Lighthouses

Recently, Jessica Outram wrote a blog post about the Gereaux Island Lighthouse on the shores of Georgian Bay. I found it a fascinating post and loved all the pictures that she shared of a visit there. I used her blog post as a discussion point for the voicEd Radio “This Week in Ontario Edublogs” show and will write a bit more about it tomorrow morning.

This was one of those blog posts that tugged on my memory. Actually, it tugged quite hard on it. You see, except for my university years, I’ve always lived around a Great Lake, specifically Huron and Erie. With my parents and now with my wife, we enjoy trips along coast lines and, of course, you can’t help but come across lighthouses. At one point in time, they would be absolutely critical to water navigation in the province.

Today, they’re often a nicely restored place to visit. Some remain functional and working.

As a consequence of my read of Jessica’s post, I did a dive into my memory of some of the lighthouses that I can remember. That’s a disclaimer that this list is not inclusive.

• Tobermory
• Lion’s Head
• Southampton
• Kincardine
• Point Clark
• Goderich
• Grand Bend Lighthouse
• Lighthouse Cove
• Windsor (Pelee Passage)
• Boblo Island
• Colchester Reef
• Pelee Island
• Kingsville
• Leamington
• Erieau
• Port Stanley
• Port Burwell
• Port Dover
• Port Maitland
• Port Colborne

Even wandering my way around the two Great Lakes led me to realize that there are some lighthouses that I didn’t even know about! When we get to travel again …

Most recently, and this would have been pre-COVID, we took a trip to Lighthouse Cove and I took some personal photos…

The water from the Thames River emptying into Lake St. Clair was so high on this date as you can see from the pictures. The other big interest from a historical aspect were the stories that came from the War of 1812. If you are familiar with the area, on the border between Essex and Kent counties, it is located just north of Highway 2 which turns into Tecumseh Parkway through Chatham-Kent.

Jessica’s post goes much further than that. Her interest in Gereaux Island is based on her inquiry of her grandfather’s involvement and devotion to the lighthouse.

I think therein lies the difference in her approach and mine. Mine, no doubt, is touristy and an interest in the historical aspect to the lighthouse, some which are still working. Her interest was family and the stories that she saw on her visit. At that point, I’ll confess that I did get a bit emotional about things. After all, there is a technical document about Gereaux Island but it pales in comparison with a real life person talking real life stories.

Thank you, Jessica, for taking the time to write the post and share some of your personal thoughts. I was really moved.

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