- Abbie Burgess
Abbie Burgess (later Grant) (1839–1892) was an American
lighthouse keeper known for her bravery in tending theMatinicus Rock Light , inMaine , during a raging winter storm in 1856. She tended the light for nearly a month while her father, the head keeper, was away from the island. Her heroic actions attracted much attention, and she was soon a popular heroine.Burgess later married a lighthouse keeper, and spent fifteen years as the keeper at
White Head Light .Burgess is the subject of the
children's book , "Keep the Lights Burning, Abbie", and there is aUnited States Coast Guard USCG Coastal Buoy Tender (WLM 553) based inRockland, Maine named for her as well.External links
* [http://www.uscg.mil/hq/g-a/awl/bclass/wlm/AbbieBurgessGrant.htm Coast Guard bio]
* [http://www.uscg.mil/datasheet/175wlm.htm Buoy Tender information]
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