Biloxi Light
Encyclopedia
Biloxi Light is a lighthouse
in Biloxi
, Mississippi
, adjacent to the Mississippi Sound
of the Gulf of Mexico
. The lighthouse has been kept by female keepers for more years than any other lighthouse in the United States
. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
in 1973 and declared a Mississippi Landmark in 1987.
authorized $
12,000 for the construction of a lighthouse at Biloxi. The United States Department of the Treasury
let a contract, dated October 15, 1847, to Murray & Hazlehurst to build an iron lighthouse for $6,347.00. The keeper's house was contracted separately. The Collector at Mobile
, Alabama
, purchased the site. The tower was completed and placed in operation in 1848. The tower was 45 feet (13.7 m) from the base to the lantern room and displayed nine lamps. The first keeper was Marcellus J. Howard.
In 1856 the light was "refitted."
In 1860 a hurricane swept the coast and destroyed some lighthouses, but not the Biloxi light. Keeper Reynolds reported that she kept the light burning through the storm and "faithfully performed the duties of Light Keeper in storm and sunshine attending it. I ascended the Tower at and after the last destructive storm when man stood appalled at the danger I encountered." During a storm in 1860, a portion of the sand under the lighthouse eroded away, causing the structure to lean. Later more sand was removed from the opposite side to correct this. Local authorities ordered that the light be extinguished on June 18, 1861. The light was repaired and returned to service by November 15, 1866. At that time the tower was reported to have been painted with coal tar to protect it from rust, not, as has been reported, to mourn the assassination of President
Abraham Lincoln
.
Perry Younghans was appointed keeper on November 14, 1866 but fell ill soon thereafter. His wife, Maria Younghans, took over and tended the light. Mr. Younghans died and Mrs. Younghans was appointed keeper on December 6, 1867. In 1868 the tower was painted white and almost fell during a hurricane that year. In 1880 the old keeper's house was razed and rebuilt. The seawall
was washed away and the tower threatened during a hurricane on October 1, 1893. The New Orleans Daily Picayune of October 21, 1893 noted that "At Biloxi Mrs. Younghans, the plucky woman who was in charge of the light, kept a light going all through the storm notwithstanding the fact that there were several feet of water in the room where she lived."
In 1898 a telephone
cable was laid by Reese Hutchinson between the Biloxi and the Ship Island lighthouses
at the start of the Spanish-American War
.
In 1916 the light was again damaged by a hurricane, and the wharf
and boathouse
were destroyed by a storm the following year. Maria Younghans retired on December 31, 1918 and was replaced by her daughter, Miranda, who remained as keeper until 1929. The Younghans family had maintained the light for a total of 63 years. W. B. Thompson then took over as keeper.
In 1927 the station was electrified.
In 1969 the keeper's house was destroyed by Hurricane Camille
.
The tower is now owned by the City of Biloxi and is operated as a private aid to navigation.
In 2005, the lighthouse was damaged by Hurricane Katrina
. Restoration was completed with a re-lighting ceremony on February 19, 2010
The lighthouse is featured prominently on Mississippi's current automobile license plates, first issued on October 1, 2007. A press release from the Mississippi State Tax Commission, which designed and issues the plates, acknowledged the Light as "a building of historical importance" that "has long been recognized as a landmark of the Mississippi Gulf Coast, a sentinel erected in 1848 to aid ships navigating the Mississippi Sound
. Throughout its 159 years, it has survived a score of hurricanes, including the great storms of 1947 and 1969. And, on August 29, 2005, it stood defiant against the wind and surge of Katrina
. Inside the lighthouse, blue lines are painted on the wall to mark historic storm surges above 'mean sea level' (msl). Hurricanes of 1855 and 1906 reached 14.0 feet above msl, a 1909 hurricane crested at 15.0 feet msl, and Hurricane Camille's record of 17.5 feet was broken by Hurricane Katrina, which crested at 21.5 feet msl.
Today, it is no longer just a beacon to seafarers, but a tangible testament of resilience. The Biloxi Lighthouse stands proud and tall representing those who weathered the storm. Mississippi Commissioner of Revenue Joe Blount said, "This tag design is intended to be a reminder to us of all those who lost so much from Katrina, to serve as a symbol of our citizens’ commitment to recovery as well as a symbol of our gratitude to all Americans for their prayers and generous support."
A crafted brochure and 12 minute video on the Biloxi city website provide a detailed history of the Lighthouse. What can be gathered from these advertisements is a deep sense of ownership. Twice, the narrator of the video, local resident Mary Ann Mobley, states that the lighthouse “lights the night, every night, with a flashing signal that spells Biloxi” and that “seen from the water, this flashing pattern means but one thing, and that is Biloxi.” She calls the Light an “inseparable” part of the community. However, as Mitchell Schwarzer explains in his article Architecture and Mass Tourism, “The representation of a place, the images created for marketing, the vivid videos and persuasive prose of advertising texts, can be selective and creative as the marketer can make them- a reality check comes only after arrival.”
