Florida Lighthouses: 30 Beacons and the Keepers Who Tended Them

by Rick Tuers, Terri Tuers

Overview

Discover the maritime and human history of Florida’s 30 awe-inspiring lighthouses along the East Coast, through the Keys, and up the west coast to the Panhandle. Both modern color and historical black-and-white photographs, as well as postcards and diagrams, illustrate their role in the settlement of not only Florida, but all of America. Florida's shores have been witness to over five centuries of maritime history, including battles in the Revolutionary War, the Seminole Wars, the Civil War, and World War II. Diving into the lives of the keepers of these beacons, the Tuerses describe how the lighthouse keepers navigated not only these political conflicts, but nature's wrath, braving hurricanes and wild storms to keep the lights burning. This meticulously researched book covers the technical—such as the engineering behind the design of the towers and lenses—as well as the personal, including stories of widowed women balancing raising a family with tending the lighthouse.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780764358739
Publisher:	Schiffer Publishing, Ltd.
Publication date:	01/28/2020
Pages:	192
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.57(d)

About the Author

Rick, a formal coastal engineer, and Terri, a writer and artist, are lovers of the outdoors who have combined their talents of writing and photography to produce this book. Besides snorkeling, biking, and kayaking, they travel extensively photographing God’s creation.

Table of Contents

Foreword 6

Acknowledgments 11

1 Introduction 12

2 History of America's Lighthouses and the Administration 14

3 Physics of Lighthouses: Lamps, Lenses, and Fuels 18

4 East Coast Lights: Amelia Island to Cape Florida 25

5 The Florida Keys: Fowey Rocks to Dry Tortugas 69

6 West Coast Lights: Cedar Key to Sanibel Island 107

7 Panhandle Lights: Pensacola to St. Marks 130

8 Lost Beacons of Florida 161

9 Preserving Lighthouses and Maritime History in Florida and America 177

Appendixes 180

Appendix 1 Maps, Guides, and Handbooks 180

Appendix 2 Unique Florida Lighthouse Facts 181

Lighthouse Glossary 182

Bibliography 184

Index 186

Biographies of Rick and Terri Tuers 190

List of Figures

Figure 3-1 First-order Fresnel lens-cutaway

Figure 3-2 Light refraction in Fresnel lens

Figure 3-3 Fresnel lens dimensions

Figure 3-4 Explores settlements, and statehood timeline

List of Maps

Map 1 East Coast Lighthouses 25

Map 2 Florida Keys Lighthouses 69

Map 3 West Coast Lighthouses 107

Map 4 Panhandle Lighthouses 130

Map 5 All Florida Lighthouses 192