In researching the Assistant Keeper’s porches, we searched for whether similar porches were built elsewhere in this period. In fact, we found two instances where almost identical porches were used. One was as part of an addition to the Chicago Pierhead Rear Range housing in 1911. The keeper’s quarters itself is quite different, though the […]
Phil von Voigtlander recently retired from the Board. As a Great Lakes sailor, Phil first visited South Fox Island in the 1970s and periodically for several decades thereafter. In his own words, “It was in 2001 that everything changed. Going ashore at the light station, I was struck by the deterioration of the buildings and […]
This is a busy time of year for FILA. Kathy Sanders, one of our Board members, is up at the Michigan Lighthouse Festival in Marquette this weekend. Board member Pete Koeppen arranged to pick up historically applicable furniture from a donor. Cathy Allchin coordinated transport to get last week’s team returned. Another of the things […]
Had an early pick up of Ben, Jim & James this evening. They’d planned to stay out until Saturday afternoon but the forecast was unkind through possibly Tuesday. Logistics coordinator Cathy Allchin made a quick call. Let’s get them off…now! As always, this team has been extremely productive. A major project was building stairs and […]
Brief report from the team tonight. “All is going well. Siding and doors tmrw weather permitting.”
Eric & Lorinda Maki returned today after 8 days on the island. Their major project was restoring and rebuilding the basement entry foundation. This was a significant project, cleaning up a layer of failed brick, repointing the original fieldstone foundation and building this new cement cap. All materials had to be shlepped up the hill […]
Our next team of Jim, Ben & James are headed out this afternoon for an 8 day engagement focused on carpentry along with some grounds work. They hail from northern Indiana, so make a big commitment to join us. They’ll replace Lorinda & Eric who have been out since a week ago Thursday.
Lorinda reports that Eric’s phone seems to get a better signal than hers so we should text updates there. Discussions on the need for gas for the mower/generator and propane for the fridge. Supplies should last for their stay, but resupply is needed for the next team. Turnover projected for Friday afternoon. Cathy Allchin is […]
Eric and Lorinda Maki were our second “camper keepers” back in August, 2016. That was back when you HAD to camp. Now some people choose to, but we do have beds, chairs and tables. It’s still a pretty rustic experience out there, filtering lake water and relying on solar or generators for power. This photo […]
A supply of this out-of-print book by Kathy Firestone is now available via The Shoal Shoppe. https://www.theshoalshoppe.com/ It’s really the best book written on the islands and features a chapter dedicated specifically to the history of the light station. If you aren’t familiar with The Shoal Shoppe, please check them out. They carry a variety […]