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The 1852 Cape St. George Lighthouse, Florida which has withstood the ravages of time is leaning and ready to collapse.
Although the lighthouse has been threatened for a number of years by beach erosion and violent storms, it was this year's Hurricane Opal that may have struck the final blow. The Hurricane's 70 mph winds stripped away the last strip of beach between the lighthouse and the ocean and took away most of the historic lighthouse's foundation.
Leaning precariously to one side, you can literally crawl underneath the towers four foot thick walls and gaze up at the spiral staircase and see the sky above. The winds of the hurricane also ripped off most of the roof of what is left of the long ago abandoned keeper's house.
When the lighthouse was first built it stood 400 yards from the waters edge. Now, at high tide water totally surrounds the lighthouse.
John Lee, general manager of the local Apalachicola Times weekly newspaper is one of those spearheading a move to save the historic tower. Lee published a call for donations, however they have been coming in slowly.
Engineers say it would cost $210,000 to lift the lighthouse, build a short railway and slide the lighthouse 100 yards behind a protected sand dune.
For additional information about the effort to save the Cape St. George Lighthouse you can write to John Lee % Apalachicola Times, P.O. Box 820, Apalachiola, FL. 32329.
To send a much needed donation you can make your check payable and mailed to: Save The Light, P.O. Box 915, Apalachicola, FL 32329.
This story appeared in the
December 1995 edition of Lighthouse Digest Magazine. The print edition contains more stories than our internet edition, and each story generally contains more photographs - often many more - in the print edition. For subscription information about the print edition, click here.
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