Halfway Rock Light

Infobox_Lighthouse


caption = Undated photo of Halfway Rock Light
location = Casco bay off Bailey island
coordinates = coord|43|39|21|N|70|02|12|W|region:US_type:landmark
yearbuilt = 1871
yearlit = 1871
automated = 1975
yeardeactivated =
foundation = Granite
construction = Granite
shape = Conical
marking = White with black lantern
height = 77 feet
elevation =
lens = Third order fresnel, 1871
currentlens =
intensity =
range = 19 nm
characteristic = Flashing red 5 s. Emergency light of reduced intensity when main light is extinguished. HORN: 2 blasts ev 30s (2s bl-2s si-2s bl-24s si). Operatescontinuously.

The Halfway Rock Lighthouse is a lighthouse located on a barren ledge called Halfway Rock in Casco Bay, Maine, United States. The lighthouse tower, which has a height of 76 feet, and the attached ex-boathouse are all that remain, as the other buildings have been taken away in storms. The name "Halfway Rock" comes from the position of the rock, being at the bottom of the bay and its proximity halfway between Cape Elizabeth and Sebasco, Maine, the west and east extremities of Casco Bay, which are about 20 miles apart. Halfway Rock is nearly equidistant from either, being approximately ten miles from both points.

The rock is also home to a colony of harbor seals.

History

The need for a lighthouse on Halfway Rock first came to attention when, in the year 1835, a ship called Samuel ran aground on the rock during a storm. Due to the fact that the ledge is only ten feet above sea level on a clear, calm day, the ledge become submerged during storms. It has been underwater as much as eight feet during storms, and that is when the ledge was most dangerous. The cry for a lighthouse was ignored in Washington until, again, in 1861, another ship ran aground on Halfway Rock. This time, it was taken a bit more seriously. Construction began, but was delayed time and time again due to lack of supplies and lack of workmen. Ten years later, in 1871, the first light shone from Halfway Rock, as a new light had been completed. The keepers' quarters were originally inside the lighthouse tower. An 1888 boathouse contained additional living space for the keepers in its upper story. The light was originally produced by a third-order Fresnel lens and its characteristic was fixed white puncuated by a red flash once every minute. A fog bell was brought to the rock in 1887. It had a bit of success, but as technology kept coming out with new innovations, the bell was replaced with a fog "trumpet" in 1905. Since this was a hard lighthouse station to get to, in the mid-1930s, the United States Coast Guard began bringing a tender to the location to bring the men into the mainland (for multiple reasons) and back out to the rock. In addition to this, there was a helicopter landing pad, in case of emergencies where a helicopter was necessary. The light was automated in 1975 and the keepers were removed. Fact|date=October 2007 The marine railway was destroyed by the 1991 Halloween Nor'easter. The old Fresnel lens is now at the museum at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London, CT; the active optic is a VRB-25. The attached wooden building was badly damaged by storms in 2007. The lighthouse is now licensed to the American Lighthouse Foundation, and the organization is raising funds for its restoration.

Reference/Sources

* http://www.cyberlights.com/lh/maine/halfway.htm#
* http://www.lighthousefoundation.org/alf_lights/halfwayrock/halfwayrock_facts.htm
* http://www.lighthouse.cc/halfwayrock/history.html
* [http://www.lighthousefoundation.org/alf_lights/halfwayrock/hrl_int_2006mar.htm Pictures of the inside of Halfway Rock Light]
* [http://www.lhdigest.com/Digest/StoryPage.cfm?StoryKey=1569 Ken Rouleau’s Year at Halfway Rock]