Palmer

: As residents of the nation's whaling capital in the mid-1800s, New
Bedford shipowners and sea captains vigorously petitioned for the
construction of a light to mark their harbor. Originally a March 3,
1837 act of Congress approved $2,000 for the building of a beacon
light at the mouth of New Bedford Harbor, but Inspector I.W.P. Lewis
noted in his 1843 survey that a lighthouse on Palmer Island was
additionally required and "would add materially to the facilities
required on entering this important harbor."
However, it would be five more years until the U.S. government
appropriated $3,500 for the lighthouse on August 14, 1848. An acre of
land on Palmer Island was purchased in 1849, and the contract to
design and build the lighthouse went to architect Charles M. Pierce.
Palmer Island Lighthouse, with its conical, twenty-four-foot white
tower and black iron lantern, was erected in 1849 on the northernmost
tip of the island using rubble-stone, and wooden doors and floors. The
lighthouse was connected to the higher part of the island by a covered
walkway and came in $173 under budget. Keeper William Sherman
(1849-1853) first lit the tower's lamps on August 30, 1849.


Palmer Island Lighthouse with birdcage lantern
Photograph courtesy U.S. Coast Guard
To protect the lighthouse, a 99-foot-long seawall was built in 1852 on
the east side of the island. Later that same year, New Bedford whaling
merchant Samuel Rodman experimented with whale oil as an illuminant at
Palmer Island Lighthouse. For the seventy-nine and a half gallons of
oil used in his trials, Rodman billed the government $105.80 – an
amount equal to the average cost for lighting the Clark's Point light
over a similar period. Initially, the government balked at paying for
Rodman's "experiment," but later reimbursed him, even though the use
of whale oil was not adopted at that time.

In recognition of Palmer Island Light's importance, in 1853, New
Bedford commissioned a new city seal with "a view of the Northerly
extremity of Palmer's Island, with its Light House, of a whale ship
under sail in the harbor, of a Steamboat passing out by Palmer's
Island and the City of New Bedford in the distance," from local
jeweler and engraver James T. Almy. The seal bears the motto, "Lucem
Diffundo," which is translated as, "I spread the light" or "I diffuse
the light". At its peak in 1857, New Bedford was the world's richest
city per capita and held all the federal contracts for the supply of
whale oil for the country's lighthouse system.

In 1857, Palmer Island light was one of twenty lighthouses in the
district to receive a new fifth-order Fresnel lens. The tower was
outfitted with a new lantern in 1863.

Life was not always pleasant for the keepers on Palmer Island. George
Cowie (1872-1891) complained of brackish well water and soot from New
Bedford's factories that blew across the island, contaminating the
cistern. Whether his complaints were addressed or not is unclear, but
a 1931 inspection would list the same water problem.

Navigation into New Bedford Harbor was aided by a red light mounted on
Fairhaven Bridge that served as a rear range light with Palmer Island
Light from 1888-1891, guiding sea-goers past Butler Flats, before a
lighthouse was built there. Following that, a light on Wamsutta Mill
served briefly as a rear range light with Palmer Island.


Palmer Island Lighthouse with bell tower
Photograph courtesy U.S. Coast Guard
In 1900, a 1,260-pound fog bell and striking mechanism were placed in
a new pyramidal wooden tower constructed on the island. Later, the fog
bell was moved to a structure attached to the lighthouse, with an
access door cut in the tower. An oil house was built on the island in
1905.

Keeper Arthur Small moved with his wife Mabel and two sons from Boston
Harbor's Narrows ("Bug") Light to Palmer Island in 1922. One of three
brothers who were all lighthouse keepers, Arthur Small was a gifted
artist who concentrated on nautical themes and frequently painted
scenes on Palmer Island. Historian Edward Rowe Snow wrote in
Lighthouses of New England that Small was "probably the greatest
painter who was ever in the lighthouse service."

