| Latimer Reef is a dangerous
area at the east end of Fisher's Island Sound, four miles southeast
of Mystic, Connecticut. As early as 1800 there was an iron spindle
serving as a navigational marker on Latimer Reef. This marker
was replaced by a buoy, then finally by the lighthouse in 1884.
The Eel Grass Shoal Lightship, about 0.8 miles away, also helped
mark the reef for 35 years before the lighthouse was built. | 
- Latimer Reef Light c. 1890s
- From the collection of Edward Rowe
Snow, courtesy of Dorothy Bicknell
|
 | Latimer Reef Light is a cast-iron tower on a cylindrical concrete-filled
cast-iron foundation. It is a typical example of offshore "sparkplug"
lighthouses built in the 1880s and '90s.
Three stories inside
the tower served as living quarters, while the fourth was a watch
deck, topped by the lantern room. The tower was initially painted
brown but was later changed to white with a brown band around
its middle.
The lighthouse originally had a fifth-order Fresnel lens from
Paris exhibiting a white flashing light. The lens was replaced
by a fourth-order Fresnel lens in 1899.
The first keeper, Charles E.P. Noyes, a Civil War veteran, was paid a salary of
$600 per year. Noyes had previously been the master of the Eel
Grass Shoal Lightship. His two assistants received $400 per year.
Left: Charles E.P. Noyes. Courtesy of Dan Hess. |
Frank Jo Raymond, a keeper in the 1920s, learned to paint
in his spare time and later made his living as an artist. A man
of many talents, Raymond rowed ashore on Saturday nights to play
saxophone in a jazz band. He also sold some photographs he took
during the hurricane of 1938 for use on postcards.
 | Left: Coast Guard lighthouse keeper Neil B. Patton at the lighthouse in the early 1940s. Courtesy of J. Patton. |
|  - U.S. Coast Guard photo
|
 | Latimer Reef Light was automated in 1974, and in 1983 its
Fresnel lens was removed and replaced by a modern plastic lens.
The lighthouse remains an active aid to navigation.
It can be
seen distantly from the shore and from ferries in the area, but
it is best viewed by private boat.
Left: The lighthouse during World War II, courtesy of J. Patton. |
Keepers: (This
list is a work in progress. If you have any information on the keepers
of this lighthouse, I'd love to hear from you. You can email me at nelights@gmail.com.
Anyone copying this list onto another web site does so at their own
risk, as the list is always subject to updates and corrections.)
Charles E.P. Noyes (1884-1912), Eugene Sheffield
Nash (assistant, 1894-1895), George A. Troy (assistant, 1910-1911), William H. Smith (c. 1909-1914?), Frank
Jo Raymond (c. 1920s-1930s), Neil B. Patton (Oct. 20. 1942 - May 10th, 1943), ? "Durfy" Doyle (c. 1942-1943)
|
