USLHS Special Events

Join Ralph Krugler of the U.S. Lighthouse Society as he interviews Elinor DeWire for this fun and informative talk about animals at lighthouses. This is part one & two of four parts.

USLHS - Lighthouse Dance Contest

In recognition of National Lighthouse Day 2023 (August 7), the U.S. Lighthouse Society held its first-ever nationwide dance contest. People were asked to dance at lighthouses around the U.S. to the original song “Meet Me at the Lighthouse” by Joe Rivers. We received entries from ten different states across the country! Here is a compilation. Thanks to everyone who took part!

Here are the winners:

First Prize - Yaquina Head Lighthouse in Oregon
Credits: Video editor and cameraman: Matt McDonnal. Camera assistant: Julie Hernandez. Production board: Andrew Smalldon, Italo Lenta, Miranda Toner.
Cast: Head Keeper: Andrew Smalldon; Lighthouse Inspector: Italo Lenta; Dancer 1: (Plaid shawl) Sabrina Gorney Dancer; 2: (Sparkly skirt); Whitney Doel. Other dancers: Ricardo Rodriguez, Lila Medina, Sabrina Lind.

Second Prize - Whitehead Light Station in Maine
The video was created by the staff, volunteers, and guests of Whitehead Light Station.

Third Prize - Fire Island Lighthouse Preservation Society in New York
Special thanks to all the volunteers!

Honorable Mention - Sakonnet Point Lighthouse in Rhode Island.
Special credit to Anna Drakulich and the crew of Sea Haven!

Honorable Mention - Friends of Nobska Light on Cape Cod, Massachusetts.
It was submitted by Kathy Walrath and features many volunteers of the Friends of Nobska Light.

Special Award for youth 15 and under - Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouse, NH
The McDonough-Grime Irish Dance School of Dover, New Hampshire.

Here is a compilation of the entries! Thanks, everyone! Looking forward to next year’s contest.

Stars and Lights: An Evening with Photographer David Zapatka

For more than 40 years, David Zapatka has been a television cameraman, working primarily at the network level for news and sports programs. He recently won his ninth Emmy award in his long broadcasting career. His nighttime lighthouse photographic project was adopted in 2018 by the United States Lighthouse Society. In his donated RV “Ruthie,” David has now visited over 240 lighthouses to photograph them at night and hopes to photograph many more. He has been named the director of photography for the U.S. Lighthouse Society. The book "USA Stars & Lights: Portraits from the Dark" is a creative collaboration between photographer David Zapatka and the U.S. Lighthouse Society. The book is a stunning collection of beautiful nighttime photographs featuring more than 160 lighthouses from 17 states.

Special virtual event: Linda Osborne Cynowa, author of "Lighthouses of the North Atlantic Coast."

Linda Osborne Cynowa has had a love of lighthouses for many years. She has a background in photography and genealogy, along with vintage lighthouse postcard collecting. She also has had a lifelong love of history. She is the author of "Washington Township" (2019), "Macomb Township" (2020), "Farming in Northern Macomb County" (2021), and "Lighthouses and Lifesaving on the Great Lakes" (2022), all published by Arcadia Publishing. "The Lighthouses of the South Atlantic and Gulf Coast" and "Lighthouse of the Pacific Coast" are in the works. Linda’s new book explores — through vintage postcards — many of the lighthouses in Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey and Delaware. Countless people have enjoyed visiting these lights while on vacation over the years, and many have sent postcards back home to loved ones.

Special Presentation by author Lynn Guenther on lighthouse keeper & naturalist Laura Hecox of Santa Cruz, CA

Pioneer, naturalist, collector, activist, lighthouse keeper, museum benefactor—few people accomplished more in their lifetimes, or meant more to the history of Santa Cruz, California, than Laura Hecox. She was keeper of the lighthouse in Santa Cruz from 1883 to 1916, and her collection of natural history specimens and artifacts is the foundational collection of the Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History.

Lynn Gunether's historical novel "Light of the Bay" brings Laura to life, telling her remarkable story from a first-person perspective. Through Laura’s eyes, readers travel across the country by wagon train, meet an array of colorful historic figures, and fall in love. Lynn Guenther serves her community as a member of organizations fostering art, ecology and education. Her passion for teaching inspired her 2022 novel "Light of the Bay." She is also an artist and jeweler.

Also participating is Kathleen Aston, collections manager of the Santa Cruz Museum of Natural History.

This is a special virtual presentation of the U.S. Lighthouse Society, originally presented on March 25, 2023.

Special Presentation of the book about Rhode Island lighthouse keeper Ida Lewis
Lenore Skomal's book "The Lighthouse Keeper's Daughter," about renowned Rhode Island lighthouse keeper Ida Lewis, is celebrating its 20th anniversary. On February 18, Lenore gave a presentation about Ida Lewis via Zoom. She was joined by Nico Raineau, a filmmaker who is developing a movie based on the book.

