Vandals Spraypaint Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse
By Sue Clark on Aug 23, 2007 in News, Opinion 
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Ruining A Local Landmark
“I just bawled my eyes out” -Dot Black
One would think that Maine is free from the tagging seen in urban areas. Not so for Rockland, apparently, a town of about 7,600 people on Penobscot Bay in Knox County, Maine, which also is home to the American Lighthouse Foundation and the Maine Lighthouse Museum. Dot Black, president of the Friends of Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse, was awakened Tuesday (August 21, 2007) morning by a phone call informing her that somebody or somebodies had spray painted grafitti all over the lighthouse windows, brickwork and base of the lighthouse. “I just cried yesterday when the MV Island Transporter called me,” Black said Wednesday. “I just bawled my eyes out.”
While the damage may not be much monetarily, the work put in by the Friends to restore the lighthouse keeper’s home into a museum took several years and lots of blood, sweat and tears. The only side not covered was that facing Penobscot Bay. Four of the historically correct shutters (that cost $20,000USD) were painted. Lighthouse News is hoping that the miscreants that blasted the structure left enough clues via their initials to help police solve this crime.
And crime it is. This is on a par with destroying mailboxes. What’s the point? And especially to a building that is on the National Register of Historic Places. Where are the parents of these (possibly) juveniles? And if they’re (alleged) adults, what kind of upbringing did they have? This is not the “way life should be,” as Maine’s slogan goes. This kind of behavior isn’t justifiable by any means.
Bob Trapani, Jr., CEO of the ALF, observed the damage firsthand. “The vandalism is nonsensical but there isn’t much we can do when someone like this is intent on defacing a community treasure. If there was a silver lining in all this, it’s that there was no structural damage inflicted on the shutters, etc.” he stated.
Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr. Used with permisssion.
Historically correct window shutters spray painted with gold paint.
Volunteers will be painting over them to cover the damage.
Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr. Used with permission.
Damaged bricks at the lighthouse.
The Friends are hoping it will only cost $500 to clean up.
Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr. Used with permission.
The base of the lighthouse covered with grafitti.
Maybe the initials will help police catch the losers.
The Rockland Harbor Breakwater Lighthouse is an active aid to navigation, and was commissioned in 1927. The current building is a 25 foot tower sitting on top of a fog signal building (still operational). The light was automated in 1964, and the town of Rockland received the light under the Maine Lights Program in 1998. The Friends of Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse was formed in 1999 to care for this unique light, which is seven-eights (7/8) of a mile from land, yet still connected. Recently, the Friends have installed a webcam hosted at Village Soup.
More information on the lighthouse (and to donate to help repair the damage) can be found at www.rocklandlighthouse.com
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