Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
December 29, 1933 With New Year’s Eve fast approaching, it was definitely a case of “out with the old, in with the new” on the southwest tip of the Hawaiian island of Oahu due to the replacement of one lighthouse with another there. (At the time, Hawaii was a U.S. territory; it became the 50th... Continue Reading →
December 28, 1894 In the town of Cromer on England’s eastern coast, an 18-year-old local resident named Henry Blogg first saw action at sea as a member of the crew of RNLB (Royal National Lifeboat) Benjamin Bond Cabbell II. Blogg had actually joined that crew nearly a year earlier, but it was that holiday-season mission... Continue Reading →
December 15, 1874 In southern California’s Los Angeles area, Point Fermin Light on the west side of the entrance to San Pedro Bay had its inaugural lighting. This structure had been designed by architect and civil engineer Paul J. Pelz, who was serving the U.S. Lighthouse Board at the time as its chief draftsman. Point Fermin... Continue Reading →
December 1, 1901 A newly built lighthouse made its formal debut at Cape Byron in the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW) to help protect ships traveling through that area of the Pacific Ocean. Cape Byron Lighthouse, which remains in service today and can be found approximately two miles (3.2 kilometers) northeast of the town... Continue Reading →
November 8, 1873 The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) began construction on a lighthouse on Hereford Inlet in the borough of Anglesea (now the city of North Wildwood) in southern New Jersey. The Hereford Inlet Light was built to replace a life-saving station that had been installed at that location only a couple of... Continue Reading →
October 24, 1953 In the northern part of Chile, a lighthouse first went into service on a beach in the city and commune of La Serena. This lighthouse was officially inaugurated by Juan Cortés Alcayaga, mayor of La Serena. The Monumental Lighthouse of La Serena (Faro Monumental de La Serena) was designed by Ramiro Pérez... Continue Reading →
October 5, 1871 Work was completed on a lighthouse built on the Pacific coast of Honshu, the largest and most populous of Japan’s islands. This navigational aid was the original version of Irōzaki Lighthouse. That lighthouse was specifically built in the town of Minamiizu, which is located on Cape Irōzaki (a headland on the southernmost... Continue Reading →
September 27, 1979 A lighthouse built in the Ve Skerries region of Scotland first went into service. The Ve Skerries are a group of low skerries (small, rocky islands) located along the southwest perimeter of St Magnus Bay and northwest of Papa Stour. Papa Stour is one of the largest islands of Shetland (also known... Continue Reading →
September 20, 1909 A lighthouse on Pengjia Islet, a volcanic island that is about 38 miles (60 kilometers) northeast of the northern tip of Taiwan, first went into service. The Pengjia Lighthouse was built in response to a large number of shipwrecks in that region of the Pacific Ocean at the time and the consequent... Continue Reading →
September 16, 1956 A newly built lighthouse first went into service in the Tuscany region of central Italy. This lighthouse is located at the south entrance of the port of the city of Livorno, which is on the coast of the Ligurian Sea (an arm of the Mediterranean Sea). The Port of Livorno is the... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 