Written for both tourists and armchair travelers, this reference offers a brief history, photographs, and detailed visitor information for the spookiest old beacons in the United States, most of which are open to the public.
From the frequent smell of cigar smoke to piano music heard inside, the paranormal activity revealed to occur in these abandoned lighthouses is simply spine chilling. Some even offer ghost tours and after-hours investigations.
The anguished screams of condemned prisoners can still be heard at Execution Rocks Lighthouse in New York, while the spirit of a murdered keeper still lingers at St. Simon’s Lighthouse in Georgia: he climbs the tower stairs every night, still trying to perform his duties.
At the Point Lookout Lighthouse in Maryland, thousands of Confederate soldiers died while imprisoned during the Civil War; subsequent investigations have captured 24 different voices cursing and moaning on digital recorders.
The suicide of a lovelorn keeper whose wife ran away with a local ferry captain occupies the New London Ledge Light in Connecticut, while the paranormal activity at Port Boca Grande Light in Florida involves both a pirate and a princess.
Ghost and architectural enthusiasts alike will appreciate reading about these marvelous monuments, including a Victorian mansion light station in the middle of the ocean, the biggest ligh-station complex in the United States, and the tallest lighthouse in Oregon, which is perched precariously on a rocky cliff 205 feet above sea level.