Lighthouse history gives you a lift

By Marty Basch, Globe Correspondent, 05/11/03

		More on Maine  More on New England
		Printable version Friends of Seguin Island 207-443-4808 www.seguinisland.org Guided tours 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Boat tours to Seguin Island can be taken through several operators, including: Maine Maritime Museum 243 Washington St. Bath, Maine 207-443-1316, www.bathmaine.com Atlantic Seal Cruises 25 Main St. South Freeport, Maine 207-865-6112

BATH, Maine — Seguin Island can be a lonely, foggy, and windy place. About two miles off Popham Beach by the mouth of the Kennebec River, the small, rocky island is home to the state's second oldest lighthouse. For much of the year, it is deserted. But in summer, thousands of visitors travel by boat to walk the three miles of mowed trails among the berry bushes and wildflowers, scale the spiraling lighthouse staircase, tour the museum, stop in the gift shop, and maybe hear a ghost story or two from the lighthouse caretakers who are stationed there from Memorial Day to Labor Day.

One such tale dates to the 1850s, when lighthouse keepers lived on the island year round. Seems the wife of the keeper was bored, so the husband had a piano brought to her. She learned to play, but just one song. Hearing this tune repeatedly was apparently too much for the husband so he took an ax to the keyboard, his wife, and, somehow, himself. Now it is said that that same song can be heard in the wind off the island.

Yarns add to the mystique of the island, which is bathed in history and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was George Washington who in 1795 commissioned the lighthouse, which uses a Fresnel lens for illumination. The 64-acre island was a strategic naval site in the War of 1812 and a watch point for submarines during World War II. Now, on a clear day from the top of the lighthouse, New Hampshire's Mount Washington can be seen off to the northwest.

The nonprofit Bath-based Friends of Seguin Island oversee the island's upkeep. Island tours are given by the caretakers and donations to the organization are appreciated. There are no overnight accommodations. Visitors arrive on the island by skiff from a moored boat (if you arrive on your own, do not use the Coast Guard moorings). See the old wooden tram used to haul supplies to the keeper's house, which also hosts the museum. Then it is the equivalent of an 18-story climb up to the lighthouse, the highest elevated lighthouse in Maine at 186 feet. The museum holds old photographs depicting island life.

The highlight is going inside the lighthouse and climbing the circular wrought-iron steps to the top. Look into the lighthouse lens and see the rainbow reflection. Go through a small door and you are out on the walkway, high above the island for a bird's-eye 360-degree panorama of the rugged coast where the only song that can be heard is that of the wind.