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When I was a kid I wanted to be a lighthouse keeper. All alone for weeks or months on end, nothing but solitude while you could be your own boss and just work on the machines to keep the lighthouse going. Sounded nice. Even stories like this didnt really bother me too much, they're fairly uncommon in the grand scheme of things and the reward outweighed the risk. I don't like crowds, and other people mostly just annoy me, so a job with endless hours of solitude sounds grand. Then I found out that "Lighthouse Keeper" was a dead profession by the time I was born and that made me really sad.
It must be some kind of special hell to not only be afraid of being blamed for the death of your co-worker, but then to have to contend with the stench of a corpse, and THEN to have that corpse just waving at you, all day every day, never letting you forget it's there. I desperately hope he was never told that nobody came to relieve him because of the waving corpse as well, because that's its own layer of f*cked up. The corpse is not only tormenting you, but is actively preventing your rescue. That's beyond grim.
They left out the fact that he did not know that he had raised the wrong flag over his light house. He did not fly the distress flag, he had raised an administrative flag of no significance.
That reminds me of the guy that went out into the Alaskan wilderness via one of those small planes that land on lakes. But before he left he had a sort of going away party with his buddies. After a few drinks and chats and such he asked his one friend with a plane if he could come pick him up on so-and-so date and time at the end of his trip before the harsh winter set in. His friend said he would if he could but not to count on it because of some reason. But the guy forgot about that last part and had been absently mindedly assuming his friend would pick him up, until it was obvious he wasn't coming to get him. Crazy enough another plane flew by his camp and he waved all crazy like and managed to get the pilot's attention. Another fly-by confirmed that the pilot had seen him, and the dude jumped for joy and gave a celebratory fist pump in the air. But then the plane left and never returned. Eventually, he saw on the back of his hunting license that he basically gave the "ALL IS WELL" signal when he did that fist pump in the air and that's why the pilot never landed. He tried to make it through the winter but started starving and eventually turned to the one bullet he had saved for himself if he needed it one day.
My father was stationed at Ft. Jefferson Dry Tortugas lighthouse while serving in the Coast Guard in the late 1940's. He had VERY interesting stories about it. Even then, lighthouse service was harrowing with a low quality of life.
I try... but really i can only imagine what it must be like to have experienced such conditions. No hope in heaven to be rescued if something happened, daily dominated by solitude and the immense power of the ocean. Scary.
That’s awesome. I was potty trained out there during a tropical storm in sea grape tree! Was just there a week ago too. They recently just repaired the light house out at the fort after a hurricane messed it up.
The problem wasn't that no one knew there was an emergency, Howell had signaled that there was an emergency and the people on the mainland were well aware of it. The problem was that the weather was so bad, for approximately four months, that no boat could get close enough to the island to land or hear any reply from the man waving from the railing. (which of course was never coming)
To put things into perspective, three days before they set out to construct the first lighthouse, George Washington was named Commander in Chief of the Continental Army. By the time it was replaced, Kentucky had joined the Confederacy. That was one tough pile of sticks.
The Continental Congress commissioned George Washington as Commander in Chief of the Continental Army on June 19, 1775. Kentucky was admitted to the Confederacy on December 10, 1861. in case anybody else on this planet has those dates not accurate in mind atm
@@eisenkopf69 yeah I'm a Canadian who recognized the war of independence and the civil war being 1776 and 1861 respectively, but I don't think any of my friends know those dates, cheers.
Kentucky was officially neutral at the start of hostilities and petitioned for federal assistance when confederate general Leonidas Polk invaded. As much as the confederacy wanted the state, it ended up comfortably on the union side.
I've done construction work for 40 plus years now. But, for my life, I cannot imagine the challenges faced by the men who build lighthouses. Today, or yesteryear.....
Hard rock and you can't see all of it, or the bits that aren't there. Waves that come from nowhere. You didn't expect them. And there is a lot of force behind them. The boat you are trying to take building materials from suddenly goes above your head.
I’ll gladly drink a toast to the courage of anyone who stayed to work in that lighthouse, but certainly not to the wisdom of the architect who built it! It’s easy to understand why they had to get a musical instrument maker to build it, since probably no one else wanted to construct the impossible job. The tragic irony is that the outpost and its resources were silvery scanty, no doubt on account of how hard it was to build there, when a certain logic dictates, and it should’ve been a larger, sturdier, even more impressive structure, both to understand the elements and to store in more extensive supply of provisions and other items. This building needed to be like a small castle, not just a tower.
