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Old Point Loma,
1855
Point Loma, California Originally
The
Old Point Loma Lighthouse stood watch over the entrance to San Diego Bay for 36
years. At dusk on November 15, 1855 the light keeper climbed the winding stairs
and lit the light for the first time. What seemed to be a good location 422 feet
above sea level, however, had a serious flaw. Fog and low clouds often obscured
the light. On March 23, 1891 the light was extinguished and the keeper moved to
a new lighthouse location closer to the water at the tip of the Point.
Today
the Old Point Loma Light House still stands watch over San Diego, sentinel to a
vanished past. The National Park Service has refurbished the interior to its
historic 1880’s appearance -- a reminder of a bygone era. Ranger-led talks,
displays and brochures are available to explain the lighthouses interesting
past. In 1891 it was replaced by a lower light because low clouds
obscured it.
I met someone who was looking for a
picture of the Old Point Loma lighthouse to use on a web page he was designing. He wanted the
picture to put with a poem that he has written. He sent me the poem, and I asked
if could use it on my website as well. So here it is. I hope you enjoy it as
much as I did.
The Old
Point Loma Lighthouse
-- by
Daniel Parks - Copyright 1999
A point of
land, out on the coast,
above the rolling sea.
A lighthouse stands, so stark and white,
above the harbor's lee.
A monument of days gone by,\
a beacon to the bay.
Where ships were guided by her light,
to safely find their way.
This
sentinel of era past,
of simpler times and ways.
Of sailing ships and oil lamps,
and damp and foggy days.
Her light doth beckon from afar,
and calls me back to home.
Where as a child, I climbed her tower,
below her spired dome.
A platform
topped with baluster,
surrounds her lighted tower.
And from this vantage point, aloft,
I'd daydream by the hour.
Of bygone days and ocean ways,
and ships far out to sea.
These reminisces from my past,
keep flooding back to me.
It's nice to
have this special place,
a respite from life's cares.
Where I can go, in memory,
and climb her spiral stairs.
And look out to the sea once more,
above the ocean's foam.
The Old Point Loma Lighthouse still,
keeps calling me back home.
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