Show R 1 1111 e A AK T zat t W I 1 I 1 I 1 1 1411 I 1 I 1 14 N 1 11 1 Z I 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 1 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 J i aig h ts h ip I 1 i I 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 11 I 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 11 1 I 1 I 1 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 1 1 I 1 L I 1 1 I 1 ov 1 i I 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 1 I I 1 I 1 tn z i I 1 I 1 V f I 1 I 1 I 1 V I 1 X V I 1 i I 1 N i I 1 I 1 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 ii I 1 11 1 t I 1 I 1 I 1 A 1 I it I 1 1 1 14 R 1 i 1 aw 14 p 4 V I 1 I 1 V ap a 10 iq 11 X W X ms 01 M fa 1015 5 I 1 1 I 1 K k I 1 I 1 2 lm I 1 V M mav C e W I 1 I 1 II 11 I 1 1 4 I 1 I 1 e I 1 il I 1 j r V I 1 I 1 I 1 I 1 0 4 gr 7 I 1 I 1 1 1 1 X 1 1 1 I 1 Z 1 I lightship anchored on nantucket shoals lightships li and lighthouses save lives and property along americas coasts prepared by national geographic society washington D C service T bobbing L J about the soa sea along our coast warning mariners marinero ma of dangerous shoals may not stir the imagination of passengers on passing ships but they have played nn an important part in guarding life arid and property at sea they have repeatedly given refugo refuge to tile tho tho the shipwrecked A gorman german submarine raider visited newport in 1010 before we entered the world war later it went out and made its lair near nantucket lightship where until the alarm spread vessels were contently cont antly passing the submarine sank a number of unarmed merchant ships hips tile the crews of which took refuge on th the e lightship at one time there were shipwrecked men aboard d the lightship and 19 ships boats were trailing on a line astern As bad weather ensued shortly and the locality Is 47 miles from the nearest land it Is certain that many of these seamen would have lost their lives had it not been for the haven provided by tile the lightship the only navigational aid in this country destroyed by the enemy during the world war was the diamond shoal lightship off cape ilat hat terns on the afternoon of august 8 1018 a submarine raider began firing at a merchant marchant ship about a mile and a halt half away the lightship broadcast by radio a warning to other vessels in the vicinity and this was undoubtedly tile the means of saving many ships but it resulted in th the e sub submarines marrine I 1 9 firing six shots at the lightship and later returning and sinking it by gunfire the crew got away in boats and after seeing the ship go to the bottom they landed safely that evening on cape hatteras Hatt cras some notable life saving work blunts reef hect lightship marks the outer limit of rocks of oil cape mendocino a wild and desolate section of the california coast at on a june morning in 1010 the lookout reported a boat hailing balling the lightship on coming alongside the officer in charge stat ed cd that tile the steamship bear had stranded between the cape and false cape rock in all nine life boats came alongside and people from the bear including many women were taken aboard the lightship and given hot coffee and worm warm bedding other lifeboats a arrived later with more survivors eventually all these people were transferred to land by the steamer grace dollar this all happened during dense fog which had lasted for two days with the station fog signals sound ing regularly now a radio beacon has been placed on blunts reef lightship in 1916 fire island lightship in the approach to new york was waa rammed by the steamer philadel chian ahlan and her side cut open for tour four feet below the water line the shipway ship was saved from sinking only by the remarkable presence of mini mind and quick work of her hel crew who shifted weights slung out boats and tilled filled them with water so as to list the vessel and bring the dam age above the water line lightship number one was retired from duty in 1930 after 75 years of service this vessel was built tor for the station then known as Nan tuck et new south shoals and remained on this exposed station tor for 36 years with only sails for power in early days it was not easy to maintain lightships on outside stations the first attempts in this country were made at sandy houk at the entrance to new york bay in 1823 and at diamond shoal oft off cape hatteras in 1824 in the latter case the ship broke f from rora her moorings within a few mont lis and after being replaced several times ans wp R wrecked in 1827 it was 70 years before another lightship was placed oft off diamond shoal recent improve improvements improvement men ts in ligh lightships marked advance has since been made in lightship design the breaking strength ot of mooring chains has been doubled even eve n a west in dies hurricane passing up the coast seldom parts a mooring in the gale of september 1933 diamond shoal lightship dragged her pound mushroom anchor I 1 I 1 I 1 five miles but tho the mooring chain withstood tho the tremendous strain our coastal lighthouse system was fairly well completed in tile tho lost last century structures which house tho the great lights of today were for tho the most part built from CO 60 to BO 80 years ago progress in recent years has been more in technical improvements making use of radio electricity now illuminants and improved tog fog signals now and then however changes must bo be mado made in tile tho primary stations themselves new needs call for now new stations tho the abandonment of old towers or the substitution of less expensive automatic lights I 1 six light stations of tho the first rank recently completed show the different needs that occasionally asio nally arise at north Man manitou itou in the northern part of lake michigan a station has been built in 22 feet of water to take the place of a lightship two other similar stations havo have recently been completed in this lake at capo cape decision alaska a now new light and fog signal station stands in a key position for tho the navigation of southeast alaska situated as it Is pt at an entrance from the outside outbid C and at a turning point for the inside passages at tile the south end of santa barbara channel off on the coast of Cali california califern forn in navigation is now safeguarded b by the station on anacapa anacaya island a guide both to coasting vessels and to those approaching los angeles from the open sea the sixth of these now primary stations stands at the entrance from lake huron to the st marys river where it was necessary to have a guide close to tho the channel for the lake superior the most powerful light in the american lighthouse system shines from a low structure turo atop tile the atlantic highlands at navesink Nave sink now new jersey its penetrating benm beam measures candle candlepower power vicissitudes of lighthouses progress as well as natures as sometimes dooms ino fine old lighthouses often these towers figure prominently in local history and romance fortunately such auch old towers sometimes can bo be preserved the state slate of new jersey has taken over the tall tower ot of barnegat Barne gat light which is of diminished importance to navigation the first cape henry tower in virginia has been transferred to a patriotic organization and that at cape florida Is preserved by a private purchaser purchase when the sea encroaches it is often dif difficult flIt to save an old station usually it is less expensive to move it or to build another lighthouse thus along the low lying sandy south atlantic states and gulf coasts coasto many early masonry towers have hava succumbed to the sea metal structures have been dismantled and moved back to places of safety eleven years ago the historic lighthouse at cape henlopen Hen lopen delaware was destroyed by the inroads of the atlantic henlopen Hen lopen was 69 one of the early colonial lights our steady change to modern modem automatic lights has saved the public much money but for primary lights the maxim is safety is found only in certainty and human attention given by must be retained an exception is the lighthouse operated by the united states government on navassa island in the west indies here the keepers were removed because of difficulty in maintaining them on this uninhabited and barren island between jamaica and Hi this lighthouse now has two automatic flashing lights one abo above ve the other with independent gas supplies for each to insure that one light will always show ingenious devices are utilized to save gas or electricity in burning barnin 9 the automatic lights sun valves depending on the rate of expansion of different metals are used to turn oft off the acetylene gas lights lighta during the daytime recently the light sensitive cell has been employed to turn on and oft off autom automatic tle electric lights operated from batteries the unattended attended flashing light at Molo kini hawaiian fla wallan islands burned without failure for nearly 20 ye flashing over times two lighted buoys b each have a record ecord ot burning nearly a year and a half on one charts charo of acetylene gas I 1 |