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Karen Gigikos

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RE: all different kinds of light house paintings also and tell about them if you can
7/13/2010 3:14:35 AM

Great Lighthouses Washington: Lighthouses of the Pacific Northwest

Cape Disappointment

Cape Flattery

Cape Destruction

Grays Harbor

Cape Disappointment Lighthouse, Washington, - 1856

Open to public; active aid to navigation; owned and managed by Coast Guard.

Cape Disappointment, at the entrance to the Columbia River, was built in Washington, but was built to warn mariners traveling in Oregon waters, going to mouth of Columbia River (it’s also listed in Oregon books as an Oregon lighthouse).

Oldest operating lighthouse in the Pacific Northwest. Area has lots of history. Cape Disappointment received its name in 1778 from fur trader John Meares, who was looking for a river. When he decided that no river existed, he called the area Cape Disappointment.

The need for a lighthouse at Cape Disappointment was determined in 1848 by a US Coast survey. Yet the lighthouse wasn’t completed until 1856, because the vessel Oriole, carrying the construction materials, sank just miles from the site in 1850. (see Bibliography: Gibbs, Lighthouses of the Pacific p. 135-6). The second shipment arrived in 1854 and then it took two more years to build at a cost of $38,500. This was more than 1/4 of the original amount of $148,000 allotted for the original 8 lighthouses for the West Coast.

In 1864 received unwelcome neighbors when Fort Canby was erected to guard the Columbia River during the Civil War. Blasts from the big guns used to shake the lighthouse and occasionally break windows. During World War II, Japanese submarines surfaced off Fort Stevens on the South side of the river and lobbed in several shells at Fort Canby. The Fort is a Washington State Park and popular picnic and camping grounds.

Early Keepers Stories:

Joel Munson, keeper in 1860, upset by the many shipwrecks, decided to raise money for a life-saving boat by holding square dances in Astoria, where he played the fiddle and charged $2.50 entrance fees.

In the late 1800’s, third assistant keeper George Esterbrook was cleaning the tower light on a stormy night when he got locked out on the balcony and had to scale the copper lightening rod to get back in. When he got back in on the second balcony, he was exhausted, but soon went back to work. Weeks later he quit the service, and went on to study medicine and become a physician.

Coast Guard maintains a lifeboat station and school at Cape Flattery. Only one of its kind on the West coast; used to train recruits for motor lifeboat duty. Exercises take place in demanding weather condition on stormy seas.

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Cape Flattery, Tatoosh Island, Washington - 1857

Not open to the public. Owned and managed by Coast Guard. Active aid to navigation. ABOUT THE INDIANS

Tatoosh Island named in 1788 by Captain John Meares, who named it after Chief Tatooche of the Makah Indians. Tatoosh means Thunderbird.

It is located at the northwest corner of the forty-eight contiguous United States as well as entrance to Strait of Juan de Fuca.

It is one of the original 16 lighthouses designated by the U.S. Lighthouse Service to be built on the West coast.

There was trouble between the Native American Indians and both the survey and construction crews. The Makah Indians had long made the island their summer home and used it to catch salmon, spear whales and plant potatoes --as well as for their potlatches (ceremonies in which Indian hosts gave away lots of their possessions). The first Americans built temporary fortresses to keep the Native American Indians out. When the second survey crew came, they infected the Native American Indians with small pox, and wiped out more than 500 of (about half) their tribe. The Native American Indians were very resentful of the "Bostons" because of this. The construction crew built fortresses had guards and prepared for attack. The Native American Indians didn’t attack, but stole food, tools and clothes and eventually became curious and just got in the way. Took 1 1/2 years to build because of the slow arrival of materials and the hostilities.

This Light is noted for troubles with it’s keepers. The first four keepers left within months as a result of their fear of the Native Americans, and with their difficulty in obtaining mail and supplies. Two early keepers got into an argument over breakfast and threw hot coffee at each other, scalding each other. They decided to have a duel to the death, but after each emptied his pistol without wounding the other, they called a truce and later became friends. Later they learned that their buddies had loaded the pistols with blanks.

