The Scotch Cap Light is a series of
lighthouses
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways.
Lighthouses mar ...
located on the southwest corner of
Unimak Island
Unimak Island ( ale, Unimax, russian: Унимак) is the largest island in the Aleutian Islands chain of the U.S. state of Alaska.
Geography
It is the easternmost island in the Aleutians and, with an area of , the ninth largest island in the ...
in
Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...
. It was the first station established on the outside coast of Alaska.
History
In 1903, the Scotch Cap Light was built. The original lighthouse was a 45-foot (14 meter) wood tower on an octagonal wood building. According to the Coast Guard Historian's Office, the lighthouse was witness to several ship wrecks.
In 1909, the cannery supply ship ''Columbia'' wrecked. The 194 crew members were guests of the keepers for two weeks before a rescue ship could remove them. In 1930, the Japanese freighter ''Koshun Maru'' became lost in a snowstorm and beached near the light. In 1940, a new concrete reinforced lighthouse and fog-signal building was erected near the site of the original lighthouse. In 1942, the Russian freighter ''Turksib'' wrecked near the station. The 60 survivors lived at the station for several weeks because rough seas prevented a rescue ship from reaching the station.
The 1940
aid to navigation
In international relations, aid (also known as international aid, overseas aid, foreign aid, economic aid or foreign assistance) is – from the perspective of governments – a voluntary transfer of resources from one country to another.
Ai ...
was the "twin" of the
Sand Hills Light in Michigan's
Keweenaw Peninsula, replicating much of its design.
[Sand Hills Light Bed and Breakfast, Exploring the North.](_blank)
/ref>
On April 1, 1946, the station was destroyed by a massive tsunami
A tsunami ( ; from ja, 津波, lit=harbour wave, ) is a series of waves in a water body caused by the displacement of a large volume of water, generally in an ocean or a large lake. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and other underwater exp ...
created by a powerful earthquake. The entire five-man crew was killed; they were Anthony Petit, the lighthouse keeper; Jack Colvin, fireman first class; Dewey Dykstra, seaman first class; Leonard Pickering, motor machinist's mate second class; and Paul James Ness, seaman first class. This was the worst disaster to ever befall a land-based Coast Guard light station. Keeper-class cutter '' USCGC Anthony Petit'' (WLM-558), based in Ketchikan, Alaska
Ketchikan ( ; tli, Kichx̱áan) is a city in and the borough seat of the Ketchikan Gateway Borough of Alaska. It is the state's southeasternmost major settlement. Downtown Ketchikan is a National Historic District.
With a population at the 20 ...
, is named in honor of the fallen lighthouse keeper
A lighthouse keeper or lightkeeper is a person responsible for tending and caring for a lighthouse, particularly the light and lens in the days when oil lamps and clockwork mechanisms were used. Lighthouse keepers were sometimes referred to as ...
.U.S.C.G.C. ''Anthony Petit''.
/ref>
In 1946, in the wake of the tsunami disaster, a temporary unwatched light was established. The new permanent structure was completed in the early 1950s, and the temporary light was discontinued. The lighthouse was automated in 1971. A skeletal tower replaced the 1950s structure, and the fog signal was discontinued.
See also
* List of lighthouses in the United States
This is a list of lighthouses in the United States. The United States has had approximately a thousand lights as well as light towers, range lights, and pier head lights. Michigan has the most lights of any state with over 150 past and present l ...
References
"BMC Anthony Lawrence Petit and the Scotch Cap Lighthouse," ''Congressional Record'', vol. 145, part 1 (1999), pp. 1305-1306, https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CRECB-1999-pt1/html/CRECB-1999-pt1-Pg1305-2.htm.
External links
Anthony Petit biography
An artist's depiction showing the tsunami wave just before impact
{{Authority control , additional=Q2590327,Q112136941,Q112136897,Q112136914
Lighthouses in Alaska
Unimak Island
Buildings and structures in Aleutians East Borough, Alaska
Lighthouses completed in 1903
Rebuilt buildings and structures in the United States
Lighthouses completed in 1940
Lighthouses completed in 1950
1903 establishments in Alaska