Well, I agree that an instrument maker was certainly a strange choice but his idea stood the tests of time, tide and weather for a very long while, so he wasn't a bad selection. And the world's first ever deep-rock lighthouse on the Eddystone was built by another unqualified amateur - Henry Wynstanley. His design was even more outrageous, but it proved its worth until one dreadful night when an unprecedented hurricane force gale swept it away, along with its creator. Anyone who laughed and said 'told you so' very quickly realised how wrong they'd been - there hadn't been a ship lost on the Eddystone all the time the light was there, but very soon after it was lost they began to pile up on the rocks again.
the outro is often so jarring, i really wish he'd change it to something not "hey i picked this out of the royalty free basic btch bin" lmao im just saying. love his vibe and everything, except that canned outro always gets me tilted.
If you're interested, this is one (or maybe more than one) of Bach's Cello Suites, a remarkable set of pieces from the baroque, and really from Bach. It's PROBABLY the 2nd, but I don't remember it that well to be honest. I also don't know if the two presented movements are from the same suite, but the one in the first chapter is probably a sarabande.
I've dived the Smalls. It's only do-able in the best of weather and you have to get slack water right or you can get swept in between two of the the rocks and away. It's a looong trip from Milford Haven out past Skomer and Green Island with all its gannets, including some spreadeagled on the rocks, pinioned by the polypropylene rope and fishing net they harvest to build nests. The seals on the Smalls are friendly and curious as they don't see many divers so have never been bothered. You're working at 20m and they will come in and tweak your fins - 'Go away, seal, I'm trying to count!" Bu99er, I'l have to start again). A very wild place, beautiful on a calm sunny day and wonderful diving, but you just know it''ll be horrendous in rough weather.
My first job was a janitor on a construction site. I was totally alone because the isolated building had no activity during the night while I did clean ups and moved trash to a large bin outside. It was 6 months I actually liked. I was effectively being paid a salary to do a little light cleaning, then read my favourite books while making sure no one touched the tools in the shed. I would have signed up to be a lighthouse keeping in the old days
"Three men are enough." The three vanished keepers of Flannan Isles would probably say that a fourth could have saved them... Personally, I'd love to stay on a lighthouse with a friend for a few weeks. But not with a corpse. THAT really is a nightmare. So much so that I would probably have jumped into the sea myself, just to get away.
Easier to ditch it in the sea. Corpses aren't very interesting after your first couple. Everyone dies and almost all of us are disposed of with or without ritual by other humans. No way I'm spending time next to that much rotten meat.
we should be on our knees thanking them for their enormous bravery in the face of life's challenges. Everything we have in our modern world today is thanks to the efforts of innumerable individuals efforts. How easy our life is today, even compared to those who lived 100 years ago!!! Electricity alone has changed the fate of our species.
Christ, the thought that Thomas could've been rescued sooner if it weren't for the body "waving" is... If it were a novel, I'd call it heavy handed dramatic irony. But the fact that it actually happened is both deeply tragic and soul-rending. That poor man.
It really is harrowing. It was a level of prolonged trauma that defies belief. How he Thomas survived at all is incredible in and of itself, but he was surely a mere shell of his former self thereafter.
I appreciate this side story to the ships we all enjoy learning about. The trials of man throughout history are many times hart breaking. Thank you for these well researched mini documentaries.
Forgive my nosiness but have you seen any fireballs or odd lights that sometimes gets reported? Also, did you get much chance to start gaze? Ty for your time.
@tenebrousoul9368 Unfortunately, no. I saw dolphins leaving bioluminescent tracks but that was about as exciting as it got. Thousands of amazing sunrises and sunsets though
Ever hear of the Minot's Ledge Lighthouse? No big tragedies there because it's unmanned but, perched on a rock in the wild Atlantic, it's no place any sane man would want to be.
Thank you for narrating this video with your own smooth, relaxing voice. So much better than any AI stuff any day! Thank you for this video. The music in the background is perfect by the way❤
@bearcatracing007 My grandma's house was built close to the cliffs at Whale Beach, NSW. I loved the sounds of the crashing waves, especially at night, drifting off to sleep. It was soothing in a way.
Poor bastards. That story was straight out of Edgar Allen Poe, and that's saying a lot because you've told a lot of grim stories. Having been sheltered pretty much my entire life, I'm used to being alone. Probably a little too used to it but that's beside the point. While I do think I might like lighthouse duty if I were to hypothetically take it up today, I can easily imagine that even I might have been driven to terrible places if my lone partner died and I was left alone against the elements and the stench of death. My heart goes out to the both of them.
growing up on Cape Cod, the lighthouses were such an integral and fascinating part of my existence. there's a whimsey and a magic to them, until you realize that its not all its cracked up to be. ive heard this story a few times, and this honestly the best retelling of it i've ever heard. i adore this channel, and i love the way you tell stories, it gives "sitting a campfire" vibes. comfortable, and soft but still so eerie.
