Dan's Papers - July 4, 2008 - To the Lighthouse: Risque Past Revealed

Standing in the mist with a bright eye, the Southold Town lighthouses are more than just bearers of light - they are bearers of history. Dating as far back as 1806, the lighthouses have witnessed the progression of time and tides from their oceanic stations. Long Beach Bar, Orient Point, Plum Island, Little Gull, Race Rock, North Dumpling, Horton Point and Latimer Reef are the eight lighthouses that comprise the water-dwelling beacons. While lighthouses are most commonly seen standing regally on postcard prints and in movie backdrops, in Southold, they shed light on a rather risqué past.

Little Gull Island Lighthouse, the oldest of the eight, was established in 1806 and located at the eastern end of the Long Island Sound. After the first lighting of its wick, the lighthouse began its career guiding sailors home. The lighthouse also welcomed the war onto its rocky shore. The keepers of the original lighthouse supervised naval activities between the British and the Americans during the War of 1812. In 1813, British troops landed on the island, tied up the lighthouse keeper and extinguished the light. Without this light, sailors risked their lives on the open shores and hoped to avoid collision with other ships and the lighthouse itself.

Race Rock Lighthouse, established in 1878, has also experienced its fair share of danger. Located at the west end of Fishers Island and the eastern entrance to Long Island Sound, Race Rock was one of the most perilous obstacles in navigation. During the early 1800s, the Gothic Revival-styled lighthouse witnessed hundreds of shipwrecks. One shipwreck in particular, the steamer "Atlantic," made headlines. In November 1846, 45 people perished in the icy waters after the steamer collided with the lighthouse. Besides this infamous reputation, Race Rock is known for its engineer, Francis Hopkinson Smith, who also built the foundation for the Statue of Liberty.

Along with their dangerous locations, the lighthouses have also harbored illegal activities. During Prohibition, the lighthouse islands were often used to transport illegal booze. The North Dumpling Island Lighthouse, built in 1849, is one of the most infamous for this activity. In April 1923, the yacht "Thelma-Phoebe" was in the process of smuggling Scotch when a storm swept it up to Fishers Island. By the time the Coast Guard arrived at the lost ship, the locals had stolen the ship's cargo. In December of that year, whiskey from another vessel was stolen once it crashed to almost the same spot as the "Thelma-Phoebe." After the looted alcohol incidents had been filed, there were reports of strange lights in the vicinity of North Dumpling Island. The light station's keeper, Burkhart, had been running extra lights around the lighthouse, which were used to facilitate communication between the mainland, the boats and Fishers Island. The keeper had been storing, delivering and selling liquor to Fishers Island residents. Burkhart smuggled in booze from the ships at night. The ships that collided with Fishers Island were Buckhart's dealers who had fallen victim to the sea's volatile disposition.

Danger...booze...the infamous lighthouses could not preserve their gangster history without one final ingredient - murder. And the Latimer Reef Lighthouse's very name proves just that. The reef, located at the eastern end of Fishers Island, was named after James Latemore, a man who spied on the British fleet in Fishers Island Sound during the Revolutionary War. A British lookout spotted Latemore in his tiny boat, and the ship went after him. Latemore ran aground the reef, which was eventually named after him, and the British seamen chased him. When the British caught up with Latemore, they hung him and buried him in the Sound.

While most of the structures have endured the stormy weather and rough lifetime, there is one casualty amongst the lighthouses. The Plum Island Lighthouse is the only light station that is no longer functioning. Established in 1827, the lighthouse experienced its fair share of hardships that led to its demise. During the Spanish American War, the Army decided to build Fort Terry, a coastal artillery base, on the island. Plum Island was also an important strategic post during World War I and II because it protected the entrance to the Long Island Sound and New York Harbor. At one point in the lighthouse's career, over 1,000 soldiers were stationed there.

So what will happen to this historic desperado? Merlon E. Wiggin, the president and founder of East End Lighthouses, Inc., is working to preserve the Plum Island Lighthouse and keep all of the others up and running as well. "Southold Town has more lighthouses than any other town in the country," Wiggin said. "We want to preserve these lighthouses." You can help preserve these historic warriors. Cruises run by East End Lighthouses raise funds for the preservation and restoration of offshore lighthouses. The cruises take you out to meet the light stations, up close and personal. Cruisers will gain insight into the fascinating and dangerous history that these structures embody, and get some amazing pictures, too.

More than a light in the distance, greater than a speck on the horizon, the Southold Town lighthouses stand tall, shining their lights and weathering the storms. Their rocky faces contort into determined grimaces of cement. If you look hard enough, you can catch them winking.

For more information about East End Lighthouses cruise and tour information, visit www.eastendlighthouses.org.