Phase II Restoration of
Pemaquid Point Lighthouse is an $83,000 project being funded and managed by
the nonprofit American Lighthouse Foundation and ALF chapter, Friends of
Pemaquid Point Lighthouse
Alcove in Lighthouse leads to
Hidden Mystery
By Bob Trapani,
Jr.
The 1835
Pemaquid Point Lighthouse has presided over much in the way of history
that time and the tides have all but swept away, yet the venerable tower
has still managed to hold close to vest an elusive secret or two.
It is often
said that if a lighthouse could talk, what history and mysteries it
might share.
Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
Pemaquid Point Lighthouse on March 31,
2010 as fog moves in along the coast
On March 26, 2010,
Pemaquid Point Lighthouse did ‘speak’ in a silent but unmistakable ‘voice.’
During the
repointing phase, a couple of loose bricks, and a few more cracked ones,
beckoned close attention of the professional masons along the east alcove in
the light tower’s base.
Skilled hands
applied just enough pressure from a hammer and chisel to dislodge the first
of the loose bricks, but instead of the brick falling forward into waiting
hands; it fell backwards, disappearing behind the alcove into a shroud of
unknown.
Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
A view of the opening in
the tower's east alcove
Suddenly, the
alcove’s appearance displayed a dark gap in an otherwise fully-bricked,
recessed space.
With the help
of a hand-held electric light, the masons peered through the opening,
and at first glance, it was evident that an interesting mystery was
waiting to be discovered just behind the brick and mortar barrier.
At this point,
the masons of J.B. Leslie Company were enticed to further investigate
the situation.
So with
careful precision, an additional small section of brickwork was removed,
and within minutes,
the lighthouse was
sharing more than one age-old secret. Concealed behind the alcove or
recessed area was a ‘find’ that even many of the beacon’s bygone
lightkeepers were unaware of.
Jim Leslie,
president of J.B. Leslie Masonry Company, recalls coming across the alcove
discovery, saying, “During our repointing efforts, we discovered a hollow
space behind one of the brick alcoves in the base of the tower, which led to
the backside of the one-time window on the east side of the lighthouse.”
Leslie goes on to
say, “The old stone window jambs are easily visible and you can see where
the opening was filled-in to close off the window.”
In addition to
being able to identify the lost window’s location and stone jambs, the
opening behind the brick alcove also provided a rare glimpse into early
1800s construction techniques and workmanship.
Pemaquid
Point, which was built in 1835 during the tenure of the Fifth Auditor,
Stephen Pleasanton, is known to be one of Maine’s oldest
Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
A view looking down through the gap that
exists between the eastside brick alcove
and the backside of the granite exterior
light towers, but
being able to gain further insight into how the tower was constructed has
largely remained hidden by the structure’s dress stone and coatings on the
exterior, and its brick-lined interior.
Thanks to a few
brittle bricks, preservationists can now gain a deeper understanding of
Pemaquid Point Light and the era from which the sentinel rose to prominence.
The Modern
Light-House Service, written by Arnold Burges Johnson in 1890, aptly
describes the construction of a lighthouse like Pemaquid Point, which is
consistent with the 2010 discovery.
Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
Close-up view of the historic stonework
along the east side of the tower's
base
According to
Johnson, “The
light-houses on the New England coast were constructed previous to 1840
in two forms, namely; conical towers of rubble stone masonry, and wooden
frame towers erected upon the roofs of the keepers' dwellings.”
“The stone towers (similar to Pemaquid Point) were built
on the natural rock from stone
split from the adjacent ledges, or from pieces collected on
the beach, sometimes even from fragments of the cliffs rounded by attrition
in the surf. The walls were usually 3 feet thick at the base, tapering to 2
feet in thickness at the top, and the towers varied in height from 20 to 50
feet.”
Johnson goes on to say, “At the top of the tower and within
the walling of rubble, a dome of brick was turned, with a square opening
near the springing-line on one side forming a scuttle entrance to the
lantern. On this brick dome, a flat roof composed of slabs of stone 4 inches
thick was laid, projecting over the walls of the tower from 6 to 12 inches.
The lanterns were
attached to the towers by imbedding the lower ends of their
iron angle-posts into the masonry of the walls some 3 or
4 feet, and the entire construction of the towers was rude in kind.”
On Wednesday, March 31, 2010, the discovery was examined
by the Maine Historic Preservation Commission who was on site to review
the overall progress of the Phase II restoration of Pemaquid Point
Lighthouse.
Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
Mike Johnson of the Maine
Historic Preservation Commission
examines the discovery
Upon further investigation, which also included a look behind
the southeast brick alcove, history came more into focus.
The southeast alcove revealed an altogether different secret
than its east counterpart. Instead of a gap between the brickwork and the
backside of the granite stonework, the tower’s granite construction abuts
the brickwork.
Even more exciting was that the southeast alcove revealed the
fact that the backside of the granite exterior retained its historical
parging, which is more than likely a vintage limewash. This discovery bears
out the fact that existing brick veneer was a later addition to the tower’s
interior.
Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
A close-up view of the granite that
abuts the brickwork behind the southeast alcove...
note the vintage parging in the form of a
limewash that exists on granite stonework
The 2010 findings coincide with the Maine Historic
Preservation Commission’s timeline for Pemaquid Point, which shows the
lighthouse being constructed in 1835 with four windows and the tower
being parged on both the interior and exterior.
During the mid-to-late 19th century, the
interior brick veneer was constructed, the iron
staircase added and the eastside window blocked in with
granite rubble.
For more than a century and a half, this history was sealed
up and hidden from the public eye, but no longer.
In the wake of
this discovery, Jim Leslie concluded, “This ‘find’ is a neat piece of
history, but also one that inspires as many questions as it answers. And as
for some of those questions, we may never know the answers, which only adds
to the intrigue of this lighthouse.”
Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
A view of all three alcoves or recessed
areas in the base of Pemaquid Point
Lighthouse
To
read about the 2007 lost window on the eastside exterior of Pemaquid Point
Lighthouse, which was discovered during the Phase I restoration project
at the site,
click here.
