Whistle House at Race Point Light Station Places Out the Welcome Mat
By Bob Trapani, Jr.
The Cape Cod Chapter of the American Lighthouse
Foundation never rests on its laurels.
Though the Race Point Light Station is one of the finest
examples in the country when it comes to lighthouse restoration and
adaptive reuse, the volunteer chapter is as committed as ever to not
only ensuring the station
Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
The whistle house has been beautifully
restored by the Cape Cod Chapter
remains preserved
in accordance to historic standards, but that every possible enhancement is
made as well.
One such improvement to the Race Point Light Station was carried out during
2006-07 when the Cape Cod Chapter completed an extensive project to upgrade
the interior of the historic whistle house.
Today the historic building is a beautiful example of how lighthouse
preservation is an invaluable cultural and recreational benefit to the
general public.
Restoring the historic structure provided the chapter with the opportunity
to integrate the whistle house within the group’s existing educational and
Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
A fully equipped kitchen has been
established in the whistle house
overnight stay
programs. Prior to the upgrades, the whistle house was basically a
hollow shell of a building with little to offer visitors beyond its
one-time structural purpose.
Jim Walker, president of the Cape Cod Chapter, talks
about the restoration & upgrade project, saying, “We now have a
fully-equipped kitchen, bathroom, living
room, two
bedrooms, hot water, central heat, functioning windows and screen doors
installed in the whistle house.”
Throughout the improvement process, the chapter had gone to great lengths to
ensure the building’s exterior appearance remained true to its historic
character, and went as far as to reestablish the transom window over the
entrance door – something that was missing for many years.
According to Walker, the whistle house was “built in the 1880s and once
contained a coal-fired boiler to make steam that powered a large steam
whistle located on the roof. The
Lighthouse Service, and later the Coast Guard, would deliver coal once a
year for the steam whistle, leaving 50-pound bags on the beach for the
keeper to carry up to the building. This arrangement was used until the
1940s when two diesel air compressors were installed. The compressed air
method
USCG Photo
A vintage view of the whistle house
during
the light station's heyday
was in place until
1960-61 when the Coast Guard installed electric air compressors.”
Walker went on to note, “I personally removed all of the old equipment from
the whistle house at that time as a member of the United States Coast Guard
(1960-61). The building was then abandoned. Following that someone cut a
garage door through the front wall. Later I was also the person in charge of
automating the light station in 1972. At that point the light station began
falling into disrepair.”
The American Lighthouse Foundation stepped in to help Race Point Light
Station in 1995 by forming the Cape Cod Chapter, at which time Jim Walker
was appointed president of the new chapter.
The chapter’s hardworking volunteers originally worked on the whistle house
as part of a three-year overall restoration project at the historic
Photo courtesy of Jim Walker
A local mason is shown re-bricking the
front wall of the building during the
restoration of the exterior
light station, and during that time, the garage door was
removed and the structure’s brick façade was returned.
In addition, volunteers worked with Cape Cod contractor
Richard Davidson to replace the building’s roof, install new windows and
doors, and restore the interior to match
the original brick
and woodwork. A local mason put a cap on the chimney.
The Center of Coastal Studies, who utilized this building for some years
following its original restoration, paid for much of this rehabilitation
work at that time.
Though the whistle house has served a few minor functions for the Cape Cod
Chapter over the last decade, its potential was nowhere close to being
tapped until
2008 when the building could finally be enjoyed by the general public
through week-long overnight stays, as well as during special events and
guided tours of the historic light station.
So if you are looking for that unique lighthouse get-away
to enjoy with your family or a group of friends, Race Point’s
Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
A view of the "Long Point" bedroom
inside the whistle house
whistle house is
your destination for a relaxing experience in a one-of-a-kind natural
environment within Cape National Seashore.
According to the Cape Cod Chapter’s website:
“If more solitude is what you have in mind then the Whistle house is the
perfect place for you. This unique house offers privacy for up to eight
people; the house is not shared. You will host your own guests.”
“The Whistle house is rented on a weekly basis – from Saturday to the
following Saturday. You will need your own four-wheel drive vehicle.
Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
A view of the "Wood End" bedroom
inside the whistle house
Weekly over-sand permits are available from the National
Park Service. Once acquired, you can drive along the scenic sand dunes
and ocean-view trails surrounding Race Point Lighthouse. Nearby
Provincetown also offers dining, theatre, whale-watching trips, and much
more.”
To learn more about
Race Point Light Station’s overnight stay program and rentals, call (508)
487-9930 or visit
Cape Cod Chapter volunteers such as Jim
Walker (pictured) helped remove the historically inaccurate garage door
from the whistle house
Photo courtesy Jim Walker
Photo courtesy Jim Walker
A Cape Cod Chapter volunteer works to
remove layers of paint from the brickwork, returning the building to its
original appearance
A view of the empty
interior of the whistle house prior to the Cape Cod Chapter transforming
the building into its new adaptive reuse
Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
Photo courtesy Jim Walker
After obtaining the
proper permits and approvals, the Cape Cod Chapter hired professional
contractors in 2006 to install a septic leaching field for the whistle
house
Race Point Light
Station's keeper's house and whistle house run on 'green' energy thanks
to a photovoltaic system and wind turbine installed at the site by the
Cape Cod Chapter
Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.
A 2008 view of the
restored whistle house at Race Point Light Station, which offers
week-long overnight stay capabilities for visitors
