Growing up in Rochester, New York, on the southern coast of Lake Ontario, is where my love of lighthouses began. For that is where the Charlotte-Genesee Lighthouse stands, overlooking the mouth of the Genesee River. I don't remember the first time I saw it, but it was my first exposure to lighthouses. Many years later, while in the US Navy, I can remember standing on the deck of my ship as we sailed in (or out) of the Chesapeake Bay, past the Cape Henry lighthouses. On our way into the bay, Cape Henry was a sure sign that we were near the end of our voyage. It would be nearly fourteen years before I visited the Cape Henry lighthouses and climbed the steps of the original tower for the first time, unbelievable since I was stationed in Norfolk for 3-1/2 years, until I left the service in 1989.
My facination with lighthouses took off in earnest around 1992, the year I visited the Point Reyes Lighthouse in California. I don't know what it was about them that captured my attention ~ I still am not completely sure. But shortly after that trip west, I came across an advertisement for the Danbury Mint, they were selling a series of lighthouse sculptures, the first one being the Boston Light. I entered my subscription for the series and, before I knew it, I had amassed a small collection.
The first pictures I took, Point Reyes, were taken on a Kodak Disc® Camera. I knew that if I wanted to start getting serious, I would need a better camera. So, for no other reason than it was on sale, I bought a Nikon N6006 35mm camera and two lenses: a Nikon AF 35-80mm lens and a Tokina AF 70-210mm zoom lens. Although I would eventually like to learn to use my camera to its full capability, its ease of point and shoot seem to work fine for me.
This project was started in the mid 1990's, and originally began as a page for me to set as my browser's home page. It had links to the sites I would go to the most often, and evolved from there. After I bought a flatbed scanner, I started to scan photographs of the few lighthouses I had visited. My first attemps at the site had me doing everything in basic HTML, using the "HTML for Dummies®" book. Then I bought Microsoft Front Page®, and web development became much easier for me.
To date, I have visited nearly sixty of the lighthouses of the United States, and pictures of these lights appear within this site. In an effort to provide more than just pictures, I have also added brief historys of the lights. At the lights where pamphlets are provided detailing their history, I have included the text of those pamphlets (and given proper credit). Otherwise, I have done some research using my limited library of lighthouse books. (See the bibliography).
My wife, Nicole, whom I met in 1994, has been very supportive of me during the times I have been working on this site, although I don't think she completely understands how I can spend so much time in front of the computer when there is so much more work that needs to be done elsewhere. However, she is very patient with me during our drives to find the lights, standing there while I try to get just the "right" picture. I couldn't do this with out her. Nicole, I love you!
I hope that you enjoy this site for what it is ~ a collection of my photo's and brief history's of the lights I have visited. It will never be completed: I will add to it with each visit I make to a new light; or I will add something, like the trivia section, to make it more enjoyable to you, and to encourage you to return. If you have any suggestions, please let me know.
Thanks for your visit!
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