Horror at Boon Island
No mention of haunted lighthouses would be complete without Boon Island. Although it's in far southern Maine, and not one of my local lights, it's still worth mentioning, because of the horrors that have occurred on the island. It is most famous for the wreck of the Nottingham Galley, which crashed into the island in December of 1710. Some of the crew survived by cannibalism, eating the flesh of their dead shipmates before they were rescued by fishermen. There was no woman on the Nottingham Galley, though, so the ethereal young woman shrouded in white who is seen on the rocks at dusk may be Katherine Bright, who came to the 400 square yards of rock as a newlywed with her lightkeeper husband. A mere four months after arriving, a surge tide from a winter storm swept the island, and while trying to secure the island's boat, the keeper slipped on the rocks and drowned. Katherine somehow managed to pull his body ashore and dragged it to the lighthouse. She left his body at the foot of the stairs, and took over lighthouse duties for five days and nights, without eating or sleeping. On the sixth day, the light was out. Fishermen from York investigated, as the storm was over now, and found Mrs. Bright sitting on the stairs holding the frozen corpse of her husband. She and her husband's corpse were taken ashore, but by that time she'd completely lost her mind. She died only a few weeks after being rescued. Her screeches can still be heard along with her apparition.
The Pirate Who Became a Lighthouse Keeper
William S. Moore (not the same one who was with Captain Kidd), who was alleged to have been a pirate, took over as the first Keeper at Bird Island Lighthouse (Marion, Massachussetts) in 1819 after having fought in the War of 1812. Supposedly he owed the US govt. money, who perhaps used that as an excuse to "banish" him to the lonely life of a lightkeeper. He brought with him his wife, a blowsy wench who'd married him in his more prosperous days. She was a heavy tobacco user, and suffered from tuberculosis.Mrs. Moore was forbidden to leave the island by her husband, since he feared she'd leave him for someone else. The dampness of lighthouse life left her in pretty bad shape, and the lack of tobacco on the island led her to despairing cries which could be heard on the mainland. The townspeople took pity on her, and would smuggle bags of tobacco out to the lighthouse, fearful that Moore would find out. Even the local doctor entreated Moore to "put her out of her misery" and let her have her tobacco. He refused, and when she died, he raised a distress flag. A minister came out and they laid her to rest on the island. Moore was blamed for her death by not allowing her off the island. He in turn blamed the townspeople for bringing her her beloved tobacco. Some thought privately that he outright murdered her, and the circumstances surrounding her death covered up, but that was never proven. Legend has it that some later keepers were frightened by "the ghost of a hunched-over old woman, rapping at the door during the night."
A Mysterious Disapearance
Over to the Left Coast, at Yaquina Bay Lighthouse, Oregon... This light was discontinued three years after it was lit in 1871 (although it has now been relit as of 1996 as a private aid to navigation). Muriel Travenard was born at the end of the 18th century to a sea captain and his wife. Her mother died when she was young, and for a time she sailed with her father. However, as she grew into a teen, on one trip, he decided to leave his daughter behind with some friends in Newport. Weeks lengthened into months, and the captain didn't return. Muriel was unhappy but had made friends with other teens, which helped to assuage her grief. One day, her group decided to explore the abandoned lighthouse. It was a mess, dilapidated, and not as much fun as they'd hoped, but they did find a strange iron plate in the floor on the second level. It was a door to a compartment that had a deep hole cut into it. They looked inside, but left the door open, and went off to explore the rest of the area. In the late afternoon, as they were preparing to leave, Muriel remembered she'd left her scarf inside and went back in to get it. Her friends waited, but she didn't return. Calling her out didn't work, so several went back in to look for her. After searching without success, one of the kids noticed a pool of blood on the floor, with a trail of drops leading up to the iron plate, which was now closed. The teens tried and tried to open the door again, but couldn't. After coming back with help, a complete search of the lighthouse and grounds was made, but still no one could pry open the plate. Her body was never found, and a dark stain marks the floor where her blood was found. Some people have claimed to have seen her ghost peering out of the lantern room or walking down the path behind the lighthouse, but no one knows just what happened that fateful day.
Disclaimer: This story may or may not be true. It seems it may have originated from a short story written many years ago. But which came first, the story or the legend it was based on?
An Unusual Ghost Story
Fairport Harbor Lighthouse on Lake Erie, the oldest lighthouse on the lake, is home to probably the cutest ghost. The light was discontinued in 1925, and was turned into a museum. In 1989, the resident curator was in the kitchen when she saw out of the corner of her eye something small and dark flitting by. A few seconds later she saw it again. Looking around the corner of the door, she saw a small gray cat, almost like a puff of smoke, scampering around the floor. It had no feet, and moved about the floor almost on invisible wheels. It had iridescent gold marble like eyes and feathery gray fur. It seemed to chase something, then scooted around the corner and disappeared. The curator saw the puff many times over the winter, and even played with it by tossing an old sock down the hallway, which the cat would chase. The last family of keepers, the Babcocks, had a little boy who died when he was 5 years old. Shortly after, Mrs. Babcock took ill and was confined to bed for several months. During that time, she was kept company by one particular kitten of the many house cats, who delighted in chasing a ball down the hallway and bringing it back to her. The living room where the curator encountered the ghostly kitten used to be the bedroom where Mrs. Babcock stayed.
An addendum to this tale: Workers doing some reconstruction of the lighthouse is the winter of 2000-2001 discovered the mummified remains of a cat in the crawlspace. It was determined that the poor creature had gotten trapped in there and was unable to get out of the cold, dank space. The remains of this kitty are on display at the museum.
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