On Wednesday, June 14, Friends of the Southport Historical Society welcomed members and the public to Southport Town Hall for their annual meeting. This year also featured a lecture on the history of Burnt Island Lighthouse led by Jean McKay, educator for Burnt Island Lighthouse, director/treasurer of Keepers of the Burnt Island Light, and an educator for Maine State Aquarium.

Mari Twari was re-elected president; Jim Singer, clerk; and Sally Eastwood and Anne Vartabedian were both elected as directors. 

McKay then took over for the main event of the evening, her talk on “The Evolution of the Burnt Island Lighthouse Since 1821.” The lighthouse is the oldest original lighthouse in Maine, according to McKay. However, it is not the oldest lighthouse, as the one in Portland was built nearly 30 years prior. She explained, Portland’s lighthouse has undergone multiple height changes and was built before Maine became a state in 1820. Burnt Island has maintained its original structure. 

McKay walked the audience through the technological history of the light station from the early days of burning whale oil to the 300mm Plastic Fresnel light used today. She also highlighted the bell tower, which was built in 1895, sported a 1,029-pound bell to signal heavy fog, and was torn down in the ’60s after electricity came to the island. Burnt Island employed lightkeepers from its construction in 1821 to 1988. The lighthouse has been automated since then. 

In 1998, ownership of the lighthouse was taken over by Maine Department of Marine Resources (DMR) under the leadership of then-Education Director Elaine Jones. When the restoration of the property began, Jones and McKay decided to replicate how the home would have looked in the 1950s rather than its original construction date.

“We wanted to talk to people that lived there because we wanted their stories,” she explained. They settled on the Murice Family. Joseph Murice was the lighthouse keeper from 1936 to 1951, and lived on the island with his wife, Annie, daughters Adele, Prudy and Ann, and son Willard. 

Children from the local schools have volunteered each summer since 2003 to play the Murice children and give visitors a glimpse into their daily lives. McKay also regularly played Joseph’s wife, Annie. The living lighthouse program was shut down by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 but McKay hopes to reinstate it in the future. 

McKay also expressed similar hopes for audience members to visit the light station once tours are running again, especially as the property just underwent a major renovation in 2021 for their 200th anniversary. 

Twari was happy with the event turnout, which was about 30. She said the turnout speaks to the level of community engagement in the area.

“People have a great interest in a lot of different community activities, there are people who are volunteering for things almost every hour of every day. I think it really speaks to the community,” she said. “And everybody loves lighthouses.”

The Hendricks Hill Museum will be open every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday from 11 a.m to 3 p.m. starting July 1.