Evening star., 1935-03-24
Repairing the TillamoOk Light
BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN.

One Of the most notable achieve
ments of the United States Light House
Service in recent years has been the
successful completion of repairs at
the Tillamook Rock Light, the rogue
light house of the United States. A
great gale which blew from October
81 to "a last caused damage which
called for emergency repairs.
1t was an undertaking of the first
magnitude. Tillamook Rock Is one
of the most exposed places on the
entire American coast. 1t is difficult
enough to serve the light house in the
mild Summer months when the sea
is at its kindest. To attempt the car
rying out OF extensive repairs in the
dead Of Winter was giants task.
Columbia Bar lies just of the mouth
of the Columbia River. 1t has been
a graveyard of ships ever since ships
first ploughed those angry waters. The
current of the Columbia carries silt
downstream and deposits it in the
form of a great sapdbar across the
reefs. Among seamen, the successful
crossing Of Columbia Bar has long
been regarded as a test of skill in
navigation. Because of the dangerous
nature of the place, great difficulty
was experienced in planting a light
house there, but that very dangerous
nature made the presence Of light
house all the more important. 1t was
not, however, until 1881 that the great
Tillamook Rock Light was built.
Ever since the light has been at
once the despair and the pride of the
Light House Service. The despair in
that it is no small adventure to keep
the light going and the pride because
the task has been carried out un-
remittingly. Tillamook Rock Light
is known in the technical parlance of
coastal lighting as waveswept light
That means that it is so situated that
it never is free from the grip of the
seas. Many light houses are placed
on high hills, some are even a short
distance inland. Most have direct
contact with the shore The wave
swept type is one against which the
waves are forever fretting. one which
is OffShOre.
Tillamook Rock is a vast boulder
flung down in the sea only mile
off the oregon coast but, despite that
short distance. at times it is as in
accessible as Mars. At times, months
have passed without its being possible
to make contact between a light house
tender and the rock. At no time can
a direct landing be made Men and
supplies for the rock must be hoisted
Froro hoate avoroa cb;y1o oc yoar ac
they dare. This was the setting for
the Tillamook repair adventure just
concluded.
Sick Men Taken Of.
The required repairs included re-
placement Of large hosting der
rick, installation of a new heating
plant including a boiler. erection of
heavy woven wire screening to in
crease protection of the lantern glass
panels, renewal of the water supply
lines, storm shutters for doors and
windows, with minor repairs to vari-
Gus structures such as the railing and
the tank foundations. All of these
properties had been damaged in the
october gale. Although the Tilla-
nook light rises l45 feet above the
calm sea level, when the sea is up
waves break with stunning force over
the top Of the light Perched high
on the solid rock as it is, the light
house is completely doused by the
heavy seas, striking with such force
as to carry away any part which has
the least weakness. The heating
plant and boilers were destroyed be-
cause the force Of the waves drove
the water through seemingly tight
openings, flooding the quarters.
The light house tender Rose was