We traveled on 06/03/2009 to Arrowhead Campground in Marianna, FL. Then on 06/06/2009 we visited 4 lighthouses: Saint Joseph Point Lighthouse in Port Saint Joe, FL, Cape San Blas Lighthouse also in Port Saint Joe, FL, Cape Saint George Lighthouse on Saint George Island, FL, and Crooked River Lighthouse in Carrabelle, FL. The current Saint Joseph Lighthouse was constructed on the mainland at Beacon Hill, opposite the northern tip of the cape, where the St. Joseph Bay Lighthouse had stood. Rather than build a lofty conical tower, a lantern room was mounted on a square watch room atop a hipped-roof keeper’s dwelling. The St. Joseph Point Lighthouse was equipped with a third-order Fresnel lens, and a second beacon was established 600 feet seaward of the lighthouse near the beach. Together, the beacons functioned as range lights, and the lighthouse was known as the St. Joseph Light Range Station or as the Beacon Hill Light. In 1960, the lighthouse was replaced by a light on a 78-foot iron tower, and the old dwelling was sold into private hands for $300. While the structure was being moved to a farm three miles inland along Overstreet Highway, the lantern room was dropped and destroyed. In 1979, the Raffields purchased the lighthouse and transported it roughly twenty miles south to its new home on St. Joseph Bay. By then, the lighthouse had become known as the traveling lighthouse. The Raffields have had craftsmen replicate the original lantern room, which should be placed atop the lighthouse in the near future. The picture is of the Saint Joseph Point Lighthouse.
Cape San Blas Lighthouse is the fourth lighthouse that marked the southern part of Florida’s Cape San Blas. The cape protrudes from the southernmost point of Florida’s Panhandle and resembles a L-shaped arm, similar to Massachusetts’ Cape Cod. In 1883, $35,000 was granted to build an iron skeleton tower as requested by the Lighthouse Board. The tower was fabricated in the North, and then loaded on a ship for its journey to the cape. En route, the ship went down along Florida’s west coast. Fortunately, the wreck was in shallow water, and most of the material was salvageable. Before the tower’s third order-Fresnel lens was first lit in June of 1885, a temporary light had been displayed from the top of a tall pole. The 98-foot tower was originally placed 1,500 feet from the shoreline, but by 1890 only 144 feet of sand separated the tower from the breaking waves. The tower obviously had to be moved, or it too would be lost. Congress provided $20,000 for the task. In 1918 the tower was moved a quarter of a mile from the shore. The light was first shown from its new location on January 22, 1919. The picture is of the Cape San Blas Lighthouse.
St. George Island was shaped something like a giant check mark. From West Pass, the island extended southeast almost four miles before it reached its southernmost point, from where it bent northeast for twenty-five miles. It was soon noted that as vessels approached from the east, they would encounter the southern extreme of the island, before they could see the light on its west end. To remedy this situation, a local, Edward Bowden, was awarded a contract to build a new lighthouse at the southern extreme of the island. A new contract was awarded on December 10, 1851, to Emerson and Adams to build a replacement. The site for the island’s third lighthouse was 250 yards inland from the previous site. Instead of building directly on the sand, a ring of pine pilings driven into the sand served as a foundation for the tower. Material salvaged from the destroyed lighthouse was used during the construction of the new station. The 1852 lighthouse originally stood over 500 yards from the Gulf, but by 1990 the beach erosion on the Gulf side of the island threatened the lighthouse. Hurricane Andrew removed most of the remaining buffer zone in 1992. The Coast Guard, realizing that the lighthouse might be lost, deactivated the light in 1994. On October 21, years of stress on the leaning tower apparently became too much, as the lighthouse toppled into the gulf at 11:45 a.m. on October 21, years of stress on the leaning tower apparently became too much, as the lighthouse toppled into the gulf at 11:45 a.m. The reconstructed lighthouse was first opened for visitors in November of 2008. The picture is of the reconstructed Cape Saint George Lighthouse.
Crooked River Lighthouse is a 103-foot iron tower, flanked by a keeper’s dwelling on both side, was completed in August of 1895. The first keeper, James Williams, lit the light for the first time on October 28, 1895 and logged “Everything worked well, weather was clear and fine, Keeper stood watch to 12 p.m. Light was good throughout the watch. The tower was apparently painted red originally, but in 1902, the bottom half of the tower was given a coat of white paint to offset it from the surrounding pine forest. The picture is of the Crooked River Lighthouse.
We drove to Casey Jones RV Park in Lake City, FL on 06/10/2009 for a week. While we were there, we had the RV serviced on 06/11/2009. Then on 06/13/2009 we drove down to Pinellas Park, Fl to visit Cliff’s Brothers, Bill and Ken. We visited Saint Marks National Wildlife Refuge and Saint Marks Lighthouse near Saint Marks, FL on 06/14/2009. The Saint Marks NWR is a unique refuge and was established in 1931 to provide wintering habitat for migratory birds. It is one of the oldest refuges in the National Wildlife Refuge System. It encompasses 68,000 acres spread out between Wakulla, Jefferson, and Taylor counties along the Gulf Coast of northwest Florida. The refuge includes coastal marshes, islands, tidal creeks and estuaries of seven north Florida rivers, and is home to a diverse community of plant and animal life. The refuge also has strong ties to a rich cultural past, and is home to the St. Marks Lighthouse, which was built in 1832 and is still in use today. The picture is of a Great Egret near the lighthouse.
