![]() ![]() The keepers of the lighthouse had to be on their toes every night and keep the tower’s lamp lit until the sun rose the next day.ĭespite the fact that UK lighthouses are no longer staffed, they are still under the care of a variety of part-time attendants and retained keepers. They rarely took a day off during the working week, and they could not call in sick. ![]() The lighthouse’s keepers worked seven days a week, 24 hours a day, and were responsible for maintaining it. Most lighthouses remained manned until the 1980s and 1990s, when helicopter reliefs began to automate the process, but lighthouse automation began in the late 1960s. It was the first life-saving station in the country with an all-black crew and was commanded by Richard Ethridge, an African American appointed in 1880. Between the early nineteenth century and the mid nineteenth century, the majority of lighthouse keepers in the United States were African Americans. Until 1910, when the Bureau of Lighthouses was established by Congress, the nation’s lighthouses were cared for by various agencies. In reality, the keeper’s job could last a full day or two. We refer to them as lighthouse keepers because most of them worked for the US Lighthouse Service. But as technology has advanced, the need for lighthouse keepers has diminished, and today there are only a handful of lighthouses still manned by full-time keepers. Lighthouses have been a staple of maritime safety for centuries, and their importance has only increased in recent years as ship traffic has increased. ![]()
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