Published in 1912, this book laid down the rules and regulations for Lighthouse-Keepers. It was the LAW!
Download the complete book here in PDF format (4.25 MBs – right click the link for more options)
If you wish to print the book, the published size was 6.5″ x 9.25″ (16.5 x 23.25 cms.)
Donna Marie (Sheppard) Viereck (January 8th, 1947 Whitney Pier, NS – February 26, 2012 Prince Rupert, BC) – friend of the lightkeepers.
I met Donna for the first time in 1976 when I moved to Green Island lighthouse as Principal Keeper. The ship overnighted at the Prince Rupert Coast Guard Base, and such a reception from CG personnel I had never before experienced. The welcome and help was outside their normal duty.
One of the memorable people was Donna Sheppard, the boss of the Personnel office and a nicer person one could not ever meet. She had almost ten (10) years experience there before me.
Over the years of working out of the Prince Rupert office I had a lot of contact with Donna. She and I fought like brother and sister over Personnel matters but remained good friends throughout.
I am going to miss you Donna. I only wish that i had been able to say goodbye. RIP.
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To include your memories in Donna’s memorial please click this link.
More information on Donna’s life can be found here on the InMemoriam.ca website.
[private]
Donna Marie (Fraser, Sheppard) Viereck
Donna Marie (Fraser, Sheppard) Viereck
Born In: Whitney Pier, Nova Scotia, Canada
Born: January 8th, 1947
Passed in: Prince Rupert, British Columbia, Canada
Passed on: February 26th, 2012
It is with deep regret and sorrow we announce the passing of Donna Marie Viereck, a dear wife, mother, stepmother, daughter, sister and grandma, on Feb. 26, 2012, after a courageous battle with cancer.
Donna was the eldest child of Margaret and the late Donald Fraser and grew up in Whitney Pier, Sydney, N.S.
Besides her father, Donna was predeceased by her husband William Sheppard (1990) and her husband Robert Viereck (2008).
Donna is survived by her mother, Margaret; daughter, Marni; son, Craig (Shelly); stepdaughter, Karmen; stepson, David; grandchildren, Riley, Brock, Jade, Dustin, Taylor, Miranda, Katie and Haiden; sisters, Peggy (Murray), Laurie, Judy (Butch), Francie (Charlie), Cathy, Gina, Patricia (Darren); brothers, Kenny (Janet), Brian (Lydia), Rod (Donna), Donald (Shauna), Stephen (Karen) and many nieces, nephews and cousins. Donna will be fondly remembered and missed by Uncles John and Buddy (Marjorie) Rodgers, Aunt Rita Burt and the Sheppard family.
In 1966, Donna moved to Prince Rupert, enjoyed raising her family and had a long career with the Canadian Coast Guard.
Donna was an avid curler and golfer. She also enjoyed her walks with Lola and Lacy, her trips home to Cape Breton and most recently her annual wine tours. The highlight of Donna’s life was any time spent with her children and grandchildren.
The family would like to extend a special thank you to Dr. Edmunds, the exceptional nursing staff from the palliative care unit that cared for her and the unconditional support of all her friends.
No flowers by request but donations in Donna’s name can be made to the Canadian Cancer Society or the palliative care unit.
Email condolences can be forwarded to jmaclean@syd.eastlink.ca.
A celebration of Donna’s life will be held at the Prince Rupert Curling Rink on Thursday, March 1, 2012 from 2-4 p.m. [/private]
Can you imagine sitting on this ocean in front of your lighthouse in a fourteen foot Zodiac rubber boat just minding your own business, and then the sea erupts around you with hundreds of torpedo shapes zooming in and out of the water?
One of the events my son will always remember as a young boy on the lighthouse, and I will never forget is being in the middle of a what people call a dolphin stampede. Continue reading Stampede!
Groceries at Sisters Island c. 1927
– Elizabeth Kate (Stannard) Smithman (Wife of Henry Herbert Smithman who was Senior Keeper at Sisters Island 1927 – 1929)
Light keepers have to take a four-month supply of food when they go on as there’s no way of getting anything otherwise. No stores to run to and no neighbours to borrow from, ha ha. The government boat called the lighthouse tender [probably the CCGS Estevan which was built in 1912] calls around every 4 or 5 months. Light keepers order groceries from wholesalers in Victoria and it is delivered to the government wharf and loaded on the tender and they bring it when they are coming up that way.
