A History of South Carolina Lighthouses by John Hairr

Author:John Hairr
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Arcadia Publishing Inc.
Published: 2014-09-15T00:00:00+00:00

The light shown from atop St. Philip’s Church, shown in this circa 1900 postcard, was a point of pride to Charlestonians as it made their church an official aid to navigation.

More ships’ masters and bar pilots joined in the call for a new light. Even the city’s chamber of commerce gave its reluctant approval. On June 2, 1914, W.D. Porcher, chairman of the chamber’s River & Harbors Committee, wrote, “If the demands of navigation require the sacrifice, however, the committee sees no other reason for failing to endorse the proposed change. They will appreciate your giving the above sentimental objection your consideration before taking final action.”99

In July 1914, the U.S. Bureau of Lighthouses officially authorized the discontinuance of the St. Philip’s Church Light as soon as a new Fort Sumter light could be put in operation. The St. Philip’s Church Light was taken out of service in 1915.100

The total savings realized for the discontinuance of the light in the church came to nearly $500, for in addition to the $25-per-month rental fee, they saved the salary paid to the “Laborer in Charge of Main Channel Range (St. Philip’s Church) Light.” The individual holding that position was John I. Whitney, who was paid $180 per year as keeper of the light in St. Philip’s Church.101

The light on St. Philip’s Church was briefly placed back into service six years later. The steamship Cliffwood collided with the Fort Sumter Range Front Light on January 30, 1921, knocking that light out of commission. In order to maintain a set of range lights for the entrance to Charleston Harbor until repairs could be made, it was necessary to temporarily re-establish the St. Philip’s Church Light. This arrangement lasted less than a year, as the front Fort Sumter range light was rebuilt and put back into service in July 1921.102

Due to construction work on barracks at Fort Sumter in the fall of 1917, it became necessary to move the keeper’s quarters twenty feet to the northeast. Lighthouse inspector H.L. Beck did not object to the move so long as the $500 expenses came out of the War Department’s budget and not that of the U.S. Bureau of Lighthouses.103

On April 1, 1933, the lighthouse on Fort Sumter was automated and the keeper transferred to the Cape Fear Lighthouse. At the same time, lighthouse personnel were also removed from Fort Moultrie and the lights on Sullivan’s Island.104 Later that year, the lighthouse became home to a radio beacon, which at that time was the latest marvel in navigational technology. Commissioner of Lighthouses G.R. Putnam explained in a letter dated March 30, 1933, why Fort Sumter was chosen as the location for the radio beacon: “The Bureau considers that Fort Sumter is the most desirable location for the radio beacon when the lightship is removed. This radio beacon is primarily a harbor aid and, at this location, will serve best as a leading mark. The location of the radio beacon at the Charleston depot or elsewhere in the city

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