Attendance at Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouse set a new record in 2012 (Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)
A visit to Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouse is not only a memorable experience, but also a diversely educational one as well.
Thanks to the dedicated efforts of ALF’s Friends of Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouses, the general public is presented with a unique opportunity to learn about lighthouse history, the natural environment that coexists at the site, a wide range of maritime traffic calling on a busy port like Portsmouth and modern day preservation efforts – all of which takes place on an active U.S. Coast Guard station and in the shadow of historic Fort Constitution.
For lighthouse and history enthusiasts alike, it would seem that it simply could not get any better at Portsmouth Harbor, but the great news is that is exactly what’s going to happen!
Armed with the knowledge and experience that comes from hosting open houses at the lighthouse year after year, a passionate group of Friends of Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouses’ volunteers, along with staff members from the American Lighthouse Foundation, met in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, on Saturday, January 12, 2013 to begin the process of improving what is already one of the finest educational programs in the lighthouse community.
Some might think, “Why fix what isn’t broken,” but the program’s evolution is proving necessary for a few reasons – with one primary reason being the numbers of people who wish to visit Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouse, which continues to rise. In fact, the 2012 open house season at Portsmouth Harbor set a new attendance record.
FPHL volunteers met on 1/12/13 to make a great thing even better...(back row left to right) Charles Manes, Ruth Knowles, Jeremy D'Entremont, Ed Stevenson & Ross Tracy...(front row left to right) Claire Manes, E.J. Warren, Pat Heffernan & Bob Trapani, Jr. (Photo by Ann-Marie Trapani)
With the steady increase of visitors comes the inherent challenge of ensuring the volunteers can accommodate larger crowds in a timely and comfortable manner without compromising the educational opportunity.
The FPHL volunteers who participated in the brainstorming session brought forth many great ideas for enhancing the operational logistics and learning possibilities associated with open houses at Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouse, some of which will add a good measure of excitement and reward for the visitor in 2013 and beyond.
The enhancements that eventually will be approved and implemented at the lighthouse will also prove very beneficial to the volunteers by creating a more streamline environment and flow for the public access program, thus reducing any potential program stress and redundancy.
Stay tuned for more exciting details about the improvements at Portsmouth Harbor Lighthouse for the upcoming summer season!
