JONESPORT, Maine — The Moose Peak lighthouse and four acres that surround it on Mistake Island southeast of Jonesport will be sold this spring to the highest bidder by the federal government.
The federal General Services Administration will take bids on the working lighthouse, which in its many forms has been serving as a navigational aid for seafarers since 1827. The existing 57-foot brick tower was built in 1851 and is now automated with a solar-powered light and fog horn.
A nonprofit group called Keepers of Moose Peak Light had been working since the fall of 2010 to acquire the property after it was put on the “surplus” list by the U.S. Coast Guard. After a complicated and protracted application process, the group learned this week that its application to have the lighthouse deeded to the nonprofit has been denied by the National Park Service.
“Apparently they wanted us to have $50,000 to $100,000 in hand,” said Larry Finnegan of Jonesport, the group’s chairman. “We are not able to raise that kind of money without first knowing if we are going to take ownership.”
Finnegan said his group solicited an estimate on repairing cracks in the tower and cleaning and repainting both the tower’s interior and exterior facades. That work was expected to cost $207,000. Finnegan said the lighthouse has had virtually no maintenance during the past 20 years.
The lighthouse is sited on a rocky point west of the narrow entrance to Mistake Harbor, a well-sheltered and seasonally popular overnight anchorage for sailboats cruising the Down East coastline. The island is accessible only by sea or by helicopter. The 23 acres that surround the lighthouse are leased from the U.S. Coast Guard by The Nature Conservancy, which maintains it as a board-walked nature preserve that in summer is thick with raspberries, blackberries and blueberries.
The original, second order Fresnel optical lens that was installed in 1856 was replaced with a modern lens in 1993. The original lens is on display at a U.S. Coast Guard exhibit center in Maryland. A light keeper’s house built in 1903 was dismantled in 1982 during a Green Beret training exercise that involved explosives.
Finnegan said the federal government tried to sell the lighthouse to a private interest in the 1990s, but that deal fell through when it was determined that Mistake Island’s granite ledge would not accommodate a septic system.
Additional information about the General Services Administration’s plans to sell the lighthouse is available through meta.cushing@gsa.gov.
The downside of the budget slashing so popular these days is often the erosion and loss of irreplaceable icons of the country’s historic patrimony. This is it in spades.
Who cares?
Evidently the National Park System and the Federal Government, they rather have cash than give it away.
It might be nice to look at, although it’s not very accessible, can barely be seen from land, and is virtually obsolete, but it’s too bad that the government requires so much money up front from a private group that wants to restore it.
It’s not exactly meant to be seen from land. Obviously you’ve never been at sea before and lost your electronics. A lighthouse can provide life saving guidance in a storm.
The biggest point that I was trying to make is that it’s too bad that the government demands so much money up front to restore something that they want to get rid of and aren’t maintaining. It would also be easier to raise the capital from donors if the light was more accessible/visible to the public.
Gee, I guess you’ve got me all figured out. I hold a U.S. Coast Guard 100 ton license, I’ve only been lobster fishing for 40 years and pass this light on almost a daily basis. You’re right that I’ve never lost my electronics, but I learned to navigate at sea with just a compass, the boat’s tachometer, and a watch. We fish in dungeon fog most of the summer. I’ve been hauling right along side this light in these conditions and the fog horn hasn’t even been working. Do you have anything else you want ad there mouthy?
Well I didn’t realize I was talking to the Captain of all captains. I bow down and apologize to you oh great one.
Moose-peaks’ light is visible spearing through the sky as a solid beam in the night mist from as far away as Jonesboro , Machiasport, and Milbridge. It is one of those local places which can spawn stories and be a comforting refuge for travelers. It would be a sad thing to let this piece of Maine drift into oblivion.
there must be a wealthy politician in the right place with the “right” people that could buy this for a dime.
This is not an attractive lighthouse to own. It’s remote and difficult to access, and there’s no longer a keeper’s house there — just a lighthouse tower. You can’t live in it. All the more reason the government should have given it to the nonprofit that sincerely wants to restore it for the sake of historic preservation.
You do a nice job with your lighthouse guide. I’ve really enjoyed the website.
Thank you, Oliver. I have a section on Moose Peak Light at http://lighthouse.cc/moosepeak/.
This article doesn’t make the whole process very clear. Under the guidelines of the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act, the government has been offering a few lighthouses each year to suitable new stewards — primarily communities and nonprofits — under a very stringent application process. The Keepers of Moose Peak Light applied, but their application was rejected because they hadn’t raised enough money. How could they have done any serious fundraising when they were a new organization and they didn’t know whether or not they would be awarded ownership of the lighthouse? I find this completely unrealistic.
And how is auctioning the lighthouse to the high bidder the best way to find a suitable steward for the property, particularly when you already have a local group committed to its preservation?
I understand that some people think, “Who cares?” when you compare something like this to all the enormous issues we face today. But historic preservation is vital if we are to maintain a sense of who we are as a nation. Lighthouses, in particular, stand as reminders that our nation was built on maritime commerce. Also, they were built for completely altruistic reasons and they serve to remind us of humanity’s better qualities.
This is a real shame and is government bureaucracy at its worst. Lighthouses are among the oldest historic buildings in the nation and the Keeper’s of Moose Peak Light were willing to take it over and as unpaid volunteers they would have raised the money to save it.
While it might be nice if a private personwith big money buys it and restores it, the lighthouse will then no longer belong to the public. The GSA has given away many lighthouses to many small nonprofits, so why are they being so picky with this lighthouse?
Look at the success of the Friends of Nash Island Lighthouse or the success of Little River Lighthouse in Cutler where you can check out their progress at http://www.LittleRiverLight.org or http://www.TheLighthouseEndeavor.com. Lighthouses are what helped make this country grow and be great, now its our turn to save the lighthouses and the amazing history associated with them. In fact, you can learn more about early American history by studying lighthouses than any other single source. If you want to learn about Moose Peak Lighthouse you might want to pick upa copy of the book ,Lighthouses of the Sunrise County. It’s available at Waynes Barber Shop in Machias or Jim’s Books in Machias.