Biloxi is the third largest gaming city in the country. “In the decade or so before Katrina,” stated the Mayor of Biloxi, A.J. Holloway in 2007, “the people of Biloxi were enjoying the most prosperous time in our city’s 300-plus-year history. Six billion dollars’ worth in growth. . .visitors went from one million a year to between eight and ten million a year.” This statement was written on a poster, entitled “We’re reviving the Renaissance,” with none other than the Biloxi Lighthouse in the foreground. This is just one example of how residents of Biloxi acknowledge the Light as a visual symbol beyond physical context; a symbol independent of anything the City of Biloxi has done or is planning to do simply because it has not changed, moved, or been destroyed. The city is making a new legacy for itself, but will no doubt preserve and restore the lighthouse storm after storm, not for profit but for inspiration or, as it appears, a crutch and subsequent identity in hard times.
In 2009, the landmark underwent a 14-month $400,000 restoration, finished in 2010 and according to a local newspaper, “saw nearly a thousand people ascend its spiral staircase on Feb. 21.” The paper also claims the “tours of the historic 65-foot tall structure were popular before Hurricane Katrina struck in 2005. “If mass tourism, like mass media, is successful as a result of “a parade of hits driven by proven formulas,” as Mitchell Schwarzer suggests, and those “formulas must be modulated from time to time,” then the Biloxi Lighthouse has what it takes to draw crowds with every physical wind and water blown ‘hit’ it takes. It did not hurt the Light’s reputation, either, when it became the only lighthouse in the United States to stand in the middle of a U.S. Highway (U.S. Route 90
). Today, if you are lucky and at least 42 inches tall, you can climb the Light’s 57 steps and 8-rung ladder, through a 19-by-23 inch trap door, into the light room. For those that cannot make the climb or trek across traffic, there is the reassurance that an image of the lighthouse, in this case, is more enduring than any specific visit.
The Biloxi Lighthouse is an inspiration to an entire region who know the destruction of a natural disaster. Despite the Light’s disservice to public tours, the landmark’s existence is simply remarkable. Despite physical and historical remove, the landmark is without a doubt desirable. This is a lighthouse whose future is bright in or out of Biloxi as long as history repeats itself and cameras flash.
Lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses or, in older times, from a fire, and used as an aid to navigation for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways....
in Biloxi
Biloxi, Mississippi
Biloxi is a city in Harrison County, Mississippi, in the United States. The 2010 census recorded the population as 44,054. Along with Gulfport, Biloxi is a county seat of Harrison County....
, Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
, adjacent to the Mississippi Sound
Mississippi Sound
The Mississippi Sound is a sound along the Gulf Coast of the United States. It runs east-west along the southern coasts of Mississippi and Alabama, from Waveland, Mississippi, to the Dauphin Island Bridge, a distance of about 145 kilometers...
of the Gulf of Mexico
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico is a partially landlocked ocean basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. In...
. The lighthouse has been kept by female keepers for more years than any other lighthouse in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1973 and declared a Mississippi Landmark in 1987.
Authorization and construction
On March 3, 1847, the United States CongressUnited States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
authorized $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
12,000 for the construction of a lighthouse at Biloxi. The United States Department of the Treasury
United States Department of the Treasury
The Department of the Treasury is an executive department and the treasury of the United States federal government. It was established by an Act of Congress in 1789 to manage government revenue...
let a contract, dated October 15, 1847, to Murray & Hazlehurst to build an iron lighthouse for $6,347.00. The keeper's house was contracted separately. The Collector at Mobile
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
, Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, purchased the site. The tower was completed and placed in operation in 1848. The tower was 45 feet (13.7 m) from the base to the lantern room and displayed nine lamps. The first keeper was Marcellus J. Howard.
In service
Mary Reynolds, with a "large family of orphan children" was appointed keeper on April 11, 1854. She remained in service until the U.S. Civil War. She owed her appointment to Governor Albert Gallatin Brown.In 1856 the light was "refitted."
In 1860 a hurricane swept the coast and destroyed some lighthouses, but not the Biloxi light. Keeper Reynolds reported that she kept the light burning through the storm and "faithfully performed the duties of Light Keeper in storm and sunshine attending it. I ascended the Tower at and after the last destructive storm when man stood appalled at the danger I encountered." During a storm in 1860, a portion of the sand under the lighthouse eroded away, causing the structure to lean. Later more sand was removed from the opposite side to correct this. Local authorities ordered that the light be extinguished on June 18, 1861. The light was repaired and returned to service by November 15, 1866. At that time the tower was reported to have been painted with coal tar to protect it from rust, not, as has been reported, to mourn the assassination of President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
.
