St. Simons Island Lighthouse: Review

My husband and I toured the St. Simons Island Lighthouse the same day we visited the World War II Home Front Museum. The lighthouse is not a designated landmark on Georgia’s WWII Heritage Trail. However, it is so close to the World War II Home Front Museum that we included it in our day trip. We are so glad we did!

A Little History

Who says history is boring? It certainly isn’t if you’re learning about the St. Simons Island Lighthouse.

It was built in 1807 for $13,775. President James Madison appointed the first lighthouse keeper, James Gould in 1810 with an annual salary of four hundred dollars.

Visit CoastalGeorgiaHistory.org to discover truly fascinating facts about the lighthouse, such as:

• How it was constructed from tabby (oyster shells, sand, lime, and water).

• Why it was blown up by the Confederate Army.

• How the Confederates hid the Fresnel lens before blowing the lighthouse up, but they hid them so well that after the war, no one could find them again. (Sounds like material for a documentary on History’s Greatest Mysteries).

• When the second and current lighthouse was built and when it transitioned from kerosene oil lamps to electricity.

• If the lighthouse still operates as an Active Aid to Navigation and who currently owns the lighthouse.

Our Tour of St. Simons Island Lighthouse

You can view an informative and helpful campus map of the lighthouse area online. There are several buildings. If you did not buy a combo ticket at the World War II Home Front Museum, then you’ll need to enter the A.W. Jones Heritage Center to purchase tickets. The Heritage Center is just steps away from the lighthouse. You can purchase a ticket for just the lighthouse or choose a combo ticket, which includes admission to the Home Front Museum. I highly recommend acquiring a combo ticket!

Since we already had our tickets and were pushed for time, I only entered the Heritage Center to use the restroom before touring the lighthouse. The Heritage Center is a beautiful building. There are informative panels in the halls. I did not enter but saw an upscale gift shop. But, I did not know until after we returned home that a theater was tucked inside the gift shop where visitors could view an educational film. Next time, I’ll plan more time to check out all this building has to offer.

I’ve read some reviews by folks who think $10-12 for an adult ticket is pricey for the lighthouse, but consider what you get. If you don’t live in a coastal region, you may not have many opportunities to climb a lighthouse. The view is breathtaking. Not only should we consider what we get, but also what we can give. The money goes into preserving a historic landmark to educate and inspire the next generation.

The Keeper’s Dwelling

The house was built in 1872 and was used until the 1950s as a home for the lightkeepers and their families. Overall, it is a small museum. Photos, plaques, and a few artifacts are on the bottom floor. On the second floor, visitors can view the living quarters. This includes the Keeper’s bedroom, the children’s bedroom, the parlor, and the kitchen. No indoor plumbing!

The artifacts in each room are roped off with a warning that leaning over the rope will cause an alarm to go off.  A touchpad is available inside the entrance of each room. Visitors can read more information about an artifact by touching the photo of it on the screen. We went at the end of the day, so the crowd was minimal. If there’s a big group, I imagine patience would be needed while waiting to view each room. 

Access to the stairs for climbing the lighthouse is located inside the Keeper’s house.

Climbing to the Top of the Lighthouse

Due to CRPS, I wasn’t sure if I could make the 129-step climb up to the top of the lighthouse. My feet seemed to be having a good day, so I began the ascent. It was encouraging for me, and someone in our party who was afraid of heights to hear about the resting platforms positioned every 20 steps or so on the way up. Those little outcroppings from the spiral staircase were a blessing in more ways than one.

The air is a little stuffy in the tower. Each platform contains a small window where you can inhale fresh air while you rest and take in the views. Also, at each “rest area” is a plaque with an interesting tidbit of information. My favorite one was the last one that said: “24 Steps to Go!”

Whew! It was a challenge, but it was so worth the climb. The views were fabulous once we exited at the top of the tower onto the platform outside. The one with the fear of heights wanted to stay in one place, but I eagerly ventured all the way around the lighthouse, snapping photos of the scenic landscape and ocean.

Visitors are not allowed to walk to the very top, where the Lens Room is located. However, you can get a fantastic 3D view of it on their website here. I stretched my arm out and tried photographing the Lens Room from the platform. Standing at the top of the lighthouse was my favorite part of the tour. So peaceful. I wish I had taken binoculars!

Before leaving the stairwell of the lighthouse, my husband couldn’t resist testing the acoustics of the tower. He sang a snippet of the old Southern gospel song “The Lighthouse.” The sound was superb, and the moment memorable.

Extra Activities

The tour guide gives children a special tri-fold brochure, “History’s Mysteries.” I’m unsure if there are various brochures with different themes. The one I picked up contained a short story about the legend of ghostly footsteps by a lighthouse keeper who was murdered in 1880. So, heads up, if that’s not a good fit for your children.

Also, there were informational snippets about the missing Fresnel lens and the Nora August sculpture in the museum. Kids are asked to make observations and form hypotheses.

There are colorful photos of two other objects found in the museum, and kids are asked how they think they were used.

I really liked the “Words to Know” section, which defined five words regarding the lighthouse, such as daymark and flash pattern. There was something for kids of all ages in the brochure. The youngest kids will enjoy the “Old & New” activity, where they draw lines connecting a photo of a household object from the late 1800s to the modern version of it. They’ll see the exact vintage items in the Keeper’s dwelling.

Also, children are given a color sheet where they can design their own daymark on a lighthouse. Information on the back of the color sheet explains why lighthouses have distinctive color schemes called daymarks.

Outside the lighthouse museum, a gazebo provides a delightful view and breeze from the ocean. After your tour, you can rest a bit or enjoy a short walk across the yard and onto a short pier.

Recommendation

I think the St. Simons Lighthouse is best suited for ages 8 and up. We thoroughly enjoyed it. It is a lovely area to visit. We drove there from our hotel in Savannah, which took about an hour. We hope to return soon for a longer visit to St. Simons Island.

After our tour, we ate dinner at the nearby Barbara Jean’s restaurant on Mallery Street. My mouth waters now remembering how delicious my crab cake sandwich and the basket of various homemade breads were! Later, we walked through the little town and pondered the day’s goodness.

Motivated by the power of story, history, and His Story, Sally Matheny’s passion is telling the next generation wondrous things.

Her nonfiction writing appears in worldwide, national, and regional publications including Appleseeds, Clubhouse Jr., Homeschooling Today, and The Old Schoolhouse.

She and her husband live in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains and are blessed with three children, two sons-in-law, and armfuls of grandbabies. Connect with Sally on several social media sites, but her favorite hangouts are at SallyMatheny.com and Pinterest.