A Steadfast Symbol of Safety

Story by Kathy Warren
Photography Courtesy of U.S. Coast Guard

What is it about lighthouses that draws us to them?

So captivating are these timeless monuments that poets and song writers dedicate prose and music to them, while others collect miniatures of these architectural treasures.  Perhaps it is the idealized life of the solitary light keeper that attracts us, or maybe the sheer beauty of their locations along rugged coastlines that we find so appealing.  Whatever the attraction, each light is like a jewel, unique unto itself, each with a story to tell.

In the late 1700s, navigation among America’s waterways was a dangerous business.  Vessels venturing up the Chesapeake Bay toward the Port of Baltimore often ran aground on shallow shoals or were blown off course during inclement weather.  Because of these hazardous conditions, the U.S. Lighthouse Service began stationing large vessels known as lightships to mark the entrances to bays and harbors and to warn mariners of any underwater hazards.  The first lightship station ever to be commissioned operated in the Chesapeake Bay.  Although these aids to navigation in the Chesapeake proved to be successful, the government soon began exploring the idea of placing permanent structures along its major waterways.

Cove Point Lighthouse is just one of those permanent lighthouses built to guide mariners up and down the Chesapeake Bay for well over 100 years. In 1825, the Lighthouse Board selected Cedar Point as the site for a permanent lighthouse station, but for unknown reasons, Cove Point was selected instead to build Maryland’s fifth lighthouse.  In 1828, Congress approved a budget of $5,685 to construct a lighthouse at Cove Point.  In June of 1828, land which was once part of the original Eltonhead Manor land grant from the 1600s was purchased for the sum of $300 and construction of the project began.  John Donohoo (sometimes spelled Donoho) of Havre de Grace, a well known Maryland lighthouse builder of the time, was selected to construct the 40-foot brick tower.  Bricks, made locally, helped to keep the overall cost of the project down, making it one of the first brick lighthouse towers in the country.  A winding staircase led to the top of the lamp room perched atop the sturdy tower.  A modest light keeper’s house was also built on the site and constructed of the same brick.

After the lighthouse itself was constructed, modified Argand lamps, known as catoptric or reflective lamps, fitted with parabolic reflectors, were purchased from Baltimore for $550.  These intense, smokeless lights created a powerful white light that could be seen for up to 15 miles.  Finally, after months of construction, the lighthouse began operating in December of 1828.  James Somerville was selected to be the first keeper that year and continued his duties until 1834.  The salary of $350 was very attractive in its day.  Twenty-one civilian lighthouse keepers would eventually call Cove Point home between 1828 and 1958 when the last civilian keeper, James T. Somers retired and the light was officially manned by the United States Coast Guard.  From 1857 until 1859 a female keeper by the name of Sarah Thomas was in charge of Cove Point Light.  Records show that while it was unusual for females to tend offshore lighthouses and almost unheard of for them to serve aboard lightships, many lighthouses across the country had female keepers at various times.   Numerous assistant keepers also worked at Cove Point over the years.

The duties of a keeper were arduous and had to be performed in all kinds of weather.  Lenses had to be polished and cleaned each day, wicks for the lamps had to be trimmed regularly, and the whale oil used to fuel the early lamps had to be carried up the many spiral stairs every few hours, 24 hours a day.  Unlike most offshore lighthouses, Cove Point had numerous other duties associated with the land and other structures in addition to the lighthouse.  Painting, general maintenance, and tending to the grounds (such as the removal of trees or the constant battle with shore erosion) all fell to the light keepers.  Such tiring work meant that light keepers had to be organized, meticulous, resourceful, and most of all energetic.  All of this had to be done in addition to the 24 hour watches that kept the keepers busy tending to the light which guided so many vessels safely up and down the bay.  Because of these many duties, some keepers preferred to work the remote offshore lights which had fewer maintenance duties.  The trade off for the keepers at Cove Point was that their families could be with them, unlike on the offshore lighthouses.

Horace C. Groom, Jr., son of keeper Horace C. Groom (1931-1944) recalls fondly his time at Cove Point.  His father, like many keepers, had started his career aboard a lightship and later served at several other offshore lights before accepting a job at Cove Point.  Horace recalls how his mother and two brothers could only visit his father for three weeks each summer at the offshore lights and how his father was only home eight days a month throughout the rest of the year.  “We loved that,” he states remembering when the family moved to Cove Point, the first time the then eleven-year-old had ever lived together with his whole family.  The keeper’s dwelling had undergone several changes by the time Horace and his family moved in, including an addition in 1883 which turned the house from a one and a half story dwelling into a full two stories, and later in 1925 when another half story was added and the house became a duplex.  Horace does remember when plumbing was added shortly after they moved in and his mother provided room and board to some of the workmen installing the plumbing, while others lived in trailers on the property and simply ate meals with his family.  He also recalls how hard the keepers had to work and still has a copy of his father’s “Shore Liberty” request form from the Department of Commerce which denied his father one month’s leave in July 1936 and granted him two weeks instead, the first leave his father had been given in years.

Along with changes in the house, advances in technology also brought change to Cove Point Lighthouse.  A fog signal was added in 1837, and a radio beacon in June of 1928.  The lamps used to light Cove Point were also updated as new equipment became available.  A series of Fresnel lenses were added in 1855 and 1857, and the most dramatic change occurred in 1928 when the light was electrified.  At the same time, the lenses were changed and the lamp’s candle power was increased from 2,900 to 35,000.  The bell tower was rebuilt several times over the years and was finally torn down in the late 1800s and moved further inland.  In 1901, a small structure was built to house the fog signal, and the original bell was mounted on top of the building as a back-up signal.  Horace Groom, Jr. can’t recall having to use the back-up bell during his father’s tenure at Cove Point.

In 1939, the U.S. Coast Guard absorbed the lighthouse service, and Cove Point was officially under the Coast Guard’s jurisdiction.  Cove Point continued to have civilian keepers until 1958, when the Coast Guard took over the lighthouse and the grounds.  In 1986, after years of manned operation, the lighthouse became one of the last lights on the Chesapeake Bay to be automated.  Now controlled by computers at Coast Guard Headquarters in Baltimore, the light at Cove Point continues to shine without replenishing oil or trimming wicks.  The Coast Guard Auxiliary does patrol the area on weekends and holidays during the busy summer months, keeping the waters around the light safe for boaters.

Though sad in some respects that automation and progress have eliminated the need for the hardworking light keeper, Cove Point’s history is far from over.  Maryland’s oldest continuously operating lighthouse, has more than its fair share of stories to tell and will continue to do so for years to come.  After five long years of negotiation, the light station became the property of the Calvert County Government on September 12, 2000.  Now managed by the Calvert Marine Museum, the historic site will be preserved for generations to come.  Today, a shuttle between the museum and the lighthouse takes visitors to this important maritime museum.  Still an aid to navigation, the museum, county, and Coast Guard are all working in conjunction to provide visitors with a memorable experience while maintaining this important navigational tool.

As it has done for nearly 175 years, Cove Point Light will continue to withstand storms, development, and the tides, to remain a steadfast symbol of safety along the shores of the Chesapeake.

Cove Point Light Station is open to visitors May through September and is only accessible by shuttle bus service from Calvert Marine Museum.  During the months of May and September the station is open weekends and holidays from 10 - 4 pm, June through August it is open daily from 10 - 4 pm.  Admission is $3.00.

For more information on bus schedules contact the Calvert Marine Museum at 410-326-2042 or visit their website at www.calvertmarinemuseum.com.