Revisit to St Simons Lighthouse, St Simons Island, Georgia

Didn't have the stamp for this location, so went back and got it today.....


Also picked up several historical markers around the area. 

The beautiful two-story, brick keepers' dwelling and the white, 104-foot tower on St. Simons Island today seem like the idyllic light station, but such was not always the case. The station was considered isolated before being linked to the mainland, and one of the head keepers was murdered on the lighthouse grounds. In addition, stagnant ponds on the island provided the perfect breeding grounds for disease-carrying mosquitoes, which led to the death of two men overseeing construction of the lighthouse.

Congress appropriated $7,000 on March 16, 1804 for a lighthouse on Saint Simons Island, and John Couper, owner of a plantation on the southern end of the island, sold four acres of his land to the government later that year for a token sum of one dollar. Couper was anxious that a lighthouse be built on the island to aid commerce in the Brunswick area.

The original appropriation reverted to the treasury in 1806, but Congress provided the much larger sum of $19,000 on March 3, 1807 for the project. In April of 1807, Couper's plan of getting a lighthouse on his property seemed to have worked as a notice appeared in the Savannah Advertiser soliciting a builder with sufficient skills to erect a lighthouse on the southern end of St. Simons Island. The plans called for a lighthouse constructed of brick in the form of an octagon, supported by a stone foundation and secured by a substantial panel door with iron hinges.

James Gould, newly arrived from New England, answered the ad and suggested that the tower be constructed of tabby, a local building material made from a mixture of lime, water, sand and oyster shells, and that some other minor alterations to the design be made. Gould's suggestions were accepted, and he was awarded the contract.

Gould used the ruins of Fort Frederica, which was built on the island in 1736, as a source for the tabby, and completed the seventy-five-foot tower in late 1810 at a cost of $13,775. Oil lamps suspended on chains served as the original light source.

With St. Simons Lighthouse finished, Gould was now out of work, but the following excerpt from a letter exchanged between two of his sisters reveals his time at the lighthouse was not yet done.

James has been officially appointed Keeper of the Light by President Madison, at a salary of $400 a year. The appointment came 4 May and he was, in spite of the small pay, plainly pleased to be trusted with the keeping of his beloved lighthouse. He appears also proud of the tower, so far, but what he insists is my discontent, I feel is somehow his own. I simply try to make him laugh and attempt to understand what it is he really wants to do with his life once the lighthouse is completed and he has been its keeper long enough to be satisfied that the lantern and all else is in order.

Apparently Gould was not too discontented with his life at the lighthouse as he served as keeper for twenty-seven years.

A residence was evidently not built with the lighthouse as James Gould was paid $1,700 in 1830 to build a keeper's dwelling. In 1838, it was noted that the tower's eight-inch reflectors were too small. This problem was corrected in 1847 when nine lamps with fourteen-inch reflectors were installed in the lantern room. In 1856, the lighthouse was outfitted with a third-order Fresnel lens.

When Confederate troops abandoned the island in 1862, they dynamited the tower and keeper's cottage, so they would not benefit Union forces.

Following the Civil War, noted Georgia architect Charles B. Cluskey drew up plans for a new lighthouse and dwelling on the island for which Congress had appropriated $45,000 on March 2, 1867. In the fall of 1869, a contract for the project was awarded to the lowest bidder with a completion date around the middle of the following year. Difficulties in procuring materials and landing them at the site resulted in the completion date being pushed back to November 1, 1870, but even this date would prove too ambitious. During the summer months, there was a great deal of sickness at the site, and the contractor fell ill and died. One of the contractor's bondsmen stepped in to complete the work, but he also passed away at the lighthouse.

The surviving bondsman stepped in in November 1871, when the lighthouse stood at fifty-one feet, and over the next several months managed to complete the impressive Victorian duplex and 104-foot tower. The light from a third-order, L. Sautter Fresnel lens was first shown on September 1, 1872. The lens is a fixed lens, meaning it does not contain any flash panels and thus produces a steady light, however, there are four flash panels that revolve around the outside of the lens producing a bright flash once per minute. Originally, the panels produced alternating red and white flashes, with intervals of one minute.

The keepers at the new lighthouse repeatedly complained about the unhealthy living conditions on the island. The Lighthouse Board finally took action in 1875 and drained the ponds near the lighthouse. Seeds of the Eucalyptus globulus tree were also planted at the station, as the trees were believed to neutralize the noxious gases that caused malaria. Only later was it learned that the trees helped prevent malaria by consuming large quantities of water, thus helping to drain the swampy areas where mosquitoes bred.

