Let there be light!

This isn’t the first time that we have talked about historic structures in this space and it won’t be the last. In this particular case, however, the structure is not one viewable by a lot of people here, unless they have a boat or are on one and know precisely where to go.

The Ship Shoal lighthouse is located in waters near Last Island, closer to Raccoon Point, and it is possible that many boaters might not realize its significance when seen, or how far back its history goes.

The light has a story to tell — actually more than one — and traces of those stories can be found in several places.

One keeper of the history is Kraig Anderson of San Diego, who keeps a website dealing with all things related to lighthouses in the U.S., at www.lighthousefriends.com.

Another historian, Wendell Usie, writes of the lighthouse at www.captlake.com which is a guide service. Both sites are worth checking out.

The structure that you see in the water dates to before the Civil War — an improvement on a lightship that was once used in the area — and if you look hard you can see the place where the keepers used to live. It was built in Philadelphia and its light was first activated at a time when the nation was at the cusp of war. According to the histories available the lens was removed by Confederate forces and taken to the Berwick area for safekeeping. A new lens was later put in its place, and the original lens was eventually recovered and returned.

But it is the aforementioned keepers who make up a delicate aspect of the light’s story.

For a period of time lighthouse keepers at the site became very sick and in some cases paralyzed, and nobody knew why. Some suspected a curse of sometime but it turned out to be a matter of the lead paint used on the outside. When rain came it would carry residue of the paint into the house’s cistern.

Right now the light is for all intents and purposes abandoned. Though not in use it still acts as a daytime marker for mariners. If you pass it might be a nice thing to tip your cap and say hello. And check out some of the websites listed here for more detailed information. •