While some may think the life of a lighthouse keeper to be ideally
peaceful or perhaps even boring, Small described the responsibility
borne by keepers:

It is a popular idea that there is very little to do except for
striking a match once a day to light the lamp. Few of these
landlubbers realize that if a fog comes in during the middle of the
night the keeper must be ready to turn on the fog signal at once, for
if the fog bell is silent for a moment it could happen that a vessel
may be feeling her way up into the harbor depending on the ringing of
the fog signal for her safety.
The channel in New Bedford Harbor is so narrow that if a large vessel
went down, all shipping in or out of the harbor would be at a
standstill. The coal for the electric light company could not reach
the pier, and the cotton steamers likewise would be seriously
crippled. That is what makes me angry when I hear of the easy job of a
lighthouse keeper, as described by some fair weather sailor or inland
resident.

Small loved his work and took his role quite seriously, but scoffed at
the so-called heroism of keepers; although years later his words would
come back to haunt him. "Whenever they say anything about a lighthouse
keeper," Small said, "they always act as if he were some kind of hero.
We're not heroes. Here I am on this island, perfectly safe, working
and painting pictures, while you wander around in New Bedford,
crossing streets with automobiles and trolley cars whizzing by, just
missing you by a few feet. Why, you people take more chances in a week
than I do in ten years."

A 1931 Palmer Island inspection report listed a fourth order Fresnel
lens with a fixed green light, its focal plane 34 feet above mean high
water. The report also noted a problem with soot in the drinking
water, and the dwelling was "old but in fair condition".

On September 21, 1938, the worst hurricane ever in New England
history, The Great New England Hurricane, battered the south-facing
coastline taking everyone unaware. A Weather Bureau bulletin had
predicted wind velocity in the area probably would not top 50 or 60
miles an hour. And although the eye of the storm, with its
120-mile-per-hour winds and gusts as high as 175-186 miles, would not
pass directly through New Bedford, the damage wrought in the area was
nonetheless immense.

Realizing the necessity of lighting the lamps that afternoon,
53-year-old Arthur Small left his wife in the oil house, which he
considered relatively safe as it was situated on the island's highest
point. As he strained to cross the 350 feet from the house to the
tower in the raging wind, he was struck by a wave that sucked him
under and slammed him against a metal fence. He swam and as he
struggled to regain his footing found his wife attempting to launch a
rowboat to come to his aid. He cried out for her to stop, but the wind
tore away his words. Small could only watch in helpless horror as a
massive wave swept away his wife, the dory, and the boathouse, and
destroyed everything on the island except the lighthouse tower.

Later Keeper Small was to relate, "I was hurt and she knew it. Seeing
the wave hit the boathouse was about the last thing I remember. I must
have been hit by a piece of timber and knocked unconscious. I came to
some hours later, but all I remember was that I was in the middle of
some wreckage..."

Despite being injured and in shock, Arthur Small made it to the tower
where he lit the Palmer Island Light, unable to leave the tower until
the storm calmed. Two friends rowed out to the island in the morning
where they discovered the keeper and took him under police escort to
the Chelsea Marine Hospital. There he regained consciousness two weeks
later and learned that his wife had perished.

Besides his wife, Small lost $7,500 in savings, many of his paintings
and his library of several hundred books. Keeper Small was granted a
two-year absence with pay, after which he retired.

Franklin Ponte (c. 1939-1940) became keeper after Arthur Small
(1922-1938), followed by Martin Maloney (c.1941), who was last keeper
of the lighthouse when it was automated in 1941.

After a hurricane wall was built in New Bedford Harbor in 1963, the
lighthouse was no longer needed. The proximity to this wall made
Palmer Island more accessible to lighthouse seekers and vandals alike.
In 1966, the tower interior was gutted by arson, nearly destroying the
lantern room.

Ownership of Palmer Island passed through many hands, including that
of radio station WBSM, until in 1978, the City of New Bedford took it
over from Norlantic Diesel. Local residents spearheaded restoration
that was completed in 1989, but unfortunately, vandals struck again,
and Palmer Island Lighthouse remained dark and abandoned throughout
most of the 1990s.

New restoration efforts, including a new paint job and various repairs
by inmates in the Bristol County Sheriff Department's Pre-Release
Program, culminated in a ceremony to mark Palmer's Island Light's
150-year anniversary in 1999. New Bedford Mayor Fred Kalisz passed out
lighted oil lanterns and a procession of three whale boats sallied
forth to return the flashing white light to Palmer Island's newly
restored lantern room. When the Mayor waved his lantern in the air,
the new 250-mm solar-powered light, with its signature white flash
every 7.5 seconds, was switched on.
S$
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