On a Sunday morning in March of 1880, Keeper Frederick Osborne and his assistant had an altercation on the lighthouse grounds, wherein the assistant shot Osborne dead. The assistant was later acquitted of murder charges, which may have prevented a peaceful rest for the departed Osborne, whose service was cut short. During Carl Svendsen's service as keeper, which lasted from 1907 to 1935, he and his wife repeatedly heard mysterious footfalls, which would send their dog Jink into a frenzy. To this day, people claim to hear inexplicable footsteps in the tower.

A speaking tube was installed in 1876 to connect the watchroom atop the tower with the dwelling so the relief keeper could be summoned. Keeper Isaac Peckham was lying down in the watchroom on the evening of August 31, 1886 when at 9:30 p.m. the Charleston earthquake shook the station. Keeper Peckhman reported that the accompanying noise "was like that made by a horse running over a hard road" and that one of the red flash panels broke. In May 1887, mother nature took another swipe at the station when lightning struck the dwelling. This prompted the addition of two new lightning conductors, with improved ground connections, to the dwelling.

The erection of a light to range with St. Simons Lighthouse and guide mariners safely into the harbor was proposed as early as 1837, but Congress didn't provide funds for it until 1893. The selected site for the beacon had to be obtained through condemnation proceedings, which delayed the establishment of the range light until May 1895. A triangular, skeletal tower, made of iron, was used to display a locomotive light at a focal plane of thirty-seven feet. This structure was destroyed by a hurricane on September 29, 1896 but was replaced the following month.

In 1890, a brick oil house was constructed on the lighthouse grounds to store the volatile kerosene, which replaced the increasingly expensive whale oil as the lamp fuel. The nine-by-eleven building could hold 450 five-gallon oil cans. Kerosene was in turn replaced by electricity in 1934, and the station was automated sixteen years later in 1950. Shortly after automation, the passageway connecting the tower to the dwelling was removed.

The keepers' dwelling was vacant for several years until it was leased to Glynn County in 1972 for use as a museum and visitors' center. After three years of restorative work overseen by the Coastal Georgia Historical Society, the museum opened to the public. The tower was opened in 1984 to climbers willing to brave the 129-step spiral staircase. Under the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act, ownership of St. Simons Lighthouse was officially transferred to the Coastal Georgia Historical Society on May 26, 2004.

Head Keepers: James Gould (1811 – 1837), Lachlan McIntosh (1837 – 1852), Alexander D. McIntosh (1852 – 1855), John F. Carmon (1855 – 1861), Bradford B. Brunt (1872 – 1874), Frederick Osborne (1874 – 1880), George W. Ashbell (1880 – 1883), Isaac L. Peckham (1883 – 1892), Joseph Champagne (1892 – 1907), Carl O. Svendsen (1907 – 1935), Arthur F. Hodge (1936 – 1945), David O’Hagan (1945 - 1953).

There were several historical markers around the lighthouse grounds which helped to tell the story of this beautiful structure:  

There were several markers around the lighthouse grounds....All help tell the futher story of this beautiful light:  

In 1804, John Couper of

Cannon's Point Plantation sold 4

acres of land, known as Couper's

Point, to the U.S. Government

for the sum of $1.00. This is

the site where the first St.

Simons Lighthouse, built by

James Gould, was located.

The present lighthouse was commissioned by the U.S. Government in 1867 to be built adjacent to the site of the 1810 tower. The 104' tower and keeper's dwelling were designed by the noted architect Charles Clusky. Clusky and several of his crew members died of malaria during construction. The light and dwelling were completed in 1872.

The Lighthouse and Keeper's Dwelling Today
The lighthouse tower is of brick construction. Cylindrical in shape, it has a 129-step cast-iron spiral staircase. The foundation is 8' below ground, 30' in diameter, and 3' thick. In 1890, the fireproof oil house was constructed. The oil house was designed to hold 450 5-gallon containers of kerosene to light the lamp in the lantern room. Later, large oil drums were installed in the oil house to contain the fuel.

