Go be a lighthouse keeper, do!

May 27, 2023 6:07 PM

Want to own a historic lighthouse? The U.S. government is offering at least 10 lighthouses to the public and government agencies as demand for the once-critical maritime facilities declines due to technology such as GPS. Some of the buildings, which can be centuries old, have colorful histories — and some are even said to have ghosts.

Record number of lighthouses being offered to the public during 2023 “Lighthouse Season”.

This year, GSA has issued NOAs for six historic lighthouses in five states.
Lynde Point Lighthouse, Old Saybrook, Connecticut.
Nobska Lighthouse, Falmouth (Woods Hole), Massachusetts.
Plymouth/Gurnet Lighthouse, Plymouth, Massachusetts.
Warwick Neck Light, Warwick, Rhode Island.
Little Mark Island and Monument, Harpswell, Maine.
Erie Harbor North Pier Lighthouse, Erie, Pennsylvania. (NOA period recently closed.)

Additionally, GSA is offering four historic lighthouses for sale by auction.
Penfield Reef Lighthouse, Fairfield, Connecticut.
Stratford Shoal Light, East Setauket, New York.
Cleveland Harbor West Pierhead Light, Cleveland, Ohio.
Keweenaw Waterway Lower Entrance Light, Chassell, Michigan.

Previously

posted by Toddles (50 comments total)

are any of them in the Southern Reach
posted by cortex at 6:28 PM on May 27, 2023 [26 favorites]

Do they require anything more than light housekeeping?
posted by Greg_Ace at 6:40 PM on May 27, 2023 [88 favorites]

So I found the auction page for one of them, and I'm curious what is actually being sold, because the page also says "It is an active Aid To Navigation (ATON) and will remain the personal property of the US Coast Guard (USCG)".
posted by tavella at 6:42 PM on May 27, 2023 [1 favorite]

Do I get a discount if it's full of ghosts?
posted by SonInLawOfSam at 7:17 PM on May 27, 2023 [4 favorites]

I'm curious what is actually being sold

There was a thread elsewhere (reddit?) where someone asserted that the thing being sold, probably to a municipality or nonprofit, is the right to use the lighthouse for some purposes like tours.
posted by GCU Sweet and Full of Grace at 7:23 PM on May 27, 2023 [1 favorite]

I'm thinking the Active Aid to Navigation clause is that what you're buying is the -house; the light- part is still govt property and it has to stay.
Even though the light is actually just an automated radio beacon now, and the only govt presence you'll feel is when a pair of Coasties show up every 90 days to check the calibration on the antenna.

Signalling (heh) that this is an 'I always wanted to do a period authentic restoration and live in it' project; not an 'aha, I'll tear it down and build my Super villain Lair on it' deal.

And oh gosh, did they not tell you about the foghorn? Oh my. Yeah, in anything over a category two, that's going to let off a blast every 180 seconds until the weather clears. Gosh they really should have put that in the listing.
posted by bartleby at 7:28 PM on May 27, 2023 [26 favorites]

It would appear, bartleby, that they preferred not to (put the foghorn in the listing).
posted by plastic_animals at 7:52 PM on May 27, 2023 [26 favorites]

Do I get a discount if it's full of ghosts?

Ghosts are extra.
posted by Toddles at 7:57 PM on May 27, 2023 [5 favorites]

And oh gosh, did they not tell you about the foghorn?

Ah say there's cliffs ahead boy - cliffs, that is. Are ya listenin' to what Ah'm sayin', son??
posted by Greg_Ace at 8:03 PM on May 27, 2023 [26 favorites]

someone asserted that the thing being sold, probably to a municipality or nonprofit, is the right to use the lighthouse for some purposes like tour

It sounds like the four properties being sold have already been through that step and no one wanted them, so they are actually being sold, with some covenants for the ones with active lights.
posted by tavella at 8:57 PM on May 27, 2023 [2 favorites]

I used to live within walking distance of a historic lighthouse on Lake Ontario. There was a circa 1900 house attached to it; it was shut up but you could peek in the windows. I used to imagine I lived there and plan how I would decorate it.
posted by The Underpants Monster at 9:33 PM on May 27, 2023 [5 favorites]

let off a blast every 180 seconds until the weather clears.

