As part of a nationwide initiative to conserve ancient lighthouses that have dotted the U.S. coast for more than a century, a 150-year-old beacon that once helped ships navigate through the perilous Florida Keys coral reefs before GPS, sonar, and other technology rendered it useless is shining once again.
A community organization in Islamorada flipped on the Alligator Reef Lighthouse’s new solar-powered lights on Saturday to raise awareness of the $6 million restoration and preservation project.
“Alligator Lighthouse was lit in 1873 and it stayed lit until about 2013, and then it went dark for 10 years,” said Rob Dixon, the executive director of Save Alligator Lighthouse, which took over the lighthouse’s title in late 2021. “And now our Statue of Liberty is lit once again.”
The USS Alligator, a Navy vessel that went aground on the reef in 1822 and sank, inspired the lighthouse’s name.
Ships were originally forewarned by Alligator and five other deteriorating lighthouses off the Keys to stay clear of the area’s barrier coral reef. Open-water lighthouses, however, have become outdated due to modern satellite navigation, and the General Services Association is getting rid of these old buildings.
After spending many years in extremely corrosive circumstances, a thorough technical analysis of the Alligator Lighthouse was conducted to determine the need for stability.
According to Dixon, an engineering assessment estimated that saving the Alligator Lighthouse would take six years and $5 million to $6 million.
Nobody in this neighborhood doesn’t want to support our idea, he claimed.
Approximately $500,000 has already been raised, according to Dixon, including $215,000 from the Monroe County Tourist Development Council.
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Chris began his writing as a hobby while attending Florida Southern College in Lakeland, Florida. Today he and his wife live in the Orlando area with their three children and dog.