BOB that is kinda creepy. Just goes to show that a light keeper in an isolated house, needs to have a certain mind set. Like, not need a lot of social or outside contact. Just someone who is is happy to be by themselves.
I remember hearing about this story on the Lore podcast a few years ago - I much prefer your retelling!!! The history of the lighthouse was fascinating and your dramatic narration really pulled the Howell and Griffith story together!
Your narration is top notch! Your content is always interesting and well planned and executed! I really enjoy your channel and am always excited to listen. Thank you
I'm sorry, mate. Its brave of you to open up - try and find someone else you can talk with face to face. And thank you to BOB, you will probably never know how much you mean to lonely people out there.
Lighthouses: You have nothing around you but the sound of the waves crashing on the rocky shores The smalls lighthouse: Your on your own, keeping the beacon shining
You know what would make a great video, Piracy on the Great Lakes. I enjoy all of your about the Great Lakes and decide to google Great Lakes piracy because I never knew if it existed and was shocked to see not only did it it was still going on in the 1920s! There was also the massive smuggling operation’s going on during prohibition when millions of dollars in liquor flowed through the Lakes as well.
My paternal grandfather was a light house keeper in Nova Scotia, Canada. He said it was a good job if you had "not enjoyed the war". He was one of Canadians who invaded Italy in September of 1943.
Thank you for telling this story. Great narration, and a fine amalgam of various veteran films to tell the story. And I've finally cracked it! Identified one of the films you've drawn clips from. A number of the interior scenes, including the two men in the pub bar, with a policeman standing with them, are from a 1933 British film, "The Phantom Light" which previously had been a successful stage melodrama. It is available on youtube, and enjoyably worth watching.
The way you two communicate is priceless. When Gly came across the rail trestle I thought most would just pass it by. But he let us know why it was put there. Thanks for us laymen. BTW do you ever worry about vandalism of Old Bob while your exploring ?
You'd think that they'd have some sort of filter to denote when the keepers are in distress. Like when people leaving different color bulbs in their porch lights?
I took a day for relaxation today, and I got more angry and irrational after just a couple of hours home. I however have the luxury of going out and doing something, yet I write this filled with hate for for this day. I simply cannot imagine what these people went through.
Great video! A map would have been helpful to give the viewer an idea of where it takes place. But beautiful presentation no less! The classical/baroque cello works so well with this type of video. Bravo!!😊
Ima go 20 miles out to say hi to my pals in the light house... oh hey he waved... okay ill LEAVE IMMEDIATELY and not even check to see if they are okay, after months of raging hellstorm.
I was born and bred in Pembrokeshire where the lighthouse is stationed off. It’s a famous story round this area and some local pubs display old newspaper articles from the time it happened.
I feel a song coming on... "I want to marry a lighthouse keeper And keep him company. I want to marry a lighthouse keeper And live by the side of the sea. I'll polish his lamp by the light of day, So ships at night can find their way. I want to marry a lighthouse keeper, Won't that be okay?" Songwriters: Erika Eigen
You should investigate the H.M.T. Rohna tragedy. Sunk in the Mediterranean Nov. 1943 by what is believed to be a guided weapon. 1100 troops killed including my Uncle Tony 💜
Lighthouse stories are sometimes better than shipwreck stories because they are so close to shore but still completely alone. Not moving, just motionless while the sea rages outside the door. That would test anyone's metal.
I Would've loved to work in a light house...! 100% solitude, no annoying people, no backtalk from the wife, fishing during the day....! Starry nights...!
Tasting History with Max Miller did a video awhile back about what lighthouse keepers ate while on duty and he covered the mental challenges they faced. Another great production, Sir
“Should pale death with treble dread, Make the ocean caves our bed. God who hearst the surges roll, deign to to save the suppliant soul.” -Thomas Wake does this mean we could possibly get a flannan isle lighthouse video in the future?