The Keepers Life
Several lighthouse keepers, such as C.O. Svendsen ( to your left), and their assistants did duty at this station. Often, the keeper's wife served as his assistant keeper. The lighthouse was completely automated in 1953.  The early lives' of the keepers were lonely and monotonous. The Keeper's main task was to keep the light burning from sunset to sunrise. In addition, he was responsible for routine maintenance of the lens, buildings such as barns, boat houses, residence, and grounds.
The pay was $400 to $600 per year in the 19th Century. The highly prized position required the Keeper to be able to read and write, and sons often followed fathers and grandfathers footsteps into the United States Lighthouse Service

Surely the most important aspect of the lighthouse to the mariner is the light that emanates from the tower. The tall, white beacon also serves as a day-mark. The light, a 1,000 watt electric bulb, is reflected by a fixed 3rd Order Fresnel Lens manufactured by L. Sautier of Paris. Four flash panels, mounted around a fixed lens, revolve around the bulb flashing one beam per minute. The beam projects out 23 miles, limited by the curvature of the earth.
Today, our lighthouse is under the jurisdiction and care of the United States Coast Guard, Aids to Navigation, Jacksonville Beach, Florida. The preservation of the historic structure on this site is the responsibility of the Coastal Georgia Historical Society.

In 1804, Scottish-born plantation owner John Couper sold four acres of land for $1 to the new United States government to build the first St. Simons Light Station.James Gould was hired to design and build the lighthouse and keeper's dwelling in 1807. It was constructed of tabby - a mixture of oyster shells, lime, sand, and water. It was first lit in 1811.
The first lighthouse was 75' tall, octagonal, 25' at the base and tapered to 10' at the top. The 10' iron lantern room had oil lamps suspended by chains as the illuminant. James Gould was also appointed head lighthouse keeper from 1811-1837.
In the summer of 1861, 1500 Confederate troops were stationed on this site at Fort Brown. In 1862, Confederate troops destroyed the first lighthouse before evacuating the island so that Federal Forces could not use it as a navigational aid. The occupying troops were the African American Union soldiers known as the 1st South Carolina Volunteers.
The Plantation Era 
The Plantation Era began in the late 1700's and thrived on the growing of long staple cotton, known as "sea island cotton" and other crops such as indigo and rice. Cotton grew bigger and more plentifully here on the Georgia sea islands, and soon plantations were located from one

tip of St. Simons to the other. Although slavery was outlawed in early Colonial days, it became legal by 1757 in Georgia.
There is a strong connection between the Coastal sea islands and the Windward Coast of West Africa due to the slave trade that played such an important role in the success of area plantations. Slaves from West Africa were highly prized for their ability to cultivate rice, and then cotton. The War Between the States brought on the virtual demise of this era. The loss of slave labor made cotton growing and harvesting unproductive and not profitable. What remains is a cultural linkage between the "Gullah/Geechee" descendants of slaves of the sea islands and the countries of their ancestors.
A few tabby ruins remain of this era at Hampton Point, Cannon's Point and Retreat Plantation. Most of the old plantation lands have been covered by growth or converted to residential or commercial properties.

October 24th Hunting Island Lighthouse- Hunting Island State Park Beaufort County SC.

Got out to the Lighthouse at Hunting Island this morning, it had really changed since the days we used to head out there in '64.  

