Published: October 13, 2008 01:19 am         

SOMERSET: Last ‘keeper’ of the house doesn’t blow foghorn

The historic Thirty Mile Point Lighthouse had hundreds of visitors Sunday for the Christmas at the Lighthouse 10th anniversary and 50th anniversary of the decommission of the lighthouse, including a somewhat historic figure.

John P. Kildea, who is listed at the museum as the last lighthouse keeper, kept the lights and foghorn ready on the lake until 1958 when he served in the Coast Guard. His wife, Beverly, and two children had he run of the grounds on Lake Ontario which is now Golden Hill State Park

“They called it lighthouse keepers until about 1938, then it was run by Coast Guard,” said Kildea, who was a second-class boatswain’s mate. “The term ‘lighthouse keeper’ was not any part of the U.S. Coast Guard. ... Using the term loosely, you could call it that.”

A boatswain’s mate first class and Kildea maintained the facility and operated the lights in inclement weather. “We had a fog horn that you could hear 30 miles south if the wind was blowing right,” he said. “People used to get mad.”

His children were 2 and 3 years old when he was he was stationed at the critical point between Rochester and Niagara Falls.

“It was a family station,” he said. “You had to be a family to be stationed here because of the setup in the quarters upstairs. We had our place on the lake. It was like a regular apartment. It was fun. It was good duty at the time. There was not a lot of excitement. It was very routine.”

The mates would share 24-hour shifts.

The lighthouse was constructed in 1875 and maintained by the U.S. Lighthouse Service until 1939 when the Coast Guard took over. The lighthouse was decommissioned in 1958 and was closed for 30 years until the New York State Parks took charge. The restoration started in 1984 and is still an ongoing process.

Sunday’s visitors climbed the 60-spiral stairs and enjoyed chili, hot dogs, cider and doughnuts as they toured the grounds.

“It’s cool. We like lighthouses,” said Jennifer Canter of Rochester. “We’ve seen a few of them in Cape Hatteras, Maine and Myrtle Beach.

“It’s gorgeous and the steps are manageable for an older person,” said Joyce Johnston of Florida. She was with a party of 12, including 5-month old Alyssa who was carried up the 60 stairs by her father, Chris Johnston of Medina.

It was an ideal day to overlook the lake and the leaves of the park.

“We like the lighthouse a lot,” said Bunny Beardsley of Hamlin who was having lunch with Jimmy, 7, and Sydney, 5. “The kids love to climb it and we’ve already climbed it this morning. We tell a lot of people in the area and they don’t even know it exists.”

The lighthouse was built to protect chips on Lake Ontario from the shallow sandbar that extended from 30-mile point.

Carrie and Daric Moreland of Medina brought their identical twin boys, Jackson and Dickson, 3. “It’s nice. It’s small. It’s something I like because I’m not into big crowds,” Daric said. “There’s a quiet atmosphere.”

The twins were anxious to go to the campground playground.

The fundraiser will help the Friends to preserve the lighthouse and use it for educational purposes. Volunteers conducted a basket auction, sold Christmas items and hoped to recruit new members.