Nope, you’re going in the drink. Here is why from my experience. 1990s, late teens early 20s. Worked at a retired power station on Lake Erie, as a security guard. One 1 guard on 3 shifts. Beyond creepy, snow was like The Shining. One of the guards stuffed a full body jumpsuit uniform, put boots on it, an over the ears winter hat and my contribution, a Jason Voorhees mask. It was funny at first, but they kept hiding him in this power station, so “BoB” would be alarmingly found during rounds. It was so bad that one night when 3rd shift came in, the first words out of his mouth, in all seriousness was “where’s Bob?”. This guard also almost shot him because he was put on the toilet, he didn’t know about Bob and it was his 1st encounter. I told him I honestly didn’t know, I didn’t see him on my rounds, so… Ended up in a small discussion about just taking the guy apart, because even Bob sitting with you in the office…stressed you out, didn’t help that someone drew eyes on paper and glued them behind the mask. We even stood him up and tied his glove hands to the door, out on the landings outside, not unlike this story… So me and this guard start looking for Bob, we looked all over, kinda like a tragic comedy. It was like 2am now and we had about 1 working light on each floor, 3+ levels below ground and 3 above. Both of us with mag lights and we get to the very top floor, leaving the turbine Bay last, as it was the scariest. The overhead crane has a special door to go out from, as if the crane isn’t lined up with the door on the other side, you could enter and fall around 6 stories into the basement. So we’re pushing and pulling on the safety lever, whole time talking about how to open it, wanted to just leave it but he said that sometimes he eats lunch in the control chair, on the crane, so I take his mag light so he has 2 hands to operate the safety gate, it’s dark, he’s like 375lbs, yanking on this when suddenly it pops open and Bob comes spilling out just like a 80s horror flick, Scott falls on his back, falling backwards and me with 2x Mag Lights, both 8 D-Cells start doing some sort light show drum solo.. It was like Jaws when Hooper pulled the tooth out of Ben’s boat and the head floated into view. Now it’s a maritime Museum in Erie PA . You can look the place up and even see the overhead crane.
Do you yearn for this life? How about FIRE LOOKOUT, FOREST RANGER, or GAME WARDEN? In spite of drones and satellite technology, manned watchtowers and embedded wilderness ranger outposts DO STILL EXIST in the remote West...solitude, fresh air, and what views! Go for it, my dears.
He said the lighthouse was built 20 miles off the coast, and at the end said it’s one of the most remote lighthouses. Is that true? Are lighthouses usually closer?
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Thank you for watching!
Good one! Thanks.
This should have been your Halloween special. Salute to those old lighthouse keepers.
When I was a kid I wanted to be a lighthouse keeper. All alone for weeks or months on end, nothing but solitude while you could be your own boss and just work on the machines to keep the lighthouse going. Sounded nice. Even stories like this didnt really bother me too much, they're fairly uncommon in the grand scheme of things and the reward outweighed the risk. I don't like crowds, and other people mostly just annoy me, so a job with endless hours of solitude sounds grand.
Then I found out that "Lighthouse Keeper" was a dead profession by the time I was born and that made me really sad.
Same here, still dreaming of it from time to time.
I think you can still do seasonal fire watch for the forest service.
What. What? What what what what whattt. Dammmm yeee Winslow !
Yeah. Sad that most lights are now unmanned.
Though nuke lights are kinda cool in their own way.
@@OgYokYokdepends on the forest, but yeah. I loved my time in that job.
It must be some kind of special hell to not only be afraid of being blamed for the death of your co-worker, but then to have to contend with the stench of a corpse, and THEN to have that corpse just waving at you, all day every day, never letting you forget it's there. I desperately hope he was never told that nobody came to relieve him because of the waving corpse as well, because that's its own layer of f*cked up. The corpse is not only tormenting you, but is actively preventing your rescue. That's beyond grim.
honestly tho it's killer lore for a D&D campaign ....
Jeez... Thats so disturbing.
He killed him. He without a doubt killed him. And he had to stay with the man he killed, probably going mad.
Now this is a great comment
Sounds like a damn creepypasta!
They left out the fact that he did not know that he had raised the wrong flag over his light house. He did not fly the distress flag, he had raised an administrative flag of no significance.
That reminds me of the guy that went out into the Alaskan wilderness via one of those small planes that land on lakes. But before he left he had a sort of going away party with his buddies. After a few drinks and chats and such he asked his one friend with a plane if he could come pick him up on so-and-so date and time at the end of his trip before the harsh winter set in. His friend said he would if he could but not to count on it because of some reason. But the guy forgot about that last part and had been absently mindedly assuming his friend would pick him up, until it was obvious he wasn't coming to get him. Crazy enough another plane flew by his camp and he waved all crazy like and managed to get the pilot's attention. Another fly-by confirmed that the pilot had seen him, and the dude jumped for joy and gave a celebratory fist pump in the air. But then the plane left and never returned. Eventually, he saw on the back of his hunting license that he basically gave the "ALL IS WELL" signal when he did that fist pump in the air and that's why the pilot never landed. He tried to make it through the winter but started starving and eventually turned to the one bullet he had saved for himself if he needed it one day.
