The Lighthouses of Rhode Island

Book excerpt: The definitive series on the history of New England lighthouses continues with Rhode Island's thirty beacons. Here are just a few of the fascinating entries compiled by D'Entremont, New England's foremost lighthouse authority: A feud between two keepers at Whale Rock Light led to a harrowing life-and-death chase. The hurricane of 1938 devastated the state's lighthouses. The keepers at Plum Beach Light off North Kingstown miraculously escaped with their lives; others weren't so lucky. Ida Lewis lived at Newport's Lime Rock Light for more than 60 years and became one of the world's most celebrated lightkeepers. The keeper and his family at Block Island North Light aided the survivors of one of New England's worst shipwrecks, the Larchmont disaster of 1907. Pomham Rocks Light on the Providence River was home to a famous fish-catching cat.