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Save
Our Lights!
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American Lighthouse Foundation, Inc.
P.O. Box 565
Rockland,
Maine 04841
Phone: 207-594-4174
info@lighthousefoundation.org
The American Lighthouse Foundation is a
Non-Profit 501(c)(3) Organization dedicated to the preservation of America's historic lighthouses.
SEARCH ALF WEB
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Interior Staircase at Prospect Harbor Light
Needs Dire Restoration
By Bob Trapani, Jr.
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During a
recent site visit to Maine’s Prospect Harbor Light, the American
Lighthouse Foundation made some alarming discoveries inside the historic
1891 beacon. Deterioration to many of the interior wood components of
the tower was very vivid, a dire situation that has been accelerated by
both the age of the wood and the unusually heavy amount of moisture
experienced throughout the region over the past couple of years.
In the summer
of 2004 the American Lighthouse Foundation carried out emergency
restoration |
Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
Prospect Harbor Lighthouse
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measures in a collaborative effort with the United States Coast Guard and
United States Navy to save Prospect Harbor’s lantern from collapsing into
the tower. During the process it was evident to both ALF and professional
contractors for the project that the restoration work saved the 38-foot tall
Prospect Harbor Lighthouse from imminent collapse.
Despite the benefit this critical work served to the well being of the
lighthouse, the tower still had many other restoration needs, partially |
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Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
A view of the deteriorating wood and
plaster framework supporting the light's staircase
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stemming from the fact that the beacon
has been automated since 1934. ALF contracted Spear Millworks in Machias,
Maine, to attend to an important component of the tower in spring 2006
through the installation of new windows in the structure, which was
generously funded by a grant from the New |
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England Lighthouse
Lovers, a chapter of the American Lighthouse Foundation.
“While it is true that we saved the lighthouse from collapse two years ago,
and installed new windows this year, the interior of the tower is
deteriorating rapidly from the previous water damage and now from the
excessive moisture we had in Maine this past spring,” says Timothy Harrison,
president of the American Lighthouse Foundation. “The interior walls and
wooden stairway are in bad shape. In fact, I believe the stairway may be
unsafe for the public to climb (during annual open houses hosted by the U.S.
Navy) and I can assure you that the railing is so loose that it won’t hold
anyone from falling straight down.”
Harrison wasted no time in contacting Spear Millworks to examine the recent
alarming discovery in order to obtain a professional assessment as |
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to the extent of the damage beyond what is visible, as
well as a cost estimate for repairing critical facets of the interior
such as the wooden stairway. This assessment is expected to occur in
late-summer or early fall.
All lighthouses contain a variety of aspects that make
them historically significant, and for |
Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
The staircase plasterwork is visibly
separating and flaking at an alarming
rate
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Prospect Harbor
Lighthouse, one of those happens to be its construction material. As
Harrison points out, “The interior of the tower at Prospect Harbor is
beautiful, very similar to Plum Island Light in Newburyport, Massachusetts,
which is a near twin to this tower. The lighthouse is one of three or four
remaining wooden conical towers left standing in America.”
Given the structure’s historical significance, combined with the common
knowledge that wood does not fare well once moisture and rot have set in, it
is crucial that restoration efforts occur at Prospect Harbor as soon as
possible. “Since ALF removed the 3-ton lantern room from the endangered
lighthouse in 2004 to totally restore the lantern and install a magnificent
new base floor atop the lantern with its amazing large wood beams for the
cupola, not to mention new windows in the tower, it would be a shame if we
can’t finish the interior in the very near future.”
Harrison went on to note, “Also, the black paint on the band going around
the exterior under the lantern room is already coming off. The tower is |
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Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
A view looking up at the interior of
Prospect Harbor Light
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exposed to the full force of the ocean on the side where
this is happening and will need to be repainted soon, before it causes
more problems.”
Prospect Harbor Lighthouse remains an active aid to
navigation and is owned by the United States Coast Guard. The American
Lighthouse Foundation
has a
long-term license with the Coast Guard that enables the organization to
work for the light’s preservation. The United States Navy owns the
remainder of the light station’s outbuildings, including the former
keeper’s house. |
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The Downeast Maine
community and lighthouse enthusiasts everywhere can rely on the American
Lighthouse Foundation doing their part to identify the dire restoration
needs at Prospect Harbor Light, but the nonprofit organization cannot carry
out the work alone. The project will be heavily dependent on businesses and
private individuals coming forward to support ALF in facilitating the
light’s restoration through much-needed donations, thereby making it
imperative we rise up and work together in this effort to protect one of
Maine’s most unique coastal treasures.
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Looking down from
inside the top of the lighthouse at a hardwood landing and wood steps of
the interior
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Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
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Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
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We must act today to ensure that Prospect
Harbor continues to shine bright
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Teamwork Previously Rescued Prospect Harbor
from the
Hands of Fate...
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In 2004, ALF, U.S.
Coast Guard and U.S. Navy worked
together to restore the top of the lighthouse structure that supports
the lantern...thus saving the beacon from imminent collapse
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Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
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A NELL
Grant Restores the Windows at
Prospect
Harbor Light...
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Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
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Photo by Ron Foster
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In 2006, the New England Lighthouse
Lovers (NELL) provided
ALF with a $2,000 grant to restore the
two windows
on the historic wooden tower, which in
turn is helping
to keep the lighthouse more watertight
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Posted: 8/30/06 |
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