@@johnjingleheimersmith9259 That doesn't make sense for a number of reasons.
@ well it's a 100% true story that was reported on in multiple news outlets. So what "number" of reasons don't make sense to you??
@@AlternativeImpulse People die all the time under circumstances that don't make sense.
My father was stationed at Ft. Jefferson Dry Tortugas lighthouse while serving in the Coast Guard in the late 1940's. He had VERY interesting stories about it. Even then, lighthouse service was harrowing with a low quality of life.
Any care to mention one of those stories?
I try... but really i can only imagine what it must be like to have experienced such conditions. No hope in heaven to be rescued if something happened, daily dominated by solitude and the immense power of the ocean.
Scary.
But there are much worse places to be stationed! Unless of course, there is a hurricane!
That’s awesome. I was potty trained out there during a tropical storm in sea grape tree! Was just there a week ago too. They recently just repaired the light house out at the fort after a hurricane messed it up.
Seems to me that if he'd just turned off the light for a night or two the mainland would have come running.
A clear thinking person would most likely do that. The stress this man was facing was too much
Madness usually doesn't include logic 😊
The problem wasn't that no one knew there was an emergency, Howell had signaled that there was an emergency and the people on the mainland were well aware of it.
The problem was that the weather was so bad, for approximately four months, that no boat could get close enough to the island to land or hear any reply from the man waving from the railing. (which of course was never coming)
Ok “DOWN” lol
All he had to do was risk a ship with potentially hundreds of lives to do that. I’d understand if he did. But it’s incredibly commendable he did not.
To put things into perspective, three days before they set out to construct the first lighthouse, George Washington was named Commander in Chief of the Continental Army. By the time it was replaced, Kentucky had joined the Confederacy.
That was one tough pile of sticks.
That is a very interesting fact.
The Continental Congress commissioned George Washington as Commander in Chief of the Continental Army on June 19, 1775.
Kentucky was admitted to the Confederacy on December 10, 1861.
in case anybody else on this planet has those dates not accurate in mind atm
@@eisenkopf69thank you! I don’t live in the centre of the universe and thus had no idea what this timeline was..
@@eisenkopf69 yeah I'm a Canadian who recognized the war of independence and the civil war being 1776 and 1861 respectively, but I don't think any of my friends know those dates, cheers.
Kentucky was officially neutral at the start of hostilities and petitioned for federal assistance when confederate general Leonidas Polk invaded. As much as the confederacy wanted the state, it ended up comfortably on the union side.
I've done construction work for 40 plus years now. But, for my life, I cannot imagine the challenges faced by the men who build lighthouses. Today, or yesteryear.....
Hard rock and you can't see all of it, or the bits that aren't there.
Waves that come from nowhere. You didn't expect them. And there is a lot of force behind them.
The boat you are trying to take building materials from suddenly goes above your head.
Hard to imagine what devils were chasing him as he awaited rescue with a dead man waving to him.
I’ll gladly drink a toast to the courage of anyone who stayed to work in that lighthouse, but certainly not to the wisdom of the architect who built it! It’s easy to understand why they had to get a musical instrument maker to build it, since probably no one else wanted to construct the impossible job.
The tragic irony is that the outpost and its resources were silvery scanty, no doubt on account of how hard it was to build there, when a certain logic dictates, and it should’ve been a larger, sturdier, even more impressive structure, both to understand the elements and to store in more extensive supply of provisions and other items. This building needed to be like a small castle, not just a tower.
Well, I agree that an instrument maker was certainly a strange choice but his idea stood the tests of time, tide and weather for a very long while, so he wasn't a bad selection. And the world's first ever deep-rock lighthouse on the Eddystone was built by another unqualified amateur - Henry Wynstanley. His design was even more outrageous, but it proved its worth until one dreadful night when an unprecedented hurricane force gale swept it away, along with its creator.
Anyone who laughed and said 'told you so' very quickly realised how wrong they'd been - there hadn't been a ship lost on the Eddystone all the time the light was there, but very soon after it was lost they began to pile up on the rocks again.
Minimum viable product. This is a buisness, not a theme park
@@Zamorack13 you say that like we don't have a *massive* problem with businesses producing sub-par quality products...
It's an honour to hear Big Old Boats tell a story from this side of the Atlantic.
The classical cello music works extremely well with these videos, this might be my favourite Old Boats video
That was an incredibly bone chilling story, it's kin to an Edgar Allan Poe or H.P Lovecraft short story. Bravo my friend! 👏🏾
the outro is often so jarring, i really wish he'd change it to something not "hey i picked this out of the royalty free basic btch bin" lmao im just saying. love his vibe and everything, except that canned outro always gets me tilted.
