Support The Old Lady in 2021 - 2022
Dear Friends of the Sakonnet Lighthouse
While it feels like the last two years have been like no other span in our history, exactly 100 years ago we were just emerging from the first World War, political unrest was rampant, the Wall Street Bombing of 1920 defined a clash of economies and the Spanish Flu had taken the lives of as many as 100 million globally. To add insult to injury, the manufacture and sale of alcohol was prohibited by Constitutional amendment! At least Gleason’s never closed.
Each year there seems to be good news and bad news in our ongoing charge to keep Sakonnet Lighthouse upright and in a condition worthy of her stature. One of the primary drivers of our brand over the last two decades has been the indefatigable Barbara Fargo. As I’m sure you all know, “Bargo” passed peacefully a few weeks back, surrounded by family. She was a singular personality who is responsible for the hundreds of pendants adorning Sakonnet doyens of every ilk. Not only was this a financial boon, but Bargo’s force of personality also always left the patron with a sense of purpose and connection to The Friends and the lighthouse. She will be missed by many, and the fabric of our community is diminished with her loss. Hale and farewell, Barbara.
On the brighter side, the state of affairs at Little Cormorant Rock and her associated financials is good. I will give you a brief synopsis of the last two years of work orders and discuss direction and scope of work being considered going forward. Conditions at the Light reflect the unforgiving environment which lead to her commissioning some 137 years ago. Reflect on that for a moment. There are only a handful of lighthouses in the world which sit in the open ocean, and few are in the robust shape which Sakonnet exhibits. That said, “rust never sleeps”.
While the pandemic slowed the world down for a few years, work continued as scheduled at Sakonnet Lighthouse. Overall conditions – interior, exterior, caisson and superstructure remained essentially static
since our last update. That said, substantial work to the physical plant has been completed over the past two work seasons. The scope of work over the summer of 2020 was lighthouse work at it’s
most rudimentary. Chipping and painting. The structure is power washed, scraped by manual and automated means, primed and painted. Areas focused on were two interior floors and exterior sections delineated in our initial inspection as needing attention. Not rocket science or very interesting, surface coatings have been the nuts and bolts of lighthouse maintenance since these structures first began pivoting from wood framed to iron in the mid 1860’s.
Our contractor, Cavanagh Marine Services (CMS) has been after us for years to address a number of structural issues, which we acquiesced to
in 2021. It should be noted that CMS are not painters but primarily a firm focused on underwater welding. They are hard hat divers who
happen to be based out of Little Compton and have the capacity to get crews on that treacherous rock and get the work done. They would not
do this work without an affinity for this landmark and a real sense that this is now “their” lighthouse, with all they have done for her.
Our first order of concern was the diminishing efficacy of our means of access to the mezzanine deck and the railing system around it. Pictures
below indicate a bent ladder, which is a non-issue, and a failed section of railing. The materials and hours do add up when you consider the
ladder and stanchion mounts all must be custom fabricated off site to fairly the exacting parameters of a circumference. They were.
As the crew was waiting for the custom stanchions to be fabricated, attention turned to the main entry door. This door was brand new and
designed for ships as a flood bulkhead only ten years ago. The “dogs”, or hatch handles, along with the hinges had all seized and the door
could only be opened with a maul.
This door was taken off site (no easy task, that) for a complete rebuild. New dogs were purchased and we retrofitted the new hinges with
custom grease ports to keep them lubricated over time. Old hinges and dogs were cut off. The door was then sandblasted to bare steel,
primed, and painted with high end marine coatings. New dogs, hinges and rubber gasket were installed.
The door was returned to the island for install on a meticulously abraded frame. It is notable that this entry was protected by a
mezzanine for its first 100 years. The mezzanine was so compromised that it was eventually cut off in the 1980’s, exposing the entry door and
frame to the never ending south-westerlies and their accompanying wave action. Much work is needed regularly to keep this steel
functional. The abutting mending plate, fabricated in 2011 to patch a structural crack, was also worked on.
Once again, as the land-based crew worked the mechanical restorations, the onsite crew pulled all of the windows and re-seated
them on new gaskets. The old gaskets had begun to fail and water penetration had become evident. This is an onerous job without
ladders or staging available. Work was performed out of bosun’s chairs.
We had hoped to get another year or two out of the Promenade Deck door (just below the Light Deck), but mechanical abrading revealed the
steel was finished. We were fortunate to find a marine grade hatch in Queens and CMS sent a crew to New York to pick it up.
This project was actually more involved than the Main Entry as we had to install an entirely new frame as well. Again, due to the need to marry
a rectangular frame to a conical structure, CMS had to create templates and cut the steel to fit off site. This was all over and above the
contracted work and a premium of some $5,000 dollars was approved and paid upon completion.
I have included a couple of pictures of the Light Deck hatch, which was custom fabricated and installed as part of the 2020 work package.
These 3 entries are as important as any features on our lighthouse and having all three new and in place will allow your President more restful
evenings. It is unfortunate that all three face our trade winds but that is where we are.
I hope you enjoy these pictures and if you ever run into Andrew Cavanagh as he mobilizes out of Sakonnet Point, please introduce
yourself and thank him and his crew for all he has done for our outfit. We are looking for a complete paint job next summer along with
addressing any surprises encountered in our spring survey. Please forward me any questions or comments and I will endeavor to respond
quickly. We would love your feedback.
Finally, I would like to thank Terry and Carol Gregory for their years of service on the board. While they may be stepping away, they will always be part of this team. There are no two finer people in our community. With gratitude from all of us.