The isolation got to them -- before telephones, their only communication was via the infrequent stops by the tenders. Indian paddlers used to deliver mail, personnel and supplies. One tenacious Native American, "Old Doctor" crashed three canoes against the rocks. Telephone cables often broke in storms.

In 1883, a weather station was put up -- this was a good place for it. It recorded an average of 215 inches of rain per year.

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Destruction Island Light, Destruction Island, Washington, - 1891

Not open to the public. Owned and managed by Coast Guard. Active aid to navigation.

"Isolated, forlorn, dreary, and barren" was the description given by a Coast Guardsman. It sits on a 30-acre island about three miles from an uninhabited section of the mainland. The nearest town, La Push, is twenty miles north. Reef and rocky shores make it difficult to land a boat on the island. The island sits like a flat grassy tabletop over the rocks. About 40 years ago, a repairman arrived to make a repair. He expected to go home the same day, but strong winds kept him there for two weeks.

Construction of the Light took three years because of the difficult conditions.

The lighthouse is outfitted with a first-order Fresnel lens, which still operates.

A FUNNY STORY: (see Bibliography: DeWire, Guardians of the Lights p. 66-68) Because of the bad weather conditions in the Puget Sound, a steam powered fog signal was installed two years after the lighthouse was first commissioned. When it wore out, it was replaced by a diaphragm horn, that bellows in a deep voice like that of an angry bull. At the time there were a number of cows living on the island, as well as one contented bull among this harem. Grazing was good and there were no fences, since the island dropped off over the rocks. When the new foghorn sounded for the first time, the bull thought he had a competitor and charged the source of this noise -- the lighthouse. He crashed the fence surrounding the fog signal and then charged the fog signal house, in a several hour rampage. The keepers had to make a pen to contain the bull and it was months before he came to terms with the sound of the foghorn.

Grays Harbor (Westport) Light, Westport, Washington - 1898

Owned by Coast Guard; active aid to navigation; open to public on certain open house days

One of the most majestic lighthouses on the West Coast. Set back from the ocean, its octagonal 107-foot tower rises over surrounding sand dunes and trees. Most of its original lighting system is intact.

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karen gigikos / black belt grannyHobbies
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Karen Gigikos

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RE: all different kinds of light house paintings also and tell about them if you can
7/13/2010 5:52:04 AM
PerfectSpot-1.gif picture by kareblblt

Beautiful light house

karen gigikos / black belt grannyHobbies
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Karen Gigikos

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RE: all different kinds of light house paintings also and tell about them if you can
7/13/2010 6:00:37 AM
http://www.youtube.com/watch#!v=fMNMWZM1Jp8&feature=related THE INDIANS HAD A LOT TO DO WITH LIGHT HOUSES
karen gigikos / black belt grannyHobbies
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Karen Gigikos

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RE: all different kinds of light house paintings also and tell about them if you can
7/14/2010 12:16:17 AM

Let There Be Lighthouses!

Photo
The Granite Island Lighthouse, located about 10 miles north of Marquette, was purchased by Freeland entrepreneur Scott Holman for $86,003.

Lighthouses are popular tourist attractions in Michigan and play a fascinating part in the state's history. But many of them are no longer needed and their upkeep and maintenance are costing taxpayers millions of dollars each year.

To solve this problem the federal government has recently asked an intriguing question: "Would you like to buy a lighthouse?" Last October, Scott Holman, an entrepreneur and avid scuba diver from Freeland, Michigan, emphatically answered, "Yes, I do." And he put his money where his mouth is. He placed a winning $86,003 bid for the 2,400-square-foot Granite Island Lighthouse, 10 miles off the coast of Marquette.

All of this is great news for American taxpayers: Instead of spending money to repair obsolete lighthouses, the federal government is collecting cash by selling them outrighta process also known as "shedding."
Because Michigan has more lighthouses than any other state, policy makers would do well to absorb this lesson: See the light, lighten citizens' tax load, and sell the lighthouses.

The island upon which the lighthouse is built covers just under 2.5 acres of rock and grass and is also home to an oil house, boat slip, dock, and boat housing structure. The first Indians and Europeans to visit the island saw no need to risk climbing the sheer 60-foot walls. It was not until dynamite was applied to one end in the 1860s that access to the island became easy and constant.