If you're interested, this is one (or maybe more than one) of Bach's Cello Suites, a remarkable set of pieces from the baroque, and really from Bach. It's PROBABLY the 2nd, but I don't remember it that well to be honest. I also don't know if the two presented movements are from the same suite, but the one in the first chapter is probably a sarabande.
Yes the classical cello works so well!!!!
I've dived the Smalls. It's only do-able in the best of weather and you have to get slack water right or you can get swept in between two of the the rocks and away. It's a looong trip from Milford Haven out past Skomer and Green Island with all its gannets, including some spreadeagled on the rocks, pinioned by the polypropylene rope and fishing net they harvest to build nests. The seals on the Smalls are friendly and curious as they don't see many divers so have never been bothered. You're working at 20m and they will come in and tweak your fins - 'Go away, seal, I'm trying to count!" Bu99er, I'l have to start again). A very wild place, beautiful on a calm sunny day and wonderful diving, but you just know it''ll be horrendous in rough weather.
idk why but this comment gives 19th century
@seraphik your brain has been turned into mashed potatoes by computers
@joeswarson4580 funniest comment bar none
@@Lence01 seriously? THAT'S what you think is funny? Mashed potatoes?
Eh, you know what, you're right. they're kinda funny (for a root vegetable)
My first job was a janitor on a construction site. I was totally alone because the isolated building had no activity during the night while I did clean ups and moved trash to a large bin outside. It was 6 months I actually liked. I was effectively being paid a salary to do a little light cleaning, then read my favourite books while making sure no one touched the tools in the shed. I would have signed up to be a lighthouse keeping in the old days
Not really the same
Love it. Lighthouses are often such iconic places.
"Three men are enough."
The three vanished keepers of Flannan Isles would probably say that a fourth could have saved them...
Personally, I'd love to stay on a lighthouse with a friend for a few weeks. But not with a corpse. THAT really is a nightmare. So much so that I would probably have jumped into the sea myself, just to get away.
Easier to ditch it in the sea. Corpses aren't very interesting after your first couple. Everyone dies and almost all of us are disposed of with or without ritual by other humans.
No way I'm spending time next to that much rotten meat.
I spent a week rough camping on a small island off Maine & would rather be in a prison than alight house alone
With 2 men there's no redundancy, 3 men there's at least some redundancy.
Some Scottish lighthouses are available for rent.
The engineering feats of our ancestors, especially considering the crude methods they had, are incredible.
I think about that too
we should be on our knees thanking them for their enormous bravery in the face of life's challenges. Everything we have in our modern world today is thanks to the efforts of innumerable individuals efforts. How easy our life is today, even compared to those who lived 100 years ago!!!
Electricity alone has changed the fate of our species.
Christ, the thought that Thomas could've been rescued sooner if it weren't for the body "waving" is... If it were a novel, I'd call it heavy handed dramatic irony. But the fact that it actually happened is both deeply tragic and soul-rending. That poor man.
Truly disturbing to think about
It really is harrowing.
It was a level of prolonged trauma that defies belief.
How he Thomas survived at all is incredible in and of itself, but he was surely a mere shell of his former self thereafter.
It's *amazing* that you used the Russian painting of Ivan the Terrible killing his son, to convey lighthouse staff going insane!
The emotion in that painting is in their eyes . They tell the story even if you didn't know what was going on. Great work of art
I was wondering why it looked so familiar literally just watched a video about that painting
For those curious, the large glass lenses of Lighthouses are called a fresnel lens
And the S jn Fresnel is silent 😊
(FRAY-nel, or Freh-NELL)
Screw that. Sitting out there on a couple wood pillars. Hell NO.
With no heat!
I appreciate this side story to the ships we all enjoy learning about. The trials of man throughout history are many times hart breaking. Thank you for these well researched mini documentaries.
I worked at sea for 40 years.
Before GPS, lights were so important for navigation
Forgive my nosiness but have you seen any fireballs or odd lights that sometimes gets reported?
Also, did you get much chance to start gaze?
Ty for your time.
@tenebrousoul9368
Unfortunately, no.
I saw dolphins leaving bioluminescent tracks but that was about as exciting as it got.
Thousands of amazing sunrises and sunsets though
Ever hear of the Minot's Ledge Lighthouse? No big tragedies there because it's unmanned but, perched on a rock in the wild Atlantic, it's no place any sane man would want to be.