******************************** Continue reading Sisters Island Lighthouse c. 1927-1928 – Short Stories
The following extracts taken from early Victoria, British Columbia (BC) newspapers are credited to Leona Taylor for her excellent work in indexing the papers. Full information can be found here: ”Index of Historical Victoria Newspapers“, 2007-09.
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Dominion Government Steamer Quadra is loading supplies for the lighthouses of West Coast Vancouver Island, and is expected to leave about the end of the week. [Colonist, 1912-09-05]
Walbran may command Estevan… came here in 1888 with SS Islander, native of Yorkshire, England, b 1848. Educated at Ripon Grammar and served on British training frigate Conway, served in merchant marine for 11 years, and secured his master’s certificate at age 22. First ship commanded by Walbran was sailing vessel British Consul, bound from Continue reading Lighthouse History – 41 (1912-09-05 to 1914-12-30)
Automated in 1926, this video shows what some governments wish to do with automated lighthouses. They cannot just leave it alone as a lighthouse and a monument. No, they dream of turning it into a concession stand selling soft drinks and candy bars to the tourists! This was June 28, 2006. Luckily it was turned down by the public, but what comes next?
[media url=”https://ccanadaht3.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Brockton-Point.flv” width=”400″ height=”350″]
Harry Heine R.S.M.A., C.S.M.A., N.W.W.S. (July 24, 1928 Edmonton, Alberta, Canada – September 25, 2004 Victoria, BC, Canada) was an artist who specialized in maritime scenes. – Wikipedia
Many years ago, having found the Heine family website at Spindrift Studios, I admired the lighthouse paintings of Harry Heine and upon request I was given permission by his son Mark Heine to reprint the following three works of Harry Heine for your enjoyment, and as a lure to get you to visit the family website. Beautiful artwork. Click the photos below to go to the website.
Continue reading Spindrift Studios – the Artwork of the Heine Family
In an earlier story I wrote about how the lighthouse keepers have been doing sea water samples since the early 1930s – some of the oldest observations on the BC coast!
Now, with satellites we can get different temperatures of the sea – Sea Surface Temperatures for one – similar to what the lightkeepers do, but globally.
Sea surface temperatures have a large influence on climate and weather. For example, every 3 to 7 years a wide swath of the Pacific Ocean along the equator warms by 2 to 3 degrees Celsius. This warming is a hallmark of the climate pattern El Niño, which changes rainfall patterns around the globe, causing heavy rainfall in the southern United States and severe drought in Australia, Indonesia, and southern Asia. On a smaller scale, ocean temperatures influence the development of tropical cyclones (hurricanes and typhoons), which draw energy from warm ocean waters to form and intensify. – NASA Earth Observatory Continue reading The Awfully Long Thermometer!
Following along with yesterday’s story about travel on a CCGS ice breaker, and with the permission of the author, Pamela Coulston, I am reprinting her article here about life on Canadian Coast Guard ice breakers servicing the north and the lighthouses. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
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Surprisingly, everyone made it to dinner, they also made it to breakfast and lunch. The
Coast Guard icebreaker Sir Wilfrid Laurier was taking a whipping from the weather in the middle of the Bering Sea. But not a meal was missed.
While the two cooks dished up three squares, the seas served up a storm that included winds gusting to 90 knots and 10-metre waves that broke over the bow, drenching the bridge four storeys above.
The captain ordered all loose items secured and all outer decks off-limits – any one of these larger waves could wash a person overboard to their death in near freezing waters. Continue reading Of Ice and Men
I received the following email the other day promoting an article on a friend’s website:
The freighter Vanlene ran up on the rocks on Austin Island in the Broken Group islands on March 14, 1972. She was carrying 300 Dodge Colt automobiles while enroute to Vancouver BC from Japan. The crew was rescued and taken to Port Alberni. How she ended up on the rocks is still a matter of conjecture but it appears that the Master simply did not know where he was at the time of impact (he thought he was off of the coast of Washington) and his navigational aids were inoperable. See the article at Nauticapedia.