Scituate Lighthouse

The lighthouse itself is not in tip top shape. During the harsh New England winters, it does not do this spot justice. All of the other seasons, especially summer, it’s a perfect spot to go by yourself or with family friends or dogs. The sunrises and sunsets are beautiful from the jetty. Both jetties are in fine condition and good for fishing.

This 50 foot tall beauty stands proudly along Scituate Harbor and has an interesting history.
The story of this particular lighthouse begins in 1807 when Scituate residents asked their locally elected officials to find the funds to have one built. The waters here can be treacherous and it’s still easy to understand the need especially during a time when ships for commerce ruled the waterways of New England.
The necessary funds, which totaled $ 4,000, were procured from the federal government by 1810. Three builders from the neighboring town of Hingham were hired for the project and it was completed by September 1811, two months ahead of schedule.
The first lighthouse keeper was a man called Simeon Bates. He and his wife lived in the attached keeper’s cottage that still stands today exactly as it was. They raised 9 children there. Two of those children, Rebecca and Abigail, made names for themselves as part of this lighthouse history and came to be known as «the army of two».
As the story goes, the girls were home alone one day in June 1814. The War of 1812 was going on so one can imagine the girls’ fright when they saw a British warship anchored in the waters near the lighthouse.
The girls concocted a scheme wherein, from a hidden vantage point, they played Yankee Doodle Dandy on a fife and a drum that the family owned.
Apparently the British thought this meant that the Scituate militia was en route so they decided to pull anchor and leave the area.
To this day, there are people who believe that the ghosts of Abigail and Rebecca haunt the lighthouse property and that their fife and drum music can be heard when the wind blows and the sound can be carried.
Despite, the windy, blustery weather when we visited and although we listened hard, we didn’t hear the music that day. We did hear the roar of the ocean and marveled at this beautiful granite and brick structure that helped save lives over many generations and which still stands proudly, tall and unchanged.
This review is dedicated to Brian S. who is a lover extraordinaire of New England lighthouses. By chronicaling history through writing his reviews, he has become a lighthouse keeper in his own right.