It's unmanned NOW, but was most definitely manned in the past. And 2 keepers were swept away when the lighthouse broke apart in a hurricane in 1851.
It's a landmark locally. Point of reference from the beach & dunes & mariners headed through the Nantasket Roads sealane.
So long as it has a stable internet connection I'm good.
I'm to lucky enough to live in a town with not one, but two, of the Great Lakes' most recognizable lighthouses. St. Joseph, MI.
Thank you for narrating this video with your own smooth, relaxing voice. So much better than any AI stuff any day! Thank you for this video. The music in the background is perfect by the way❤
I couldn't agree more! Those AI voices kill videos for me.
No question.
AI is every bit as soulless as I expected.
The movie “The Lighthouse” is VERY lightly based on this incident.
I was wondering about this.
Excellent movie!
Think that was based on Flannan Isles lighthouse, a real mystery.
@@drake000666 it’s based on both but mostly this
@@drake000666 I love the Flannan lighthouse mystery
I can only imagine the sound (Noise) of crashing waves 24/7 would be enough to push you over the edge.
I have heard it for 42 years, I can't sleep without it now.
@bearcatracing007 My grandma's house was built close to the cliffs at Whale Beach, NSW.
I loved the sounds of the crashing waves, especially at night, drifting off to sleep. It was soothing in a way.
You actually learn to filter it out and miss it. Like going nose blind around smells.
It would be peaceful 😴 I'd sleep great
I love camping at the beach and hearing the crashing waves while sleeping. Counter-intuitively, it is so relaxing.
My Newfoundlander great, great, great grandfather was a light house keeper. ❤❤❤😊
I live in Newfoundland although I am not a Newfoundlander
@roderickcampbell2105 it's not really new anymore
@@patrickglaser1560 True. Newfoundland is not so new. There were many folk tramping around this place for many centuries.
You should ask him how the wifi connection was
Poor bastards. That story was straight out of Edgar Allen Poe, and that's saying a lot because you've told a lot of grim stories. Having been sheltered pretty much my entire life, I'm used to being alone. Probably a little too used to it but that's beside the point. While I do think I might like lighthouse duty if I were to hypothetically take it up today, I can easily imagine that even I might have been driven to terrible places if my lone partner died and I was left alone against the elements and the stench of death. My heart goes out to the both of them.
Completely mentally broken and still did his job, that is dedication to the job above and beyond.
growing up on Cape Cod, the lighthouses were such an integral and fascinating part of my existence. there's a whimsey and a magic to them, until you realize that its not all its cracked up to be.
ive heard this story a few times, and this honestly the best retelling of it i've ever heard.
i adore this channel, and i love the way you tell stories, it gives "sitting a campfire" vibes. comfortable, and soft but still so eerie.
BOB that is kinda creepy. Just goes to show that a light keeper in an isolated house, needs to have a certain mind set. Like, not need a lot of social or outside contact. Just someone who is is happy to be by themselves.
This channel has definitely moved into my top 10... Each time I watch a story it is usually the favorite of the day
I've always thought I was born too late and missed my calling; lighthouse keeper. Just..not THIS lighthouse!
I remember hearing about this story on the Lore podcast a few years ago - I much prefer your retelling!!! The history of the lighthouse was fascinating and your dramatic narration really pulled the Howell and Griffith story together!
My mom said the background music is perfect. Melancholy. You can imagine the times.❤
You are so blessed to enjoy a video like this with your mother. Very blessed indeed.
@trevorrogers95 yes! She's had cancer twice!
Your narration is top notch! Your content is always interesting and well planned and executed! I really enjoy your channel and am always excited to listen. Thank you
Love the increase in content!!! Keep it coming love your vidios
I do, too...the quality of the uploads and the soothing voice.
That fog horn always creeps me out 😂
God bless you Big Old Boats for your work. My life is on the verge of going down the drain, but your videos keep me calm and focused. Thank you.
God bless you.
Hoping things get better for you.
I hope things level out for you.
Wishing you well thru your own life storm at the moment.
I'm sorry, mate. Its brave of you to open up - try and find someone else you can talk with face to face. And thank you to BOB, you will probably never know how much you mean to lonely people out there.
Chilling and fascinating. Many thanks!
Lighthouses: You have nothing around you but the sound of the waves crashing on the rocky shores
The smalls lighthouse: Your on your own, keeping the beacon shining
Not often I praise the 'algorithm gods', but on this occasion, finding your channel, I will! Great video!
What did you search for? Isolated men who haven't seen a woman in a year?
Awesome video as usual. But could you be so kind to use some more maps so we get an idea where these places are.