Your Friend, Scott Brown, President, Friends of Sakonnet Lighthouse
Please send your tax-deductible gifts to:
Friends of Sakonnet Lighthouse
P.O. Box 154
Little Compton, RI 02837
While it feels like the last two years have been like no other span in our history, exactly 100 years ago we were just emerging from the first World War, political unrest was rampant, the Wall Street Bombing of 1920 defined a clash of economies and the Spanish Flu had taken the lives of as many as 100 million globally. To add insult to injury, the manufacture and sale of alcohol was prohibited by Constitutional amendment! At least Gleason’s never closed.
Each year there seems to be good news and bad news in our ongoing charge to keep Sakonnet Lighthouse upright and in a condition worthy of her stature. One of the primary drivers of our brand over the last two decades has been the indefatigable Barbara Fargo. As I’m sure you all know, “Bargo” passed peacefully a few weeks back, surrounded by family. She was a singular personality who is responsible for the hundreds of pendants adorning Sakonnet doyens of every ilk. Not only was this a financial boon, but Bargo’s force of personality also always left the patron with a sense of purpose and connection to The Friends and the lighthouse. She will be missed by many, and the fabric of our community is diminished with her loss. Hale and farewell, Barbara.
On the brighter side, the state of affairs at Little Cormorant Rock and her associated financials is good. I will give you a brief synopsis of the last two years of work orders and discuss direction and scope of work being considered going forward. Conditions at the Light reflect the unforgiving environment which lead to her commissioning some 137 years ago. Reflect on that for a moment. There are only a handful of lighthouses in the world which sit in the open ocean, and few are in the robust shape which Sakonnet exhibits. That said, “rust never sleeps”.
While the pandemic slowed the world down for a few years, work continued as scheduled at Sakonnet Lighthouse. Overall conditions – interior, exterior, caisson and superstructure remained essentially static
since our last update. That said, substantial work to the physical plant has been completed over the past two work seasons. The scope of work over the summer of 2020 was lighthouse work at it’s
most rudimentary. Chipping and painting. The structure is power washed, scraped by manual and automated means, primed and painted. Areas focused on were two interior floors and exterior sections delineated in our initial inspection as needing attention. Not rocket science or very interesting, surface coatings have been the nuts and bolts of lighthouse maintenance since these structures first began pivoting from wood framed to iron in the mid 1860’s.
Our contractor, Cavanagh Marine Services (CMS) has been after us for years to address a number of structural issues, which we acquiesced to
in 2021. It should be noted that CMS are not painters but primarily a firm focused on underwater welding. They are hard hat divers who
happen to be based out of Little Compton and have the capacity to get crews on that treacherous rock and get the work done. They would not
do this work without an affinity for this landmark and a real sense that this is now “their” lighthouse, with all they have done for her.
Our first order of concern was the diminishing efficacy of our means of access to the mezzanine deck and the railing system around it. Pictures
below indicate a bent ladder, which is a non-issue, and a failed section of railing. The materials and hours do add up when you consider the
ladder and stanchion mounts all must be custom fabricated off site to fairly the exacting parameters of a circumference. They were.
As the crew was waiting for the custom stanchions to be fabricated, attention turned to the main entry door. This door was brand new and
designed for ships as a flood bulkhead only ten years ago. The “dogs”, or hatch handles, along with the hinges had all seized and the door
could only be opened with a maul.
This door was taken off site (no easy task, that) for a complete rebuild. New dogs were purchased and we retrofitted the new hinges with
custom grease ports to keep them lubricated over time. Old hinges and dogs were cut off. The door was then sandblasted to bare steel,
primed, and painted with high end marine coatings. New dogs, hinges and rubber gasket were installed.
The door was returned to the island for install on a meticulously abraded frame. It is notable that this entry was protected by a
mezzanine for its first 100 years. The mezzanine was so compromised that it was eventually cut off in the 1980’s, exposing the entry door and
frame to the never ending south-westerlies and their accompanying wave action. Much work is needed regularly to keep this steel
functional. The abutting mending plate, fabricated in 2011 to patch a structural crack, was also worked on.
Once again, as the land-based crew worked the mechanical restorations, the onsite crew pulled all of the windows and re-seated
them on new gaskets. The old gaskets had begun to fail and water penetration had become evident. This is an onerous job without
ladders or staging available. Work was performed out of bosun’s chairs.
We had hoped to get another year or two out of the Promenade Deck door (just below the Light Deck), but mechanical abrading revealed the
steel was finished. We were fortunate to find a marine grade hatch in Queens and CMS sent a crew to New York to pick it up.
This project was actually more involved than the Main Entry as we had to install an entirely new frame as well. Again, due to the need to marry
a rectangular frame to a conical structure, CMS had to create templates and cut the steel to fit off site. This was all over and above the
contracted work and a premium of some $5,000 dollars was approved and paid upon completion.
I have included a couple of pictures of the Light Deck hatch, which was custom fabricated and installed as part of the 2020 work package.
These 3 entries are as important as any features on our lighthouse and having all three new and in place will allow your President more restful
evenings. It is unfortunate that all three face our trade winds but that is where we are.
I hope you enjoy these pictures and if you ever run into Andrew Cavanagh as he mobilizes out of Sakonnet Point, please introduce
yourself and thank him and his crew for all he has done for our outfit. We are looking for a complete paint job next summer along with
addressing any surprises encountered in our spring survey. Please forward me any questions or comments and I will endeavor to respond
quickly. We would love your feedback.
Finally, I would like to thank Terry and Carol Gregory for their years of service on the board. While they may be stepping away, they will always be part of this team. There are no two finer people in our community. With gratitude from all of us.
Your Friend, Scott Brown, President, Friends of Sakonnet Lighthouse
Please send your tax-deductible gifts to:
Friends of Sakonnet Lighthouse
P.O. Box 154
Little Compton, RI 02837
