Crossing the open waters has always been a dangerous and deadly vocation but drawing close to the end destination is the most hazardous part of the sailor’s journey. Reaching the right harbor during the night and knowing how to avoid razor sharp rocks or reefs is a task that can defeat the most experienced navigator — with fatal results.
Since earliest times the response to these dangers has been to erect a light-bearing tower — a beacon to sailors that could guide them safely into port. Some of these early lighthouses were basic stones on the shores, but others like the Colossus of Rhodes, a 110 ft. (33 m) statue of the sun god Helios built in 282BC in the Mediterranean, became wonders of the ancient world.
Architecturally imposing and with an air of romance to them, lighthouses continue to fascinate us. Often there are tales of strange events connected to lonely lighthouses — stories of tragic keepers and ghosts at sea.
Minot’s Ledge is one such place. No less than forty vessels had run aground off this deadly outcrop just southeast of Boston, before construction of a house began in 1847. It didn’t last very long. Four years later, the original house was toppled by a devastating hurricane that washed its two keepers into the sea. Although no longer manned, tales persist of eerie sounds, slamming doors, and apparitions of a man — soaking wet — clinging to a rope outside the new tower! A chilling reminder that even the most valiant efforts to prevent tragedy can be in vain.
Leo Marriott’s Lighthouses, illustrated with more than 100 color photographs, takes readers on a historical and international tour of these wonderful structures and recounts tales of great courage and tragedy as well as details of why and how the lighthouses were built.