I think one of the things that I am going to miss the most about living in Mississippi is the lighthouse. It really is the iconic 'centerpiece' of Biloxi and it is beautiful no matter the time of day or night that you drive by. I love to photograph it and I've loved learning about its history.
This lighthouse is a cast iron light house built in 1848 and originally stood relatively close to water. It now exists as the only lighthouse in the middle of a highway and also Mississippi's only remaining lighthouse. Biloxi's waters receded a bit and eventually put in a man made beach in the 60s. This lighthouse survived both Camille in 1969 and Katrina in 2005 (although all the brick on the inside washed out after Katrina and extensive remodeling was required to reopen it to the public.) To read more about its fascinating history click here.
We were able to take a tour of it last weekend and go inside and the light in it is beautiful. The view is pretty gorgeous too. I was wearing Mae in the ergo and toted her up the spiral staircase and up the 8 rung ladder into the top. It was a bit precarious but we managed.
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| If you notice the pale blue line - that is where the water reached with Katrina, Camille's water level is significantly lower. |
It was a lot of fun to be able to go inside, learn a bit about the history, and to see how the lighthouse really works. It was also neat to learn about the history of why it is now in the middle of a highway - probably its most unique quality.
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| Circa 1901 - Photograph from Library of Congress and obtained from here. |
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