Preserve Mark Island Light

08/11/2015

If you have noticed that the Mark Island Fog Horn has not been up to its usual noise, rest assured that the Coast Guard has been notified and is on the case.

07/23/2014

For the second time this year we have an auction item where you get bid on being the Honorary Mark Island Lighthouse Keeper. This honor comes with a lighthouse keeper plaque and certificate.

Come support the Trust and the Lighthouse by signing up for Island Heritage Trust's Annual Shore Dinner & Benefit Auction this Friday, July 25th at 5pm.

http://www.islandheritagetrust.org/shoredinner/index.html

Friday, July 25th 2014 at 5:00 pm at McWilliams' Salt Water Farm in Little Deer Isle.

07/02/2014

A big blast out to New England Lighthouse lovers: Thank You!

We just received the news that at your spring membership meeting our grant request for $5,000 towards fixing the bricks and painting the lighthouse has been approved!! We are now half way towards our funding goal!

We also greatly appreciate the contact information and paint suggestions that came with the grant letter!

05/07/2014

Today the Coast Guard is out working on the light and the fog horn! So soon they should both be up and working.

04/30/2014

We have had numerous inquiries about the horn and another more recent one about the light on Mark Island not functioning. We have called the Coast Guard twice over the last month, no information yet. But we will keep on it and make sure they get the attention they need to get up and going again!

04/15/2014

Thank you to the folks who have responded to our plea for help - your donations are much appreciated! There is a long way to go, but we will get this old lighthouse fixed up for the next 150 years!

04/03/2014

Dear Mark Island Light lovers,
Mark Island Light needs your help.

For over one hundred and fifty years, Mark Island Lighthouse has stood proud and ready to help all mariners find a safe haven in Stonington harbor.

Through gales and hurricanes, first her human tenders, and more recently the battery lights have shone out over Penobscot Bay and the Deer Island Thorofare - a flashing assurance of stability and care.

In 1997 Island Heritage Trust took ownership of this lighthouse and the island it occupies. After one hundred and thirty-nine years, the United States Government gave up ownership of this beacon.

The US Lighthouse Service and the US Coast Guard had owned and operated the lighthouse for mariners safety. Now IHT would own it, and the Coast Guard would maintain the light and foghorn.

Ownership of Mark Island had returned to Deer Isle.

With ownership comes responsibility, maintenance. The lighthouse itself needs to be taken care of, and the trees surrounding it need to be cut so the beacon is not blocked.

In the past the lighthouse keepers used some of their time to mow lawns where now spruces grow. If you have been by the island since last fall, you can see the effort that

IHT staff and volunteers put in to cut down the emerging spruce on the north slope of the island. More trees need to be cut, but the worst of the offenders have been removed.

Where is all this leading? The lighthouse needs your help. Perhaps it has helped you home to safe harbor, now you can help it to be in place for future mariners.

The bricks need to be scraped and the joints repointed and the walls repainted with a breathable paint. The total cost of these repairs is estimated to be $26,880.

IHT has a little over $8,000 available to begin the work with one side. Won’t you help make this a four-sided project? Four-Square for the Light!

Checks can be sent to IHT, PO Box 42, Deer Isle, ME 04627 – please indicate that they are for this project.

OR you can visit the IHT website, www.islandheritagetrust.org, click on the Donate Now button, and, on the donation page, under “I want my donation to be designated toward …” select Mark Island Lighthouse Fund.

I want to thank you for your support. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to call me at the 207-348-2455.

Sincerely,

Michael J Little
Executive Director

Island Heritage Trust
PO Box 42
Deer Isle, ME 04627
207-348-2455

12/11/2013

We just received a wonderful grant from the Morton-Kelly Charitable Trust to get the ball rolling on work that needs to be done on the lighthouse!

If you are interested in adding to the fund to repair the brick work and repainting, you can donate to the Preserve Mark Island Light Fund at

https://donatenow.networkforgood.org/islandheritagetrust

and choose Mark Island Light Fund for the designation.

10/16/2013

08/07/2013

Happy National Lighthouse Day!

And a big congratulations to our new Honorary Mark Island Lighthouse Keepers for 2013-14, Al and Nancy Merritt! They bid and won the honor at our 2013 Shore Dinner & Benefit Auction. Their bid will go towards the preservation fund for Mark Island Light.

If anyone else is interested in contributing to the Mark Island Light Fund, donations are taken the link below. Just select "Mark Island Light" when asked what you would like to designate it towards.

ISLAND HERITAGE TRUST INC has partnered with Network for Good to securely process your online credit card donation via the Network for Good Donor Advised Fund (tax ID 68-0480736). This transaction will appear on your credit card statement as "Network for Good." This transaction is subject to Network...

05/03/2013

2013 marks 15 years since Island Heritage Trust received the deed for Mark Island Light! The Trust took on caring for the light and island to keep it in public hands and preserve this iconic place for fisherman, boaters and those who love lighthouses. What thoughts do you have about this act 15 years ago of keeping the Lighthouse in public hands (versus letting it potentially go private)?