Wood Island Light continues to warn mariners approaching Biddeford Pool of the hazards to navigation along the southern shore of Saco Bay. In the last 200 years there have been many wrecks in these waters, and without the lighthouse at Wood Island, there would have been many more.

Lighthouse keepers have only recently been displaced by automated horns and beacons. We are still early in the transition period that will determine whether lighthouses as we have known them ”“ particularly those along Maine’s coast ”“ can be preserved in remembrance of our maritime past.

The Friends of Wood Island Lighthouse met last week in Biddeford Pool to provide an update of plans to restore and preserve the lighthouse tower and keeper’s house. The organization discussed the first phase of a comprehensive plan to restore and preserve the property ”“ a goal that deserve wide support.

It will be an expensive undertaking, but the project already has substantial funds at its disposal. Wood Island Lighthouse is one of three lighthouses (the others are Pemaquid Point Lighthouse and Owls Head Lighthouse) to share $380,000 in federal funds earmarked this year for restoration of Maine lighthouses.

The Friends of Wood Island Lighthouse, under a license granted by the U.S. Coast Guard, and in collaboration with the American Lighthouse Foundation, has assumed responsibility for the project.

Simply as a historic artifact, the lighthouse is worth preserving. Originally built in 1808, the tower was rebuilt in granite in 1839. The keeper’s house dates to 1857. Both reflect a time that is now past. As the Friends of Wood Island Lighthouse state put it: “The island is a step back in time to the era when ship navigation depended on its light and the task of operating and maintaining the light was performed by a succession of keepers and their families.”

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At last week’s meeting, the group sketched out its plans for improvements and the resources available so far ”“ about $200,000 in federal funds and $135,000 raised by the organization. This year’s work includes applying a new, biodegradable sealant to the exterior of the tower, and removing its lead-based interior paint. Architects are at work on plans to restore the keeper’s house to match an appropriate era ”“ circa 1906.

The lighthouse stands at the seaward end of a 35-acre uninhabited island. It is an active nesting site for seabirds, and much of the property is managed as a bird sanctuary by the Audubon Society. It would be nice to think that the island can remain more or less as it is forever.

Details of the project will be available at the organization’s Web site, www.woodislandlighthouse.org. For those interested in a look at this unique and historic property, the Web site also lists its schedule of tours, through the end of  August.

— Questions? Comments? Contact Kristen Schulze Muszynski or Nick Cowenhoven at 282-1535 or kristenm@journaltribune.com or nickc@journaltribune.com.



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