One of the sweetest, lonely, romantic sounds that I miss so dearly since MRASS took away my local foghorn.
posted by vrakatar at 9:34 PM on May 27, 2023 [4 favorites]

What's a Mefite want with bein' a wickie?
posted by Strange Interlude at 9:55 PM on May 27, 2023 [3 favorites]

The U.S. government is offering at least 10 lighthouses to the public and government agencies as demand for the once-critical maritime facilities declines due to technology such as GPS.

Digital technology fails very very rarely and I'm not aware of any large-scale attempts to hack GPS systems so far, but completely removing backup systems seems incredibly short -sighted.
posted by trig at 10:54 PM on May 27, 2023 [9 favorites]

I'm not aware of any large-scale attempts to hack GPS systems so far

Actually scratch that, apparently GPS hacking already happens
posted by trig at 11:38 PM on May 27, 2023 [2 favorites]

Do they require anything more than light housekeeping?

I thought it would be done in a flash but I always end up spiralling.
posted by flabdablet at 11:50 PM on May 27, 2023 [6 favorites]

Do I get a discount if it's full of ghosts?

Depends. Did strange things happen? Are you going round the twist?
posted by automatronic at 12:28 AM on May 28, 2023 [5 favorites]

Did strange things happen? Are you going round the twist?

That brings back some memories!
posted by many-things at 12:55 AM on May 28, 2023 [1 favorite]

Could have been a contender. In 1991, Irish Lights decommissioned Duncannon North Lighthouse overlooking Waterford Harbour. We went to the auction with £35K in a satchel from selling our Thatcher-inflated home in England. The recession of the 80s still stalked the land and that much money could buy A Lot. Not the lighthouse, though: that went for £100,000. I put my sou'wester and telescope back in my steamer-trunk and turned inland.
posted by BobTheScientist at 3:26 AM on May 28, 2023 [16 favorites]

Actually scratch that, apparently GPS hacking already happens

I'm in the middle of a book that mentions it happening on the far-north border between Russia and Finland.
posted by box at 5:12 AM on May 28, 2023

Do they deliver?
posted by Thorzdad at 5:37 AM on May 28, 2023 [1 favorite]

One of the sweetest, lonely, romantic sounds that I miss so dearly since MRASS took away my local foghorn.

You had fun, fun, fun until MRASS took your foghorn away?
posted by GenjiandProust at 7:09 AM on May 28, 2023 [6 favorites]

You can have your own Fortress of Solitude, but it's in Cleveland.
posted by Runes at 7:58 AM on May 28, 2023

do these shorts make my MRASS look big?

yes

but we like short shorts!
posted by lalochezia at 8:29 AM on May 28, 2023 [4 favorites]

Lots of the old lights floated in vats of mercury, but of course the government disposed of that in the most prudent possible way and none of it ever spilled or anything.
posted by jamjam at 10:06 AM on May 28, 2023 [1 favorite]

Lots of the old lights floated in vats of mercury, but of course the government disposed of that in the most prudent possible way and none of it ever spilled or anything.

Curiousity piqued, I found this in an article titled The Dark Side of Lighthouses from Hakai Magazine (2016):

"In the 1890s, some keepers began floating their lenses in liquid mercury. The lens’s metal base spun more easily in the mercury, which helped the light rotate faster with less frequent winding. The resulting quicker flash was safer for seafarers, but not for the keepers, who breathed and touched the mercury on their daily cleaning rounds. Modern scholars have wondered if mercury, not isolation, was behind reports of lighthouse keepers behaving erratically or losing sanity, since chronic mercury poisoning causes confusion, depression, and hallucinations. William Brown, the first keeper stationed on British Columbia’s Ballenas Island, was committed to an insane asylum in May 1905 after he sent a bizarre telegram to a colleague. His wife, Maggie, who lived with him on the island, also complained of his violent behavior. Released in June after an apparent recovery, he returned to the lighthouse only to be committed again in April 1906. While there’s no way to say for sure, the recurrence suggests mercury poisoning may have played a part in Brown’s ill health."

