On Friday, July 15, former Lighthouse Keeper Christopher Cooney and his wife Diane returned to Burnt Island, the place they called home from 1980-1983. They were thrilled to spend a long weekend sharing their favorite stories and memories with all who came ashore. The Cooneys traveled from Kodiak, Alaska to be the first in a series of former keepers who are scheduled to return to Burnt Island this summer. Their presence not only created awareness and understanding of their role in history, but they showed visitors the restoration needs of Maine’s oldest “original” lighthouse.

Chris Cooney was a boatswain’s mate (BM2) in the Coast Guard at Station Boothbay Harbor when he was offered the opportunity to serve as Keeper of the Burnt Island Light. He and his young bride had just purchased their first home; however, this was an assignment that they couldn’t refuse. So in mid-September 1980, they repacked and loaded the peapod (double ended boat) with their belongings, along with their dog Magnum, to begin this experience of a lifetime.

Lighthouse keeping for Chris did not involve oil lamps and a rotating lens because the station had been electrified in 1961, allowing both the light and fog-signal to be activated by the flick of a switch. Regardless, there was never a dull moment for the Cooneys as they settled into a rhythm of life synchronized with the weather and tides. When possible, Diane commuted to the mainland to work at Pine Tree Variety and Chris stayed behind to perform routine maintenance on the buildings and grounds. His big projects included the removal of the navigational, white sector boards that once hung off the lighthouse and he also assisted with the rebuilding of the boat-slip, damaged by a winter storm. Cooney stated that his daily responsibilities included site verification of all lighted and unlighted buoys using a sextant, as well as keeping the back-up generator in ready condition should a power outage occur. After securing the light for the night, he often scanned the horizon for drug-runners entering the region without lights. He was instructed to look for the phosphorescent trail created by glowing organisms that were disturbed as the boat plied through the dark water.

The favorite memories shared by both the former keeper and his wife centered on the quality of life afforded by their island home – that of peace, solitude, and nature all around them. They enjoyed feeding and watching the diversity of birds, and they witnessed an aurora borealis that has yet to be topped despite their 33 years of residency in the northern state of Alaska. Chris and Diane recalled how they went to the boathouse and laid across the peapod’s benches to view the spectacular celestial ballet of green curtains across the night sky.

The Cooneys have now returned to their home state, but they will long cherish their return to Burnt Island. They not only educated Burnt Island’s visitors, they were able to show daughter Andrea and son-in-law Patrick (USCG Southwest Harbor) the island that she had heard so much about while growing up in Alaska. Thank you Chris and Diane for sharing your memories!

Other lighthouse keepers or family members scheduled to return to Burnt Island this summer will be: Steve McCullough – son of Keeper James McCullough (July 27-30); Keeper Jerry Marlowe (August 1); Betsy Norton – wife of Keeper Tom Norton (August 15-17); andRandy and Anna Griffing (late August).