Great Lakes Lighthouse Tales Book

Stonehouse books read like a conversation … buy him a beer and he'll tell you a tale. I think that's how he did his research -- from old salts. Lighthouse Tales gets the reader acclimated to the uniqueness of the Great Lakes lighthouses, the keepers and the challenges they faced and then moves onto stories from Lakes Ontario, Erie, Michigan, Superior. The Lake Michigan stories include tales from Pilot Island (the Gilmore, Nichols and Forest wrecks), St Martin Island (keeper Louis Bauchan and his chickens), Poverty Island (the treasure). Stonehouse writes: 'It is often said that ships have a spirit, a soul, a living aspect to them. Whether built of steel, wood or even fiberglass, there is an essence within the physical structure. A good captain lets the ship talk to him and takes note of what it says. I believe a lighthouse has the same type of spirit and it too can speak to the keeper. There are cases where the old time wickies claimed their lights did talk to them, telling of their fears and desires. And the keepers spoke back to the lights, reassuring them when the gales blew hard and encouraging them to keep the light burning. Like ships, lights were always feminine, never masculine.' Pick up this book, flip through the wonderful pictures and sit back for tales of times long gone.