Nothing about drinking lamp oil, however.
posted by Insert Clever Name Here at 10:34 AM on May 28, 2023 [10 favorites]

Irish Times: Price of Clare Island Lighthouse dives by nearly 40% as buyer fails to appear on the horizon (archive)

Lighthouse fanciers rejoice: you can buy a converted lighthouse off the coast of Ireland for the bargain price of 2.8 million euros. Details here.
posted by rollick at 11:21 AM on May 28, 2023

buyer fails to appear on the horizon

Wick wants trimming, I expect.
posted by flabdablet at 11:33 AM on May 28, 2023 [1 favorite]

So hard to find good ghosts these days.
posted by grobstein at 12:03 PM on May 28, 2023

Do I get a discount if it's full of ghosts?

Ghosts are extra.

Basically, you'd be running a Boo and Breakfast.
posted by BlueHorse at 12:49 PM on May 28, 2023 [7 favorites]

Nothing about drinking lamp oil, however.

Or having long, sexually-fraught conversations with Willem Dafoe and/or Robert Pattinson….
posted by GenjiandProust at 1:12 PM on May 28, 2023

"The Boo and Beacon" sounds like a maritime-themed pub.
posted by Greg_Ace at 1:12 PM on May 28, 2023

Dread & Breakfast, surely
posted by cortex at 2:36 PM on May 28, 2023 [11 favorites]

Digital technology fails very very rarely and I'm not aware of any large-scale attempts to hack GPS systems so far, but completely removing backup systems seems incredibly short -sighted.

This is what I think of when I see lighthouse facilities being sold off and it makes me think of my grandfather's role during WWII, when his was a lighthouse keeper at Pusegur Point. While the light was ordered to be extinguished through the war, the keepers at lighthouses around New Zealand played a critical role in New Zealand's defense by observing shipping and, particularly, watching for enemy ships. Modern technology, including satellite imagery, perhaps makes this an obsolete task and, in any case, I hope we never find ourselves needing such a service again. But the technology isn't infallible and a set of human eyes watching out 24/7 from vantage points with good visibility along most of the coastline may one day be something we need.

One of the reasons these sites seem hard to find buyers for is that many of them are built in places that are incredibly hostile to humans. As romantic as it may seem, the idea of living on a lighthouse station is nobody's idea of an easy life.
posted by dg at 4:09 PM on May 28, 2023 [4 favorites]

Ghosts are extra.

...but if you order now we'll throw in these meddling kids for free!
posted by pompomtom at 6:03 PM on May 28, 2023 [2 favorites]

Gotta watch out for kraken. Unless you're into that
posted by The Underpants Monster at 6:06 PM on May 28, 2023

let off a blast every 180 seconds until the weather clears

That happens to me if I have breakfast burritos.
posted by kirkaracha at 7:14 PM on May 28, 2023 [4 favorites]

Someone mention lighthouses?

In the US the process for transferring them was established in 2000 after it became apparent it was necessary to get them off the inventory of the Coast Guard (which inherited them after the US Lighthouse Service, the Life-Saving Service, and the Revenue Cutter Service all joined together in the 1930s), because they cost a LOT to maintain and they are of decreasing value as aids to navigation.

There is an inherent difficulty in transferring them, which is that transferring real property out of federal ownership requires that the property be environmentally clean and safe prior to transfer. It is much easier to attest that a lighthouse in the water (ie with no solid ground around it) is safe for transfer than a lighthouse on 5 acres of soil contaminated by lead paint, underground storage tanks, spilled paint, and PCBs or whatnot. On the other hand, people who want lighthouses want the ones they can actually get to: "water lights" are inaccessible and even more costly than the others to maintain.

Cleaning up contaminated soils -- and mercury residue from the mercury bath used in some of the lantern rooms -- is very costly, not least because a lot of them are in remote locations, such as islands off the coast of Washington. There is an old light station on Farallon Island, for the folks in the SF Bay: there's not much left of the buildings other than the lighthouse and two houses where biologists live, but the soil is pretty contaminated.

Another difficulty in transferring them is the recipients (non-profits, state or local agencies) may get them for free, but they must commit to maintain them consistent with federal historic preservation rules, as basically all US lighthouses are considered historic (many are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and all are probably eligible for it).

So your local community group may get a lighthouse for free (after it has been cleaned up), but you may then have to spend millions to restore it and maintain it.

