An Island Abandons A Lighthouse
By Sue Clark on Dec 27, 2007 in Threatened 
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Another Loss To Erosion
Sand Island Lighthouse, Alabama, sitting on what was once an island but is now just a little pile of leftover granite boulders, is the latest in a long list of lighthouses threatened by erosion. Built on wooden pilings sunk deep into the sand, rot has eaten away its foundation. And the island it once sat on is no longer, thanks to wind, waves and storms, leaving the lighthouse, decommissioned and abandoned by the government in 1933, on the verge of collapsing into the Atlantic.
Alabama Lighthouse Association reports that the first major work in these decades will begin in the spring. But it’s not nearly enough.
“Mobile is built with a rich maritime history, and Sand Island Lighthouse is pivotal in that whole history,” said Jim Hall, who sits on the lighthouse association’s board of directors. “The vision is to renew the lighthouse and open it to the public.”
Damage Report
Severely damaged by Hurrican Ivan in 2004, about a year after the nearby town of Dauphin took possession of it from the government after a full seventy years of neglect, funding for repairs finally came through this year. But it’s not nearly enough to repair the decades of damage. Only $320,000 has been awarded, and the full cost to shore up this oldest lighthouse in Alabama is estimated by engineers to exceed 1.3 million dollars. And millions more to make it accessible to visitors.
According to a story at Alabama.Com, Mobile, Alabama engineering firm Thompson Engineering reported that the 134 foot tall lighthouse has two vertical cracks in the brick walls, damaged iron rings at the top and bottom, and a corroded internal spiral staircase, among other problems including the foundation. And of course, there’s the loss of the island itself, which moved westward away from the light. The hope is to rebuild the island to eventually open the tower to visitors to this historic light.
History of the Tower
This is another of the lighthouses in the Southern tier of states that were blown up by the Confederate Army during the Civil War, so the Union Army wouldn’t take over the tower. The original light was only 55 feet tall when it was built in 1838, but proved to be too short. In 1859 another was built to replace it, nearly three times its size at 150 feet. This is the one that was blown up by the Confederates in 1862 when it was discovered that the Union Army was using it to spy on their troops. After the war, in 1873 the current tower was built by the reknowned Winston Lewis, along with quarters for the keepers (long gone).
A Sad Story of Lighthouses
It gets harder and harder to report on these lighthouses that are being threatened by erosion and governmental abandonment. These towers represent a lost way of life that will never be regained. They were built by our government and the neglect of them by the feds is hard to understand. While our budgetary resources are being strained by a war on terrorism, our history is crumbling. Please find it in your hearts (or rather wallets) to contribute something to the new generation of keepers, our lighthouse associations that are trying to negate the sad neglect of our beacons.
Photo Credit: Sand Island Lighthouse by Quiksilver1850 on Flickr.
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