Special Presentation of our 2023 Spain Lighthouse Tour
This Zoom event, which was originally presented on February 4, 2023 is a preview of the U.S. Lighthouse Society's 2023 Spain tour, which will take place September 15-27, 2023. Giving the presentation is tour leader Henry Gonzalez, who is the vice president of the U.S. Lighthouse Society. Click on "Tours" in the top menu to learn more about the Society's domestic and international tours.

Special virtual event: Guide to USLHS videos

Flying Santa Third Annual Virtual Gala 2022

The Flying Santa tradition began in 1929, when Maine pilot Bill Wincapaw dropped presents from his plane for lighthouse keepers and their families in the Penobscot Bay region as a gesture of gratitude. Maritime historian Edward Rowe Snow became involved in the flights in the 1930s, and he kept the tradition going through 1980. Today the nonprofit Friends of Flying Santa manages helicopter flights to Coast Guard stations as a show of appreciation to Coast Guard personnel and their families.

This is the third annual Zoom event presented by Friends of Flying Santa and the U.S. Lighthouse Society. This event includes a presentation on the history of the Flying Santa by U.S. Lighthouse Society historian Jeremy D'Entremont, a discussion of this year's flights with Friends of Flying Santa President Brian Tague, and other special guests including descendants of Edward Rowe Snow and Bill Wincapaw.

Join USLHS historian Jeremy D'Entremont and Executive Director Jeff Gales for a tour of the videos offered on the USLHS website and YouTube channel. From tour retrospectives and previews, mini-documentaries on lighthouse history, podcast episodes, and special events spotlighting America's lighthouses, there's something for everyone. Originally presented on September 17, 2022.

Virtual Tour of Hillsboro Inlet Lighthouse, Florida

The Hillsboro Lighthouse Preservation Society’s historian, Ralph Krugler, spent several years researching his book, "The (Almost) Complete History of the Hillsboro Inlet Lighthouse." In this Zoom event, Ralph will take participants on a virtual tour of the lighthouse and grounds, as well as discussing highlights of the site’s history. Also discussed will be preservation efforts and public tours of the station. Presented on June 18, 2022.

Virtual Tour of Bolivar Point Lighthouse, Texas

Join representatives of the U.S. Lighthouse Society along with Amy Maxwell Chase and Mark Boyt of the Bolivar Point Lighthouse Foundation for this look at one of the Gulf Coast's most historic light stations. Its planned restoration is also discussed. This event was presented on April 2, 2022.

Flying Santa Second Annual Virtual Gala 2021

The Flying Santa program was started in 1929 by pioneering Maine pilot Bill Wincapaw as a way of showing gratitude to lighthouse keepers and their families. The flights continue today through the work of the nonprofit Friends of Flying Santa. Helicopters visit Coast Guard stations throughout the Northeast, with more than 1000 children of Coast Guard families receiving gifts from Santa. It’s a perfect way to express appreciation to an under-appreciated branch of our military.

Happy 150th birthday, Pomham Rocks Lighthouse!

Pomham Rocks Lighthouse stands on a tiny island in the Providence River, near the Riverside section of East Providence, Rhode Island. This video tells some of its history, leading up to the recent restoration of efforts of the Friends of Pomham Rocks Lighthouse, a chapter of the American Lighthouse Foundation. The crown jewel in the restoration was the return of the fourth-order lens to the lighthouse, after more than 40 years at a museum in Massachusetts.

Point Arena Lighthouse Virtual Tour

Join the United States Lighthouse Society and Point Arena Lighthouse Executive Director Mark Hancock for a virtual tour of the historic Point Arena Light Station’s museum and iconic lighthouse tower. This Zoom presentation allows you to virtually tour the museum, which houses the original first-order Fresnel lens, and to climb to the top of the tallest lighthouse on the Pacific coast. This virtual tour is made possible by the amazing 360-degree camera work of Michael Chandler of Third Eye Visuals, who drives the tour while Mark presents the fascinating history and technology of the Point Arena Light Station.

Mid-Atlantic Lighthouses stamps - Featuring the Thomas Point Shoal Lighthouse

Stamps depicting the beauty, mystery and romance of lighthouses that have fascinated and enchanted people for centuries continue in 2021 with the issuance of Mid-Atlantic Lighthouses, the latest in the Postal Service’s continuing series of lighthouse stamps. The Mid-Atlantic Lighthouses stamps are now being sold at Post Office locations nationwide and online at usps.com/lighthousestamp. The Mid-Atlantic Lighthouses are the seventh installment in the Postal Service’s long-running lighthouse series. Howard Koslow (1924-2016) was the artist for these stamps, as well as for previous issuances in the Lighthouses series. Each stamp features an original acrylic painting by Koslow, based on photographs of the lighthouses. Greg Breeding was the stamp designer and art director.

There is another video that is posted by Chesapeake Bay Magazine on Facebook and can be seen here: https://fb.watch/7i5In07dwq/

Stay at a Lighthouse Presentation - Lighthouses with overnight accommodations

Friends of Flying Santa Virtual Gala

Haunted Lighthouse of New England

Bar Harbor Whale Watch's all-day "Grand Slam" lighthouse cruise, of the northern Maine coast and New Brunswick, Canada.

Remembering Glen Tart