Holman's bid was the highest submitted for the Granite Island Lighthouse, according to Melissa Green of the U. S. General Services Administration. What few know is that it was not his first bid. After Holman submitted his first offer of $56,003 he suffered nights of restless sleep, sure that he had offered too little. He upped his offer to $86,003, calming his nerves, and then waited patiently. The new bid made Holman the highest bidder by a margin of $6,000, beating out a serious bidder who flew to Boston to personally submit his own bid. Over 80 people bid on the Granite Island Lighthouse.

"There's a lot of work to be done," said Holman, who plans to restore the weatherbeaten lighthouse and seagull-populated island (which came with his purchase) and open both to future overnight stays. Holman also reports that many of the losing bidders have contacted him with offers of financial and refurbishing assistance, as well as requests to visit the island once repairs are complete. [Editor's Note: For photos and more information on the Granite Island lighthouse, visit www.graniteisland.com on the Internet].

Others in the state are lobbying legislators to change Michigan law to make ownership of lighthouses easier, and plans are in the works for a $35 million private, nonprofit Great Lakes Lighthouse Museum.

All of this is great news for American taxpayers: Instead of spending money to repair obsolete lighthouses, the federal government is collecting cash by selling them outright—a process also known as "shedding." The term shedding refers to the wholesale removal of an asset from a government's books.

Unfortunately, the state is still playing some role in Michigan lighthouse upkeep. Late last year the state budgeted more than $3 million for upkeep and restoration of lighthouses and Governor Engler has promised an additional $10.5 million. Still, progress has been made toward privatizing lighthouses, and others may be sold off soon.

The federal government began building lighthouses under President George Washington. To help ships navigate the nation's shores, the government built hundreds of lighthouses, supplied them with modern lenses, and often built caretakers' houses nearby. But radar, modern communications, and other innovations have now rendered many lighthouses obsolete.

Since 1939, the Coast Guard has been in charge of maintaining the nation's lighthouses, but keeping them in shape has often been a losing battle. "Many of them have been abandoned by the authorities and are falling victim to vandalism and the elements," reports Tim Harrison, editor of the monthly publication, Lighthouse Digest.

Selling these lighthouses is, therefore, a win-win situation for everyone. Investors like Holman have the incentive to improve the value of their property, the government collects revenue from the sale, and the lighthouses themselves, which are historical treasures, do not disintegrate through public neglect.

For those who are skeptical about turning these historic treasures over to private owners, we can turn to history as a guide. Before the 1960s, a few lighthouses were sold to private individuals. Most of these owners, including some in Michigan, have taken excellent care of their property. The Mendota Lighthouse, for example, is a well kept home on the Keweenaw Peninsula. Two others-the Sand Hills Lighthouse (also on the Keweenaw Peninsula) and the Big Bay Point Lighthouse north of Marquette—are now popular bed-and-breakfast establishments.

William Frabotta bought the Sand Hills Lighthouse almost 40 years ago. He refurbished the eight bedrooms, all with private baths, and now rents out the rooms in both summer and winter. Frabotta brags about the cross-country skiing in the winter and the view of the scenic Northern Lights from the tower during the summer. "People love to come here to see a part of history," he says.

America's dwindling supply of lighthouses presents us with both a case study in the shortcomings of public ownership and a heartening prospect of what private enterprise can do if given the chance. Because Michigan has more lighthouses than any other state, policy makers would do well to absorb this lesson: See the light, lighten citizens' tax load, and sell the lighthouses.

Burton Folsom is historian in residence with the Center for the American Idea in Houston, Texas, and a former senior fellow with the Mackinac Center for Public Policy in Midland, Michigan.

karen gigikos / black belt grannyHobbies
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Karen Gigikos

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Invite Me as a Friend
Person Of The Week
RE: all different kinds of light house paintings also and tell about them if you can
7/14/2010 12:20:52 AM
1298085y8q4u83xzb.gif picture by kareblblt

Beautiful light house!


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