Perry Younghans was appointed keeper on November 14, 1866 but fell ill soon thereafter. His wife, Maria Younghans, took over and tended the light. Mr. Younghans died and Mrs. Younghans was appointed keeper on December 6, 1867. In 1868 the tower was painted white and almost fell during a hurricane that year. In 1880 the old keeper's house was razed and rebuilt. The seawall
Seawall
A seawall is a form of coastal defence constructed where the sea, and associated coastal processes, impact directly upon the landforms of the coast. The purpose of a seawall is to protect areas of human habitation, conservation and leisure activities from the action of tides and waves...
was washed away and the tower threatened during a hurricane on October 1, 1893. The New Orleans Daily Picayune of October 21, 1893 noted that "At Biloxi Mrs. Younghans, the plucky woman who was in charge of the light, kept a light going all through the storm notwithstanding the fact that there were several feet of water in the room where she lived."
In 1898 a telephone
Telephone
The telephone , colloquially referred to as a phone, is a telecommunications device that transmits and receives sounds, usually the human voice. Telephones are a point-to-point communication system whose most basic function is to allow two people separated by large distances to talk to each other...
cable was laid by Reese Hutchinson between the Biloxi and the Ship Island lighthouses
Ship Island (Mississippi)
Ship Island is the collective name for two barrier islands off the Gulf Coast of Mississippi, part of Gulf Islands National Seashore: East Ship Island and West Ship Island. Hurricane Camille split the once single island into 2 separate islands in 1969...
at the start of the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
.
In 1916 the light was again damaged by a hurricane, and the wharf
Wharf
A wharf or quay is a structure on the shore of a harbor where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers.Such a structure includes one or more berths , and may also include piers, warehouses, or other facilities necessary for handling the ships.A wharf commonly comprises a fixed...
and boathouse
Boathouse
A boathouse is a building especially designed for the storage of boats, normally smaller craft for sports or leisure use. These are typically located on open water, such as on a river. Often the boats stored are rowing boats...
were destroyed by a storm the following year. Maria Younghans retired on December 31, 1918 and was replaced by her daughter, Miranda, who remained as keeper until 1929. The Younghans family had maintained the light for a total of 63 years. W. B. Thompson then took over as keeper.
In 1927 the station was electrified.
In 1969 the keeper's house was destroyed by Hurricane Camille
Hurricane Camille
Hurricane Camille was the third and strongest tropical cyclone and second hurricane during the 1969 Atlantic hurricane season. The second of three catastrophic Category 5 hurricanes to make landfall in the United States during the 20th century , which it did near the mouth of the Mississippi River...
.
The tower is now owned by the City of Biloxi and is operated as a private aid to navigation.
In 2005, the lighthouse was damaged by Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
. Restoration was completed with a re-lighting ceremony on February 19, 2010
In popular culture
.The lighthouse is featured prominently on Mississippi's current automobile license plates, first issued on October 1, 2007. A press release from the Mississippi State Tax Commission, which designed and issues the plates, acknowledged the Light as "a building of historical importance" that "has long been recognized as a landmark of the Mississippi Gulf Coast, a sentinel erected in 1848 to aid ships navigating the Mississippi Sound
Mississippi Sound
The Mississippi Sound is a sound along the Gulf Coast of the United States. It runs east-west along the southern coasts of Mississippi and Alabama, from Waveland, Mississippi, to the Dauphin Island Bridge, a distance of about 145 kilometers...
. Throughout its 159 years, it has survived a score of hurricanes, including the great storms of 1947 and 1969. And, on August 29, 2005, it stood defiant against the wind and surge of Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
. Inside the lighthouse, blue lines are painted on the wall to mark historic storm surges above 'mean sea level' (msl). Hurricanes of 1855 and 1906 reached 14.0 feet above msl, a 1909 hurricane crested at 15.0 feet msl, and Hurricane Camille's record of 17.5 feet was broken by Hurricane Katrina, which crested at 21.5 feet msl.
Today, it is no longer just a beacon to seafarers, but a tangible testament of resilience. The Biloxi Lighthouse stands proud and tall representing those who weathered the storm. Mississippi Commissioner of Revenue Joe Blount said, "This tag design is intended to be a reminder to us of all those who lost so much from Katrina, to serve as a symbol of our citizens’ commitment to recovery as well as a symbol of our gratitude to all Americans for their prayers and generous support."
