Lighthouse News

Used As Research Station

The Scottish Lighthouse at Cromarty on the Moray Firth, Chanonry Point, has been sold to the University of Aberdeen for continued use as a research station. The University has been using it as its base for work with seals, seabirds and dolphins since 1990. The lighthouse, built in 1846 by Alan Stevenson, of the famous lighthouse family, was discontinued by the Northern Lighthouse Board in 2006.

From the story at the BBC:

Fairport Harbor West Breakwater Lighthouse Soon To Be Auctioned

This is one lighthouse I didn’t think would make it to the GSA Auction block last year. I would have sworn some lighthouse group would take it over. This has it all, a great location in a park, accessibility, actual living space, gorgeous looks, fantastic fishing and more. Did I say fantastic fishing? Mmmmm….walleye. Nevertheless, no one wanted to take it over, and now the General Services Administration will be putting it up for auction beginning September 28.

By R.J. Leaman

The emotional Russian-Ukrainian tug-of-war over 100 disputed lighthouses heated up this week, as Russia’s Black Sea Fleet arrested a group of Ukrainian bailiffs who were trying to take control of the lighthouse in Khersones, on the outskirts of the Ukrainian Crimean port of Sevastopol.

According to the Ukrainian Journal, the incident “dangerously escalates tensions between Ukraine and Russia whose relations are already at the lowest point since the collapse of the former Soviet Union in 1991,” an event which left Russian naval bases located on Ukrainian territory and numbers of ethnic Russians living in Ukraine.

Huntington Hrabor Lighthouse Huntington Bay, NY—Plans are set for the third Annual Lighthouse Music Fest. Raft up your boat to enjoy this unique musical show, the worlds only music festival live from the roof of a historic Lighthouse in the middle of a scenic bay. The Music Fest is scheduled for Labor Day Weekend, Saturday, September 5th from 11 am – 6pm EDT. (Raindate: Sunday, September 6th.) Last year, a crowd of over 2000 music-loving mariners enjoyed this FREE annual celebration of “See the Light and Feel the Sound.” As in years past, this years talented bands will provide fantastic music from noon til sunset. The incredible pirates from Ye Pyrate Brotherhood will be back again adding fun and mischief as they roam boat to boat to plunder donations for ongoing restoration and maintenance. The scheduled vintage air show will be bigger and better, too!

Plans For Lighthouses Include Microbreweries

Okay, so the name Lighthouse Ale is already taken, but that’s not stopping Nevada attorney and multi lighthouse owner Michael Gabriel. His latest announced plans for the three lighthouses he currently owns are to turn them into microbreweries and to sell the product locally. The lighthouses in question (so far) include Fourteen Foot Bank, Bloody Point and Borden Flats lighthouses, all on the East Coast. Gabriel announced his intention to purchase at least two more lights in New York Harbor to complete his little chain of lighthouse beers.

Television Star Says Keep Away From My Lighthouse

A British television star, Jeremy Clarkson, is waiting a decision in a case that has spanned over four yearsiafter he closed off a path that runs next to his lighthouse home. He and his wife purchased the Langness Lighthouse for £1.25 million in the Isle of Man four years ago, and since then has been subject to harassment by a group of walkers who are upset at not being able to get near to the lighthouse. The path was diverted by Clarkson when he bought the home and light in 2005 so he and his family would not have gawkers peeking in his window.

But No Public Access Likely

Straitsmouth Island Lighthouse, MA
Originally uploaded by LeKrizThe town of Rockport, MA, and the Thacher Island Association have been approved to become the proud owners of the Straitsmouth Lighthouse, under the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act of 2000, Ken Salazar, Secretary of the Interior, announced earlier this month. The Thacher Island Association already cares for the twin lights at Cape Ann, and have partnered with the town to oversee the maintenance of the new one. Unfortunately, because of its location, public access will be next to impossible at Straitsmouth, unlike the Twin Lights, which are open to the public.