Pawleys Island Lighthouses
Cape Romain Lighthouses
Highway 17,McClellanville
If you have an adventurous spirit, then Cape Romain is the place for you. It's not that there is a lot to see once you arrive but the quest of getting there is the challenge especially if you don't know the area well. When I was getting together a list of the lighthouses to visit when starting this book, Cape Romain didn't show up in most of the lighthouse books that I owned. I had heard it mentioned but it really slipped my mind until we passed a sign on our way down Route 17 from Georgetown to Charleston. It read Cape Romain Marine Sales and had a small lighthouse pictured on one side. I drove a few miles, not thinking much about it until a light went on in my head. We turned around and pulled into the gravel enclosure where I had first noticed the sign where there a variety of fiberglass boats on display. Inside the office I inquired if there was a lighthouse nearby. After learning there was, they gave me a small map to help us find our way.
Georgetown Lighthouse
North Island,Georgetown
Looking out towards the Atlantic Ocean, the Georgetown lighthouse sits at the mouth of Winyah Bay leading in to historic Georgetown ten miles away. Many of the locals around Georgetown call it the North Island lighthouse as it sits on North island and some didn't even know what I was talking about when I referred to it as the Georgetown lighthouse. It is after all, about twelve miles away from Georgetown by boat on North Island. The first lighthouse on the island was built of wood in 1801and the lantern was lit with, at that time, plentiful whale oil. Two years later everything was washed away by a storm. Another lighthouse was built of brick in 1812 but major damage during the Civil War put an end to its usefulness.
Morris Island Lighthouse
Morris Island,Charleston
The first lighthouse at Charleston was built in 1767 just after the French and Indian War when South Carolina was still a British Colony. A copper plate attached to the cornerstone of the lighthouse read, "The First Stone of this beacon was laid on the 30th of May 1767 in the seventh year of his Majesty's Reign, George the III." Burning pitch and oakum provided light and later candles were used.
Sullivan's Island Lighthouse
Charleston
The Sullivan Island lighthouse near Charleston, South Carolina replaced the Morris Island light just across the Charleston Harbor. Built with steel girders and sheathed with aluminum panels, it stands one hundred and sixty-three feet high, almost twice as high as most lighthouses. The triangular shaped lighthouse is the only one in the United States equipped with an elevator. There is also an office space at the bottom of the tower. When first lit in 1962 the lighthouse had a complex array of high-intensity lamps that put out 28,000,000 candlepower. The bright light was intense enough to be dangerous so in 1967 a lower intensity light with 1,170,000 candlepower was put into use.
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