	Hunting Island, SC

Description: In 1853, various merchants, planters, and owners of vessels in South Carolina petitioned the federal government for new aids to navigation and alterations in existing ones. One of their requests was the establishment of a "light-house and corresponding beacon-light in the stead of the St. Helena light-ship, on the northern end of Hunting island, to range for the Swash channel." Congress appropriated $30,000 for the lighthouse and beacon light on August 3, 1854. This sum was expended in 1856 and 1857, but it wasn't until March 8, 1859 that the following official Notice To Mariners was published by the Lighthouse Board: Notice is hereby given that at sundown on Friday, the 1st day of July next, the new light-house and beacon on the north point of Hunting island, S.C., will be lighted, and will be kept burning during that night and every night thereafter from sunset to sunrise. The main light-house is a conical tower built of reddish gray brick, the upper 25 feet of which will be colored white. The tower is surmounted by a brass lantern. The illuminating apparatus is a lens of the second order of the system of Fresnel, showing a revolving light of the natural color, the interval between the flashes of which is 30 seconds. The tower is 95 feet high, and the focal plane is 108 feet above the level of the sea. The light should be visible in clear weather a distance of 17 nautical miles. The beacon light is an open-work wooden frame, painted white, 32 feet high. The focal plan is 39 feet above the level of the sea. The illuminating apparatus is a lens of the sixth order of Fresnel; showing a fixed light of natural color. Hunting Island Lighthouse was activated on the prescribed date, with Anton Johnson serving as the first keeper. The latitude and longitude given as part of the notice place the lighthouse nearly two miles off the northern end of Hunting Island, given its shoreline in 2000. Obviously, the original Hunting Island Lighthouse is no longer standing, but its demise was not due to the advancing ocean but rather to a retreating army. Confederate forces blew up the lighthouse in 1861 to hinder the approach of the Union fleet before the Battle of Port Royal. Plans for a new tower were made a few years after the war, and Congress awarded $30,000 on June 10, 1872 to start its construction with the stipulation that it be on land owned by the government. A survey of the northern end of Hunting Island made in 1872 by the district engineer found that about a half mile of shoreline had been lost during the previous three years. This rapid rate of erosion prompted the Lighthouse Board to request an additional $50,000 so an iron lighthouse, capable of being relocated, could be built. Congress appropriated this additional amount on March 3, 1873, and a construction crew was dispatched to the island shortly thereafter to construct a temporary wharf and quarters for the workmen. Due to the "unhealthiness of the climate," the work had to be suspended during the warm summer months and did not resume until the spring of 1874, when an eight-foot-thick concrete foundation was laid and the first three courses of the iron tower were bolted in place. Worked stopped at the end of June and did not resume until November. The 121-foot-high lighthouse was finished in early June of the following year, and the light's characteristic white flash every thirty seconds was exhibited for the first time on July 1, 1875. The metallic shell, manufactured by Phoenix Iron Works of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was lined with bricks and capped with a second-order Fresnel lens. On March 3, 1875, $10,000 was provided for building a keeper's dwelling and protecting the site. During the construction of the lighthouse, over 400 feet had been lost from the tip of the island, but it was thought that the tower, located nearly a mile to the south, would be safe indefinitely if a couple of log jettees were put in place. A head keeper and two assistants were assigned to the station, and the spacious two-and-a-half story dwelling was completed on May 1, 1876 to house the whole lot. The dwelling measured sixty-three by thirty-eight feet, and had twelve rooms. Cisterns with a capacity of $7,000 gallons were built to store water for the station. At 9:50 p.m. on August 31, 1886, the effects of the Charleston earthquake were felt at the station. It was easy to note the exact time, as the clock in the lighthouse was stopped by the tremor. The first shock was so strong that a bucket that was half full of water on the top landing in the tower was nearly drained. The two assistants atop the tower couldn't stand up with holding onto something. One assistant was outside on the gallery and was thrown back on forth between the railing and the tower. The station's chickens were shaken form their perches and ran out of the coop in seemingly great terror. In 1886, a stone jetty was constructed on the beach near the station using a $5,000 made by Congress the previous year. The jetty worked well until a storm in August 1887 brought the ocean to within sixty feet of the dwelling and 152 feet of the tower. The Lighthouse Board urgently requested $51,000 to purchase a new site and move the station's structures, and Congress responded with the desired sum in April 1888. A heavy sheet-pile revetment, 200 feet long and with retreating wings at each end, was built along the beach to secure the old site until the move could be made. A temporary tower topped by a fourth-order light was put into operation on February 1, 1889 to serve mariners while the second-order light was out of commission. Over a period of six months, lasting from March 18 until September 13, the lighthouse was dismantled, transported along a tramway, and then reassembled 1 1/4 mile farther inland. During the summer months, the workers were suffering from malarial fever but still prosecuted the work with vigor. The lighthouse was relit on October 1, 1889, and the temporary light discontinued. The exhausted workers were taken to Charleston in September to recover but returned in November to rebuild the keepers' dwelling, whose pieces they had already moved to the new site, and erect a new oil house. The station was once again whole on March 22, 1890. The relocation cost $51,000, exactly half of the construction cost fourteen years earlier. During the hurricane of 1893, the 272-foot steamship City of Savannah I was grounded on shoals off Hunting Island. Men on board lashed themselves to the masts, while a dozen women and children were placed in two lifeboats and rowed ashore through the heavy surf. After the terrifying ride to the island, they waded through waist-deep water to reach the protective confines of the lighthouse where they safely waited out the storm. After thirty-six hours lashed to the rigging with nothing to drink and just raw turnips for food, the men were finally rescued by the steamship City of Birmingham. Hunting Island received its name because it was once used for hunting deer, raccoon and waterfowl. The keepers and their families likely enjoyed the abundance of wild game, but they also raised hogs, chickens, and turkeys and tended a garden as well. Oil and supplies were brought to the island by boat, off-loaded at a wharf on Johnson's Creek, and then transported along a 3,000-foot tramway to the station. The oil was stored in the fireproof oil house, while other items were placed in two outbuildings near the dwelling. Each of the outbuildings had a small attached room that served as an outhouse. For drinking water, a gutter system collected rain from the roof of the dwelling and transported it to a cistern for storage. In 1933, a lighted whistle buoy was placed offshore, and the tower was deactivated. The U.S. Senate passed a bill in August 1937 transferring the lighthouse reservation to Beaufort County for use as a park or game preserve, and the following year South Carolina acquired the island from Beaufort County and converted into a state park. At this time, the keepers dwelling was used to house workers from the corps of engineers, who were tasked with building a bridge to the island and making other improvements. Reportedly, a lantern was knocked over during a card game being held by the workers on June 9, 1938, and the keepers dwelling burned to the ground. The foundation of the dwelling was uncovered in 1995 and then capped with modern red bricks so visitors can see its outline. That same year, the tower was activated as a private aid to navigation. Hunting Island Lighthouse is the only historic lighthouse in South Carolina that is officially opened to the public for climbing. However, this changed in 2003, when cracks were discovered in several steps of the tower's circular stairway. The cracks were repaired in 2004, and metal braces were placed beneath each tread. The steel gray braces were left unpainted so they can readily be identified as additions to the black, cast-iron stairs. On February 18, 2005, visitors were once again allowed to climb to the top of the tower and enjoy the glorious view of the wooded island and expansive ocean. The Atlantic continues to claim several feet of the sandy shore each year. Currently, the tower stands 400 feet from the shoreline at high tide. If erosion continues at its present rate, the lighthouse might need to be moved yet again.