And even then it won't be just your own: any lighthouse which is an active aid to navigation will be transferred with a clause that allows the local Coast Guard team access to the property at any time, to make sure the light is still working.

In most instances, if there is still an old Fresnel lens in the lighthouse, it won't transfer with the buildings, and instead will be kept by the CG or removed and loaned to a local museum for display.

Some of my favorite lighthouses:
Angel's Gate, which is at the entrance to LA Harbor. Beautifully restored about ten years ago by a local community group, and the only light of this design in the US.

Pigeon Point, which now belongs to the State of California, and there's a hostel on the property. Also the Fresnel lens is on display in the old Fog Signal building, and it's gorgeous.

Point Conception, which sadly few of you will probably ever get to visit: it belongs to the Air Force now, and the only access is through private property. However the old first-order lens is on display at the Santa Barbara Maritime Museum.
posted by suelac at 7:35 PM on May 28, 2023 [8 favorites]

As romantic as it may seem, the idea of living on a lighthouse station is nobody's idea of an easy life.

The life of a keeper at Cape St. Elias was so difficult, between the weather and the remote location, that a lighthouse keeper got a year off with pay for every year they worked there.
posted by suelac at 7:36 PM on May 28, 2023 [4 favorites]

completely removing backup systems seems incredibly short -sighted.


Generally, the back-up systems are not entirely removed. Under federal law, if the Coast Guard thinks a lighthouse is no longer needed by the local maritime community, they have to do a study of how and when it is used by mariners. Only if they determine it's not really needed for safe navigation would the lighthouse be shut down.

In general, what happens instead is the lighthouse is decommissioned but a separate aid to navigation is put in place: say, on a metal tower with a solar panel nearby. Or the actual light is moved to the exterior of the building.

There's a lighthouse on the Oregon coast where the locals got so upset about the possibility the Coast Guard might turn out the light that they cut a deal with the CG: the light itself is still working, but it's a private aid to navigation, and it's not the Coast Guard's job to maintain it.
posted by suelac at 7:42 PM on May 28, 2023 [3 favorites]

…any lighthouse which is an active aid to navigation will be transferred with a clause that allows the local Coast Guard team access to the property at any time, to make sure the light is still working

Does the government also pay to power the light? (I assume so.)
posted by Insert Clever Name Here at 8:19 PM on May 28, 2023

Does the government also pay to power the light?

Oh, yes, although there is a slow switchover to solar where it can be done.
posted by suelac at 8:38 PM on May 28, 2023 [1 favorite]

The life of a keeper at Cape St. Elias was so difficult, between the weather and the remote location, that a lighthouse keeper got a year off with pay for every year they worked there.
The conditions there don't seem that bad and certainly no worse than Puyseger Point, known as the windiest place in New Zealand, with gale force winds on an average of 48 days per year and constant health issues from the cold and damp experienced by keepers. If you could see that far, the only land visible to the South is Antarctica, a mere 2,500 km away. In around 1880, the principal keeper recommended that keepers at Puyseger Point be paid an additional amount due to the harsh conditions. The response was to reduce their salaries...
posted by dg at 10:08 PM on May 28, 2023

I don't know, I think I'd be fired if that was my job, after killing Jason off and countless screaming Argonauts.
posted by credulous at 10:19 PM on May 28, 2023 [11 favorites]

Well, the isolation did strange things to people. The 'EBN Miller' mentioned in that story should be 'EDN Miller' - he was my grandfather.
posted by dg at 11:02 PM on May 28, 2023 [6 favorites]

What's wrong with Cleveland?
posted by kathrynm at 2:48 PM on May 29, 2023

Metafilter HQ?
posted by blue_beetle at 6:08 PM on May 29, 2023

What's wrong with Cleveland?--kathrynm

You must not have clicked on the link.
posted by eye of newt at 12:44 AM on May 30, 2023 [1 favorite]

Where my Gus Pike girls at, amirite?
posted by The Underpants Monster at 3:50 PM on May 30, 2023

If it'll keep kids out, I'll take it. :) Just chip a window into the ice and pass the ice cream.
posted by kathrynm at 3:59 PM on May 30, 2023