Tourism
The Biloxi Lighthouse is a beacon of welcome, caution, and hope to the Mississippi Sound. It is a symbol of survival, a storm veteran, a history maker, an integral part of the Biloxi Community and arguably, Biloxi itself. As a tourist attraction, and for tourists, though, the lighthouse is synonymous with more stories and photographs than actual experiences or visits. The language that makes this lighthouse famous is most often feminine, heroic and very site specific. But the Biloxi Light, whose photograph is mass produced, offers a tour that has been closed for the majority of its existence,and today, remains detached, respectfully set apart, and admirably independent from its city and its fans.A crafted brochure and 12 minute video on the Biloxi city website provide a detailed history of the Lighthouse. What can be gathered from these advertisements is a deep sense of ownership. Twice, the narrator of the video, local resident Mary Ann Mobley, states that the lighthouse “lights the night, every night, with a flashing signal that spells Biloxi” and that “seen from the water, this flashing pattern means but one thing, and that is Biloxi.” She calls the Light an “inseparable” part of the community. However, as Mitchell Schwarzer explains in his article Architecture and Mass Tourism, “The representation of a place, the images created for marketing, the vivid videos and persuasive prose of advertising texts, can be selective and creative as the marketer can make them- a reality check comes only after arrival.”
Biloxi is the third largest gaming city in the country. “In the decade or so before Katrina,” stated the Mayor of Biloxi, A.J. Holloway in 2007, “the people of Biloxi were enjoying the most prosperous time in our city’s 300-plus-year history. Six billion dollars’ worth in growth. . .visitors went from one million a year to between eight and ten million a year.” This statement was written on a poster, entitled “We’re reviving the Renaissance,” with none other than the Biloxi Lighthouse in the foreground. This is just one example of how residents of Biloxi acknowledge the Light as a visual symbol beyond physical context; a symbol independent of anything the City of Biloxi has done or is planning to do simply because it has not changed, moved, or been destroyed. The city is making a new legacy for itself, but will no doubt preserve and restore the lighthouse storm after storm, not for profit but for inspiration or, as it appears, a crutch and subsequent identity in hard times.
In 2009, the landmark underwent a 14-month $400,000 restoration, finished in 2010 and according to a local newspaper, “saw nearly a thousand people ascend its spiral staircase on Feb. 21.” The paper also claims the “tours of the historic 65-foot tall structure were popular before Hurricane Katrina struck in 2005. “If mass tourism, like mass media, is successful as a result of “a parade of hits driven by proven formulas,” as Mitchell Schwarzer suggests, and those “formulas must be modulated from time to time,” then the Biloxi Lighthouse has what it takes to draw crowds with every physical wind and water blown ‘hit’ it takes. It did not hurt the Light’s reputation, either, when it became the only lighthouse in the United States to stand in the middle of a U.S. Highway (U.S. Route 90
U.S. Route 90
U.S. Route 90 is an east–west United States highway. Despite the "0" in its route number, U.S. 90 never was a full coast-to-coast route; it has always ended at Van Horn, Texas. A short-lived northward extension to U.S...
). Today, if you are lucky and at least 42 inches tall, you can climb the Light’s 57 steps and 8-rung ladder, through a 19-by-23 inch trap door, into the light room. For those that cannot make the climb or trek across traffic, there is the reassurance that an image of the lighthouse, in this case, is more enduring than any specific visit.
Photography
The Biloxi Lighthouse, according to many Mississippi tourist sites, like gulfcoast.org, is one of the most photographed sites on the Gulf Coast. Photographed. From the road or on it, tourists seek to capture the Light as it relates to them or as they wish to remember it. Schwarzer calls this type of encounter as one “connected far more to timeless celebrity than to historical geography.” Therefore, it is ironic but completely appropriate that the lighthouse is featured on over 2 million registered Mississippi vehicles in the form of a license plate. The Light continues, this way, to be viewed quickly, taking on “the emotional language of distance and remove, somewhat like the aura of a movie star.” This particular experience, enhanced by photography, is heavily protected by the city of Biloxi. “In the long running dispute with the city of Biloxi, Hayes Bolton,” a Biloxi local business owner, “has been given another thirty day reprieve to install a proper fence to hide his jetski dealership and pawn shop from the eyes of visitors to Biloxi’s lighthouse.”The Biloxi Lighthouse is an inspiration to an entire region who know the destruction of a natural disaster. Despite the Light’s disservice to public tours, the landmark’s existence is simply remarkable. Despite physical and historical remove, the landmark is without a doubt desirable. This is a lighthouse whose future is bright in or out of Biloxi as long as history repeats itself and cameras flash.