HOW YOU CAN HELP

The American Lighthouse Coordinating Committee (ALCC) has long been known for its work in assisting the various lighthouse societies and related lighthouse groups in America, and for its training classes concerning Fresnel Lenses. The ALCC is also recognized for its work in developing and maintaining the national “Classical Fresnel Lens Database”, which records all known Fresnel Lenses in the country. Recently, the ALCC took on an additional project to identify and record all of the remaining lighthouse lamps in America. 

In order to assist in undertaking this project, the ALCC has created several documents, as follows:

ALCC Lamp Identification Committee Mission Statement. (30k)

ALCC American Lighthouse Lamp Identification and Description Listing. (8mb)

ALCC Lighthouse Lamp Glossary of Terms. (2.5mb)

Photographing Your Lighthouse Lamp. (150k)

American Lighthouse Lamp Data Collection Form. (9k)

Fresnel Lens Data Collection Form. (10k)

We invite and encourage all lighthouses, museums and private collectors to review the ALCC documents listed above. 

You can use the “ALCC American Lighthouse Lamp Identification and Description Listing” as a guide to review the artifacts within your collection to determine if there are any lighthouse lamps included. Please review all items in your collection including those in storage. If you think you may have a lighthouse lamp, but you are uncertain, please contact project team leader Thomas Tag at lampid@amlhcc.org Tom is recognized as the pre-eminent expert on the technical aspects of lighthouse illumination, and he will be happy to review your artifact and determine if it is, in fact, a lighthouse lamp.

In the event that you find any lighthouse lamp(s) in your collection we then as that you to do the following:

Please follow the photography instructions in the “Photographing Your Lighthouse Lamp”
document and take the three proposed photographs – front, side, and top views.

Please try to identify the style of lamp you own from the “ALCC American Lighthouse
Lamp Identification and Description Listing” document and then complete the “Lighthouse
Lamp Data Collection Form” for each lighthouse lamp you own.

In addition to lighthouse lamp data we ask that you review the Classical Fresnel Lens Database which can be downloaded from the Research page on this website. If your organization owns a Fresnel Lens, you should find your lighthouse listed in the “Assigned Light Station” column and/or you should see your organization’s name in the “Current Location Contact Name” column. We are trying to be sure that each organization that has a Fresnel Lens reviews its data to be sure that anything that is missing or incorrect about a lens is identified and submitted to us on a “Fresnel Lens Data Collection Form,” which can also be downloaded from the same Fresnel Lens Initiative portion of the "Research" page on this website.  

When you have finished your review of lighthouse lamps and Fresnel lenses in your organization’s possession, please submit the photographs and forms to the Project Manager for your geographic region, as follows:

Kim Fahlen
Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Connecticut, Rhode Island

Chad Kaiser
California, Oregon, Washington, Alaska, Hawaii, Maine

Kathleen McCormick
Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Massachusetts

Terry Pepper
Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan

Anne Puppa
Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, New Jersey, New York (Atlantic coast)

Tom Tag
Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York (Great Lakes, Lake Champlain, Hudson River), Vermont, New Hampshire

Thank you in advance for all of your efforts on our behalf. 

When this project is concluded we will have created a “National Lighthouse Lamp Database” and will have re-verified and corrected the “Classical Fresnel Lens Database” with your assistance. 

Please note that we understand that the collection of this data will take some time and we are asking that you complete your review and submit your data to the address above by November 1, 2009. That allows more than a full six months for your review. 

Of course, you can submit the data as soon as you complete your review, should that be sooner. Finally, please contact the Project Manage for your geographical region, even if you find that you have no lighthouse lamps or Fresnel lenses, this will assure us that we do not need to contact you further. 

Thank You.

ALCC Lighthouse Lamp Project Team