There were several markers at the light-  

Revisit to Cockspur Island Light House Fort Pulaski National Monument Georgia

Got to this light house today for a revisit-   Got the stamp and a couple of markers as well.  

 Inscription for this marker:

The Cockspur Island Lighthouse, located in front of you was built in 1856. Six years later it was a silent witness to the Battle of Fort Pulaski. On April 10-11, 1862, the lighthouse was located midway between Union forces here on Tybee Island and Confederate forces inside Fort Pulaski. During the long-range bombardment, more than 5,000 shells passed over the light. The Cockspur Light survived the battle, and remains today as only one of five lighthouses in Georgia.

The 46-foot-tall beacon marks the South Channel of the Savannah River. The light is surrounded by water at high tide, and can only be reached by boat. To get a closer look, the Light Overlook Trail is available near Fort Pulaski.

Imagine standing here during the battle. The view has changed since then. In 1862, there were no trees hiding the fort. Look to the left of the lighthouse . Can you pick out the fort's flagpole? The sighting tube at left should help. The distance is about 1,600 yards. At the time of the battle, the Union Navy was blockading the entrance to the Savannah River in the distance to your right

At Fort Pulaski, there is this marker:

Designed and built in 1848 by renowned architect, John Norris to mark the entrance to the South Channel of the Savannah River, the Cockspur Island Lighthouse was destroyed by a hurricane in 1854. A larger replacement was built on the same foundation in 1855. During the American Civil War, the light was temporarily extinguished. The lighthouse survived the 30 hour Union bombardment of Confederate-held Fort Pulaski in 1862 and hurricanes in 1881 and 1893. By the late 1800s, shipping had moved to the North Channel of the Savannah River. The lighthouse was no longer needed and was deactivated in 1909. In 1958, the U.S. Coast Guard transferred control of the Cockspur Island Lighthouse to the National Park Service.

There is also a part of a crown next to the visitors center, with this marker:

Tybee Island Lighthouse, Georgia

Got to two lighthouses today, Tybee Island Lighthouse at Tybee Island, Georgia, and also Cockspur Island light which is part of Fort Pulaski National Monument.  


First Tybee-  Had visited there once before, but didn't have any stamp nor pin-  got the stamp,and a pin, and a couple of postcards for my nephews.