robert David Lion Gardiner Foundation; $250,000 from Northwell Health, $150,000 from part-time Montauk residents Maurice and Sarah Iudicone; and grants from New York State for $438,500. This money is going toward phase two of the restoration which is expected to be completed in 2023.

New Temporary Buoys for Portugal

As the demands for safety increase, so does the demand for temporary marker buoys. In many cases these temporary buoys mark critical or expensive infrastructure or a dangerous obstacle in a navigation channel. Contractors and those responsible for temporary markings usually will look for the lowest possible cost solution, which in many cases sacrifices performance and reliability.

Many of these low-cost solutions do not meet national authority requirements, as well as having insufficient visible area and focal plane, poor stability or lack of reserve buoyancy, cheap components and poor design, and low reliability.

With the aim of addressing these issues, Almarin has developed a new buoy, the B1250A, which is the most compact navigational aid in its Balizamar range. The Port Authority of Aveiro (Portugal) has acquired 30 units for the definitive marking of some of its navigation channels which have been successfully deployed by Almarin’s local partner Lindley.

Dawydko Family Lighthouse Gravestone

Lighthouse Digest subscribers Pauline and William Janish discovered this lighthouse tombstone in the Clarence Fillmore Cemetery in Clarence, New York. In checking around, they spoke to the son at the Anchor Acres Farm. He told them that his parents travelled all around the Great Lakes admiring lighthouses, hence the reason for the gravestone. They even had two old anchors on the lawn in front of their farmhouse at the Anchor Acres Farm.

In the Lantern at West Quoddy

You may not be able to clearly see her, but that’s Maggie Trovato of the Ellsworth American newspaper taking photos from inside the lantern, standing next to the 3rd order Fresnel lens of Maine’s West Quoddy Head Lighthouse. The historic lens, referred to as “the jewel of the lighthouse,” has been in service since 1858. Ms. Trovato was at the lighthouse to do a story on the 600,000th visitor to the lighthouse since the visitor center and museum opened 20 years ago in the former keepers’ house.

Hallmark Lighthouse Christmas Ornament

Hallmark has announced that its 2022 Holiday Lighthouse Keepsake Ornament is designed after Holland, Michigan’s Big Red Lighthouse. This is the 11th year that Hallmark has issued a Christmas lighthouse ornament. The ornament is available at Hallmark stores and online at the Hallmark website. Previous years’ ornaments are now selling anywhere from $69 to $198 each.

$800,000 for Muskegon

Michigan’s Muskegon South Breakwater Lighthouse has been allotted $800,000 in the state’s 2023 budget for the restoration of the lighthouse. However, Jeff Shook of the Michigan Lighthouse Conservancy, said it will take an additional $200,000 to restore the historic structure; money he is now trying to raise. The work is expected to be done next year.

Products with Lighthouses

It’s always nice when we learn about a product that uses a lighthouse to promote a brand. This soup and oyster crackers packaging was sent to us by Lighthouse Digest subscriber Bob Lamb who purchased the crackers at a store in Lincoln, Nebraska. The crackers are distributed by Big Lot Stores, Inc.

Tybee Island Lighthouse Plate

After a two-year-long legislative process, Georgia’s Tybee Island Lighthouse is now available on a specialty license plate. However, state officials have said that 500 of these plates need to be purchased each year in order to keep the new plate in production. A number of states now have specialty lighthouse license plates. If you live in one of them, be sure to order your plate to help promote lighthouses and everything that they stand for.

Celebrating the 30th Year Edition

Lighthouse Digest subscriber Grant Holmstrom, who is obviously a lighthouse enthusiast, is shown here reading the 30th year edition of Lighthouse Digest. Thanks to all of you who took the time to write or email us to congratulate us on 30 years of publishing America’s only lighthouse magazine.

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This story appeared in the Sep/Oct 2022 edition of Lighthouse Digest Magazine. The print edition contains more stories than our internet edition, and each story generally contains more photographs - often many more - in the print edition. For subscription information about the print edition, click here.

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