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A while back we got on the band-wagon and joined the social media network of Facebook in hopes that we could reach a larger audience in promoting the goals of Lighthouse Digest, which has also been to rediscover and report on otherwise forgotten lighthouse history and report on current lighthouse news events so that they can be preserved for future generations. Part of that primary goal was to search for and locate historic photographs of the lighthouse keepers, the family members of the keepers, historic images of the lighthouses, and photographs of other people associated with lighthouse history.
I have always believed that historic photographs can enhance written history and in many circumstances tell more of a story than written history. More importantly, in my humble opinion, photographs bring the written word to life.
However, I have been increasingly concerned that as fewer and fewer people read newspapers, magazines, and books, the history of our lighthouses, as well as our history in general, is in great peril. Obtaining quick reports and tid-bits of information off the Internet, I-Pad, I-Phone, or other newfangled gadgets, without learning the full story, or without the full story ever being reported by dedicated and legitimate historians or investigative reporters, not only puts our history in danger, but it puts our way of life in danger, which could ultimately lead to a loss of many of the freedoms that we enjoy in this country.
There are now some nations around the world that are no longer teaching any history to their children. Instead, they prefer to teach them only modern technology and other courses that will indoctrinate these children to a specific way of life. If they are teaching history at all, they are changing it to fit with their agendas. Believe it or not, this is slowly happening in the United States.
One of the most effective ways to become blindly controlled by others, without even knowing it is happening, is to be ignorant of where you have already been as a people, or a nation, and how you arrived at this point in time and history.
In the case of Facebook, when we post a beautiful photograph of a lighthouse, with almost no historical information, that particular post is flooded with comments and shared with large numbers of people throughout the Facebook network.
However, when we post a historical photo with historical information, or a link to an on-line archival historical story, the ‘Likes’ to that photograph or post are in many cases, generally 50 percent or more, less than that the ‘Likes’ of a beautiful photograph of a lighthouse. On the surface, there is nothing wrong with this. After all, we all like beautiful images, but there is also a dangerous underlying issue that could lead to serious future consequences in what we learn from the few true media sources that are still in existence.
Over the years through the pages of Lighthouse Digest we have tried to give you a large selection of in-depth historical stories that have been well researched that you would not have been able to find on the World Wide Web. Plus, we have located many historical photos that previously had never before been published, sometimes going to great lengths or expense to locate and publish those photographs. We’ve done this while also providing our readers with current lighthouse news and other interesting features.
I know, you’ve heard a lot of this from me before. But if Lighthouse Digest is going to continue in these monumental efforts, we need a lot more help from our loyal readers and from lighthouse groups everywhere in sharing with others about our efforts, while encouraging more people to subscribe to Lighthouse Digest.
And please, for those of you who are on Facebook, when you see a historical post on the Lighthouse Digest Facebook page, please click on the ‘Share’ icon so that our story or photograph can be seen by many others.
We’re doing our best with the resources we have. We do it because we believe it is the right thing to do. But, we cannot do it alone. We need your help. The only way we can be successful is with additional new subscribers. Please tell others about us and encourage them to subscribe and join our Lighthouse Family. And that’s exactly what subscribers to Lighthouse Digest are; “A Lighthouse Family” and family members stick together and help each other. Thanks for your support.
God Bless,
This story appeared in the
Jan/Feb 2013 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.
All contents copyright © 1995-2024 by Lighthouse Digest®, Inc. No story, photograph, or any other item on this website may be reprinted or reproduced without the express permission of Lighthouse Digest. For contact information, click here.
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