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From YouTube: The Biloxi Lighthouse story, as told by Mary Ann Mobley
Description
A 12-minute, City of Biloxi documentary about the Biloxi Lighthouse, narrated by Biloxi native and Miss America 1959 Mary Ann Mobley.
A
It
is
one
of
the
oldest
surviving
lighthouses
on
the
entire
Gulf
Coast
of
the
United
States.
Over
the
course
of
a
hundred
and
fifty
years
it
has
witnessed
the
departure
of
tens
of
thousands
of
sailing
vessels
and
it's
beamed
a
beacon
of
welcome
to
its
shores
for
tens
of
thousands
more.
It
has
weathered
the
effects
of
more
than
a
dozen
major
hurricanes,
and
while
it
bears
a
few
scars
from
its
encounters
with
the
ravages
of
Mother
Nature,
it
still
lights
the
night
every
night.
A
With
the
flashing
signal
that
spells
the
luck
see,
this
is
Mary
Ann,
Mobley
and
I
would
like
to
tell
you
about
a
building
that
has
a
very
special
place
in
my
heart.
I
was
born
in
Biloxi,
but
the
effects
of
storms
and
progress
have
changed
much
of
what
I
recall
about
my
birthplace.
Whenever
I
returned.
Here,
though,
the
Biloxi
lighthouse
is
here
to
remind
me
that
I
have
come
home.
A
Let
me
share
with
you
some
of
the
reasons
why
the
Biloxi
lighthouse
was
built
in
1848
to
aid
ships
in
navigating
the
Mississippi
Sound,
which
was
then
the
primary
entrance
to
America's
busiest
seaport,
the
Port
of
New
Orleans
coastal
charts
of
the
Mississippi
sound
indicated.
The
unique
signatures
are
identifying
characteristic
of
each
lighthouse
so
that
one
could
be
distinguished
from
another
during
both
the
daytime
and
night.
The
white
color
of
the
Biloxi
lighthouse
was
its
day
mark
and
the
light
shined
as
a
continous
beacon
for
its
night
mark.
A
At
one
time,
the
lighthouse
was
painted
black
with
tar
as
a
waterproofing
agent,
but
boat
captains
complained
about
not
being
able
to
see
the
dark
color
against
the
trees
on
the
shore,
so
the
lighthouse
was
changed
soon
back
to
white.
The
only
other
alteration
since
then
occurred
when
the
light
was
electrified.
It's
night
mark
was
then
changed
to
the
signal.
We
see
today
flashing
three
seconds
on
followed
by
one
second
of
dark
before
repeating
the
signal
seen
from
the
water.
A
A
The
design
of
the
Black
Sea
lighthouse
called
for
a
structural
system
of
cast
iron
plating
with
an
inner
lining,
a
brick
to
lend
the
structure,
strength
and
stability.
Only
one
cast
iron
lighthouse
had
been
built
in
America,
and
some
people
thought
the
plan
to
use
this
relatively
new
material
was
risky.
The
$12,000
contract
for
his
construction
was
awarded
to
the
foundry
of
Murray
and
Hazlehurst
of
Baltimore
Maryland,
which
at
the
time
was
one
of
the
leading
high-tech
firms
in
America.
A
We
have
to
remember,
though,
that
in
1848,
high
tech
did
not
mean
building
computers
or
satellites
instead,
Murray
and
Hazlehurst
built
the
finest
steam
engines
to
power,
railroad,
locomotives
factories
and
ships.
All
of
the
gently
tapered
cast-iron
plates
for
the
lighthouse
had
to
be
engineered
precisely
so
that
they
would
fit
together
and
create
a
strong
building.
The
care
taken
to
accomplish
this
task
was
successful.
Once
the
work
began,
construction
of
the
lighthouse
in
its
adjacent
cottage
for
its
lighthouse
keeper
was
completed
in
only
six
weeks.
A
The
light
at
Biloxi
began
to
shine
in
May
of
1848
between
then
and
the
time
that
the
lighthouse
was
automated.
In
1939,
only
six
people
are
known
to
have
held
the
title
of
keeper
of
the
Biloxi
lighthouse.
The
most
important
contributions
over
this
period
were
made
by
three
remarkable
women
who
maintained
the
light
for
seventy
four
of
the
lights.
Ninety-One
years
of
man's
service.
These
women
were
mrs.
Mary,
Reynolds,
Murray,
Jung
Eun's
and
her
daughter,
Miranda
youngins.
A
A
The
duties
of
the
lighthouse
keeper
were
by
no
means
easy
for
anyone,
let
alone
women
like
Mary,
Reynolds
and
Marie
youngins.
Both
widows
with
young
children
to
raise
the
routine
of
climbing
the
tower
three
or
four
times
every
24
hours
to
tend
the
light
would
have
been
difficult
under
any
circumstances,
especially
in
the
dark
of
the
night,
but
imagine
how
much
more
difficult
the
job
would
have
been
in
the
oppressive
heat
and
humidity
of
the
average
summer
day
or
worse
in
a
tropical
storm
or
hurricane.
A
A
Imagine
how
frightening
it
must
have
been
climbing
the
stairs
of
the
lighthouse
during
all
of
these
severe
storms,
hearing
the
deafening
the
groans
and
crashes
of
wharves
and
boats
that
they
were
smashed
by
the
waves.
Just
imagine
having
the
base
of
the
lighthouse
filled
with
water
from
the
storm
surge,
all
the
while
wondering
if
your
children
were
safe
nearby
and
once
a
storm
had
passed.
A
But
none
were
successful.
We
are
lucky
that
the
lighthouse
survived,
because
in
September
1860
the
storm
surge
from
a
hurricane
was
strong
enough
to
undermine
its
foundations.
The
damage
was
so
great
that
the
structure
tipped
some
two
feet
off
a
vertical
making.
The
lighthouse
resemble
the
Leaning
Tower
of
Pisa.
The
tilt
was
corrected
in
1866
by
excavating
some
of
the
sand
under
the
foundation
and
letting
gravity
put
the
structure
back
to
right.
A
The
same
sentiment
has
been
expressed
by
Airmen
returning
to
Keesler
Air
Force
Base
here
in
Biloxi,
because
the
lighthouse
aligns
with
the
approach
to
the
main
runway
of
peaceful,
feel
the
connection
between
the
land
and
the
sea
is
an
integral
part
of
Alexei's
culture
and
the
lighthouse
bridges
these
two
worlds.
As
a
result,
the
lighthouse
has
become
a
magnet
for
all
manner
of
community
activity.
It
watches
over
community
celebrations,
like
the
annual
Mardi
Gras
parade
and
the
blessing
of
the
shrimp
fleet.
A
The
community
dresses
the
lighthouse
to
express
its
feelings,
whether
in
honor
of
a
holiday
as
an
expression
of
hope
in
times
of
turmoil
or
as
a
memorial
and
times
of
sorrow.
The
Biloxi
lighthouse
is
so
important
to
us
that
when
the
US
Coast
Guard
decommissioned
it
taking
it
out
of
service
in
1967,
the
city
of
Biloxi
immediately
stepped
in
and
received
the
transfer
of
the
lighthouse
in
1968.