Lighthouse Lighting

A great time was had by all at the lighting of the lighthouse on Saturday night. Lots of food, drink, and friends.....and even a bit of caroling. The sales record for lighting night in the gift shop was surpassed. Thank you to all who attended for your support.

Annual Lighting of the Lighthouse

Join us this Saturday, December 13, from 6pm to 8pm to see the lighting of the Christmas Lights on the Lighthouse. Following the Lighting will be a party where you can mingle in the glow of the decorations and get into the holiday spirit.

Children's Educational Series

Tomorrow, Saturday November 29th, is the first program of our Children's Educational Series. The program runs from 10am to 11:30 am, and will take place at the pavilion by the lighthouse.

The title of this program is Creative Calusa, and will interpret the who the Calusa Indians are, where they lived, their style of art, and how they made their paint. There will be a project at the end for the children to try their hand at mixing their own colors and painting like the Calusa would have. 

The next Children’s Educational program is at Stump Pass and is titled Shark Smarts, to take place on January 17th. The program will go over the types of sharks in SW Florida waters, talk about common myths, possible reasons there are so many sharks teeth at Stump Pass Beach, and follow with a shark tooth hunt and necklace making session.

Charlotte Harbor Nature Festival

The Charlotte Harbor National Estuary Program is pleased to sponsor the ninth annual Charlotte Harbor Nature Festival – a day to explore, learn and enjoy the natural environment of southwest Florida. The event will take place on Saturday, November 22, 2008 from 10am to 3pm in Port Charlotte at the Charlotte Sports Park, located at 2300 El Jobean Rd, 2.5 miles west of US 41.

Visitors can participate in activities geared toward all ages, including nature exhibits, local artists, live native animals, musicians, wagon rides and guided walks to the Tippecanoe Regional Park.

Guest speakers will cover water issues and native animals. Musicians will perform songs about the environment. Mote Marine Laboratory will bring their mobile exhibit with its touch tanks. Food and beverages can be purchased at the event.

Festival organizers have again chosen to make this event free so that as many people as possible can enjoy it and – new in 2007 – a free cloth tote bag will be given away (one/car).

The festival is funded through event sponsorship and a raffle that will be held at the festival. The event planning committee invites your business, organization or association to be promoted as a sponsor or exhibitor, joining many others, if their information is about the natural environment of southwest Florida. The festival is organized and planned by a dedicated group of volunteers representing a diverse number of organizations and associations.

Be sure to stop by and visit BIPS to learn about our museum and pick up your Port Boca Grande Lighthouse Fan and Frisbee, while supplies last. The festival promises to be a fun and educational event.

(Festival information taken from chnep.org)

Halloween Event Canceled

Due to illness and unforseen circumstances, the Halloween Event has been canceled. The Royal Palm Players will be refunding all who purchased tickets in advance. Please keep an eye out for our upcoming events, and have a safe and happy Halloween!

Join us for our first Halloween event.

The Royal Palm Players and Barrier Island Parks Society present a Haunted Evening of Pirate Tales and Ghost Stories.

Gather, if  you dare, inside Gasparilla Island State Park at Amory Chapel, for a spooky walking tour around the park by lantern light, including a visit to one of the top ten rated haunted lighthouses in the country, the old historic Port Boca Grande Lighthouse. End the night with delicious appetizers and wine.

The event takes place on Halloween night, Friday October 31, at 7pm. Tickets are $20, and can be obtained by contacting the Royal Palm Players box office at (941)964-2670 from 9am to 3pm.

History of the Port Boca Grande Lighthouse

The Port Boca Grande Lighthouse today.

In 1888, the US Congress allocated $35,000 for the US Lighthouse Service to build a lighthouse on Boca Grande Pass, the deepest natural port in the state. The Port Boca Grande Lighthouse was lit December 31, 1890. The light was used to light Boca Grande Pass, the entrance to Charlotte Harbor. A second light, the Charlotte Harbor Light, stood within Carlotte Harbor, and a third, Mangrove Point Light, was at the north end of the harbor, marking the point of Punta Gorda.

The Port Boca Grande Light is an iron screw pile design with a wood frame. It originally had a clam-shaped 3 1/2 order Fresnel lens. The lens is housed in an octagonal cupola on the peak of the roof. The light itself is integrated into the keeper's house. Today, a 5th order drum lens has take the place of the original lens, with a focal plane of 44' that is visible for 12 miles.

In 1912 the phosphate facility at Port Boca Grande was operational, and ships from around the world came to the island to load phosphate. The phosphate was not shipped in containers; instead it was poured directly into the holds of the ships. As they moved to later ports, cargo was placed on top of the bed of phosphate.

The lighthouse had a succession of keepers. They were Frances McNulty (1890-1894), William Lester (1894-1923), Charles Henry Williams (1923-1932), Osmund McKinney (1932-1940), and Cody McKeithan (1941-1951).

In 1932, the Gasparilla Island Rear Range Light came into operation on Gasparilla Island. Built in 1885 as the Delaware Breakwater Rear Range Light, it was dismantled in 1921 and shipped to Miami. In 1927, it was shipped to Gasparilla Island and reassembled. It was relit in 1932, and had a companion light, the Front Range Light, in the Gulf of Mexico off of Gasparilla Island. When the two lights lined up, a ship's navogator knew it was time to turn to enter Boca Grande Pass. The Front Range Light no longer exists, but the Rear Range Light still stands, and is owned and maintained by the US Coast Guard.

The Gasparilla Island Rear Range Light today.

During WWII, the lighthouse was used to watch for German U-Boats. There was a submarine watch tower to the west of the light. The keeper, Cody McKeithan, kept in touch with the Coast Guard by radio, which was kept on the second floor of the lighthouse. The port was used as a safe harbor at night. with as many as ships mooring at the dock to avoid German subs.

In 1956, the light was automated, an the era of lighthouse keepers on Gasparilla Island came to an end.

In 1966, the light was deactivated, and by 1968 it was essentially abandoned by the Coast Guard, falling into disrepair. There was severe beach erosion, and by the 1970s, the screw piles were exposed. The light began to tilt and was soon in danger of falling into the pass. In 1972, the light and the land around it were transferred to Lee County. In 1982, when Florida Power and Light (FPL) dredged the basin of the oil dock next to the lighthouse, they placed sand around the light, shoring it up. To help retain the sand, FPL also had two rock groins built in front of the light.

The Port Boca Grande Lighthouse falls into disrepair.

The lighthouse was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980, and restoration work began in 1985. The restoration, a collaboration of several island groups, was completed in 1986. The new lens was lit, and the Port Boca Grande Light was recommissioned by the Coast Guard as an aid to navigation.

In 1988, the lighthouse surrounding land was transferred to the State of Florida, and today is the centerpiece of Gasparilla Island State Park. A museum was built inside the lighthouse, and was opened in 1999. It is one of only six lighthouses in Florida to be open to the public, and the only one on Florida's west coast. The museum is managed and operated by a non-profit citizen support organization, Barrier Island Parks Society (BIPS). In 2007, the lighthouse won the "Best Looking Lighthouse" award from Florida Monthly magazine.