An eye-catching pennant once flew proudly aboard Lighthouse Service vessels, and later at the best kept light station in each district during the era of the United States Lighthouse Service. This …
United States Coast Guard Features
Did you know that the U.S. Coast Guard has been keeping our nation’s lighthouses shining bright for 81 years – longer than any other entity in American history?
In fact, the Coast Guard is still making lighthouse history in the 21st century. This proud organization’s vigilance and devotion to duty is not only safeguarding the mariner but also ensuring our system of aids to navigation remains the finest, most advanced in the world. Maine Lights Today wishes to spotlight these hardworking guardians of the lights along the Maine coast and share with you their dedication to keeping our lighthouses gleaming into the future.
West Quoddy Head Light’s Crystalline Treasure
The stately appearance of a lighthouse is something to behold. Such majesty is magnified even further when a sentinel is still wearing its “crown” of crystalline in the form of a Fresnel lens. The …
LEDs are the New Wave of Beacons for Lighthouses
Climb to the top of a Maine lighthouse and one is bound to be astounded by the breathtaking beauty of the surrounding seascape. However, as time marches on and a wave of change rolls in with the tide, …
Coastguardsman Recalls Storms at Bass Harbor Head Light
The picturesque Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse, located along the southwestern side of Mount Desert Island in the village of Bass Harbor, exudes a feeling of serenity – presiding over a seascape of pure …
Outgrowth of the Lighthouse Keeper: USCG Aids to Navigation Teams
Lighthouses and their keepers are inseparable - and always will be as long as they continue to stand, shine bright and bellow out their audible warnings into the future to come. For no matter how many …
Keepers of the Lights
Though lighthouses are no longer staffed by resident keepers in this day and age of automation, there are still dedicated professionals watching over them. When a mariner or landlubber sees a …
Watching Over the Lights
We just celebrated the 231st anniversary of our nation’s Lighthouse Service on August 7th – and what a storied history it is. The rich traditions and legacies that have come to embody “keeping a good …
Dedication and Tradition Still Shine Bright at the Lights
Thirty years have passed since the last lighthouse keeper stood watch at a Maine lighthouse. When Coast Guard keeper Bradley Culp “turned out the light” for the final time at Goat Island Lighthouse in …