Tybee Light just after restoration began.   Notice the ladder going up the side and the platform around the lantern room.

It was sunny, but cold and windy on the afternoon of Sunday February 28th. It would have to get a lot worse to shut this event down.  People had been walking by our house since morning, and I saw a horse carriage pass the end of our street.  Early afternoon the coast guard helicopter buzzed the house a few times.  But it was getting to be dark when the real crowd began to gather at the Lighthouse on Tybee. 

The golden light of sunset lit the freshly painted Lighthouse.  A large crowd had assembled at it's base and in the open field surrounding the area when the sound of bagpipes echoed Amazing Grace.  Ghostly red pyrotechnics illuminated the Lantern-room and smoke filled the air as the light came back on.  Our lighthouse was back, and it has never looked as good as it does right now.  A silky smooth, perfect paint job covers the freshly repaired structure.   For 5 months the light was off as repairs and renovations took place.   It had been 131 years, since the light was last turned off for any length of time.  The light was extinguished and a protective covering was built around the lens as the work progressed.  A temporary light was put up on the ocean side of the Lighthouse as a beacon for ships at sea.  Extensive renovations took place.  Elizabeth and I were looking forward to seeing our engraved brick in the new walkway, but it wasn't ready on Sunday.   

After a decade of dedication and hard work, the efforts of the Tybee Island Historical Society have finally brought the dream of a fully restored Tybee Lighthouse to reality.

In the photo above, you can see the work going on to patch all the cracks in the structure.  Many more cracks  appeared in the portion painted black, this because the black part heated up more than the light portions.  Extensive work was also done on the lantern room.  The work progressed slow because of the care used to prevent any damage to the lens.  Only 2 people could work in this room at a time.  Plywood covered the outside windows of the lantern room, this was also to prevent any damage to the incredibly valuable lens.

The Lighthouse has suffered greatly over the past few years from lack of funds to maintain the historic structure. Restoration was partially funded through a Federal Department of Transportation program called I.S.T.E.A. or the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act, enacted by congress in 1991 to provide funds to enhance and improve historic transportation facilities.  The program is designed to reimburse sponsors of restoration projects for up to 80% of the cost.

In the case of the Tybee Lighthouse restoration all of the cost must be paid by the Historical Society who then applies for reimbursement from the Georgia Department of Transportation, which administers the Federal program.

The first of new housing adjacent to the lighthouse going up on the old go-cart track.

Lighthouse just before restoration began in October 1998

Lighthouse with new daymark being painted.

Long awaited official approval from the United States Coast Guard has recently been received by the Tybee Island Historical Society to repaint the exterior of the Tybee Lighthouse to its most historic paint pattern. The Pattern known officially as a "Day Mark" has changed over six times during the history of the Lighthouse, according to Marsha Kevill, Assistant Director.

 

In 1867 when the Lighthouse was repaired after confederates set it on fire during the Civil War, the exterior was a simple white stucco. In 1887, according to Marsha, the "Day Mark" changed to a black bottom or base with a white upper section. In 1914 it was changed once again to a tower with a black base, a black top and a white section between. 1916 brought yet another change and began the longest lasting "Day Mark", when the tower was painted all black with a white section about 40 feet wide in the middle of the lighthouse. According to research conducted by the staff of the Historical Society, the 1916 "Day Mark" would last until about 1964 when the exterior of the Tybee Lighthouse was painted with a gray top section and a white bottom. That pattern would change once again in 1969, when the current pattern was applied, a black top section and white bottom.

 

According to Marsha, " about four other lighthouses in America have a "Day Mark" similar to that of Tybee's current one. They include Hunting Island South Carolina, Pensacola Florida, Dry Tortugus, Florida, and Hillsboro Inlet Light, Florida.

(Story continued in next column)

The 1916 "Day Mark", a black exterior with a white band in the middle, will be the only one of its kind in the United States, according to the 1994 Inventory of Historic Lighthouses published by the U.S. Department of the Interior. That will make the Tybee Island Lighthouse not only one of America's oldest (since the bottom sixty feet dates to 1773), but the return to the 1916 pattern will be the most unique in the United States. According to Tina Lewis, Museum Assistant, "changing the Tybee Day Mark from its current one will make all of the gift items and paintings with the current pattern on them even more collectable."

The United States Coast Guard requires that the Historical Society notify them six weeks in advance of the change to the exterior paint pattern to give them time to alert boaters and make changes in navigational charts and publications. However, no change will likely take place until the entire Tybee Lighthouse is repaired on the interior and exterior, as painting will be one of the last parts of the comprehensive restoration project.

 

Old Tybee Lighthouse 

Tybee Lighthouse with new daymark March 1999

Tybee Lighthouse at sunset January 1998

Jim Kluttz, President of the Historical Society stated that even with the Federal program, the Society would have had great difficulty starting the project and paying the cost up front had it not been for the additional support of the contribution of over $63,000 by Bill Younaer and his Harbour Lights Collector Society. Kluttz explained that " in order to qualify for these federal funds an applicant had to commit to providing all the funds needed to complete the project. Even though the Society through mostly volunteer efforts has managed to save some monies earmarked for the Lighthouse restoration, it would have taken at least another year to raise the $63,000 made available by Harbour Lights Society members." That extra year would have delayed the project and possibly prevented the Society from meeting the deadline for committing local funds needed to receive federal reimbursement.

Work on the Tybee Lighthouse, scheduled to begin in December, will include repair of all metal work, brick and stucco; restoration of all windows and window openings which were modified in 1970; Installation of special protective glass around the lens currently valued at over $3 million dollars; and repainting of the interior and exterior of the Lighthouse. Jim Kluttz explained that part of that repainting of the exterior would include "returning the exterior paint pattern, called a 'day mark' to its most historic character, as a black lighthouse with a white band in the middle". That "day mark' according to research conducted by the Staff of the Historical Society, lasted from 1916 to 1965 and will be the only "day mark" with that characteristic in the entire nation. The paint pattern, which exists today, was done in 1970 and there are at least four other Lighthouses in America with similar paint patterns according to the National Park Service's Inventory of Lighthouses. The "day mark" of the Tybee Lighthouse changed over six times from 1867 to 1970. (See Day Mark story below)

According to Kluttz there will be a huge re-lighting celebration sometimes early spring of 1998 and a bronze plaque honoring major contributors to the project as well as the brick walks will be dedicated. Lighthouse lovers who donated $50.00 to the restoration project will pay for the walks. The bricks will be engraved with brick sponsor names.

Kluttz indicated that the restoration of the Tybee Lighthouse is only the first step in a long campaign to restore the entire Tybee Light Station made up of six historic support buildings. Once completely restored at an estimated cost of an additional $750,000; the Tybee Light Station one of only twenty complete Light Stations remaining in America will be eligible for National Historic Landmark status.