You know what would make a great video, Piracy on the Great Lakes. I enjoy all of your about the Great Lakes and decide to google Great Lakes piracy because I never knew if it existed and was shocked to see not only did it it was still going on in the 1920s! There was also the massive smuggling operation’s going on during prohibition when millions of dollars in liquor flowed through the Lakes as well.
When something like this happens your brain will try to find anything familiar or routine to help keep its footing. Something like tending to a light.
This has got to be one of the most chilling stories you’ve ever covered on this channel. Chilling and interesting. Genuinely made me feel the horror.
A movie was made in 2019 starring Willem Dafoe titled _The Lighthouse._ It portrays what the men in this video experienced. The acting is superb.
As an introvert, this is definitely one of my dream jobs
More lighthouse stories if you can. This was great!
I've never heard of this one, interesting.
My paternal grandfather was a light house keeper in Nova Scotia, Canada. He said it was a good job if you had "not enjoyed the war". He was one of Canadians who invaded Italy in September of 1943.
Thank you for telling this story. Great narration, and a fine amalgam of various veteran films to tell the story.
And I've finally cracked it! Identified one of the films you've drawn clips from. A number of the interior scenes, including the two men in the pub bar, with a policeman standing with them, are from a 1933 British film, "The Phantom Light" which previously had been a successful stage melodrama. It is available on youtube, and enjoyably worth watching.
The way you two communicate is priceless. When Gly came across the rail trestle I thought most would just pass it by. But he let us know why it was put there. Thanks for us laymen. BTW do you ever worry about vandalism of Old Bob while your exploring ?
loved the music in this, really set the mood well. great video as always :)
You'd think that they'd have some sort of filter to denote when the keepers are in distress. Like when people leaving different color bulbs in their porch lights?
"This is a story about madness." That is some excellent storytelling.
I really appreciate your videos. Well produced and well narrated.
I took a day for relaxation today, and I got more angry and irrational after just a couple of hours home. I however have the luxury of going out and doing something, yet I write this filled with hate for for this day. I simply cannot imagine what these people went through.
❗️❗️❗️ WALES MENTIONED ON BIG OLD BOATS ❗️❗️
Thank you for an amazing piece of history !!!! Really appreciate your channel !!!
It still sounds like my dream job. I only live for solitude.
Love your stories... You're a fantastic narrator. 👍
Great video! A map would have been helpful to give the viewer an idea of where it takes place. But beautiful presentation no less!
The classical/baroque cello works so well with this type of video.
Bravo!!😊
BOB, a great way to start the day
Idk why but lighthouses seem cozy and peaceful
Still think so after the vid?
Except when you have to be in one during storms or Hurricanes
Ima go 20 miles out to say hi to my pals in the light house... oh hey he waved... okay ill LEAVE IMMEDIATELY and not even check to see if they are okay, after months of raging hellstorm.
I was born and bred in Pembrokeshire where the lighthouse is stationed off. It’s a famous story round this area and some local pubs display old newspaper articles from the time it happened.
Great video Big Old Boats! What a harrowing ordeal for that Keeper.
How terrible. What a devastating turn of events. Those men were so brave to take on the job. Great video!
I wish we still had more of the old light houses. They are history to a great many shore lines
I feel a song coming on...
"I want to marry a lighthouse keeper
And keep him company.
I want to marry a lighthouse keeper
And live by the side of the sea.
I'll polish his lamp by the light of day,
So ships at night can find their way.
I want to marry a lighthouse keeper,
Won't that be okay?"
Songwriters: Erika Eigen
The waving corpse seems like it would be the twist at the end of a short story by Ambrose Bierce or Edgar Allen Poe.
You should investigate the H.M.T. Rohna tragedy. Sunk in the Mediterranean Nov. 1943 by what is believed to be a guided weapon. 1100 troops killed including my Uncle Tony 💜
I love a lighthouse story and your narration makes it special, thanks bro!
you dont even have to pay me, ill pay you to take me there - a few secluded decades would be God's most precious gift to me
Great video, cheers. Fascinating stuff. Thanks for the upload.
A tragic tale, exceedingly well told. Thank you.
Lighthouse stories are sometimes better than shipwreck stories because they are so close to shore but still completely alone. Not moving, just motionless while the sea rages outside the door. That would test anyone's metal.
Mettle. 🙂
Interesting how you use the painting of Ivan the Terrible and His Son Ivan at 13:18
I thought I recognised that face, too. {Ivan the terrible, with his red rummed son on the rug.....}
@@Oakleaf700 Yea, but so symbolize madness, it is fitting.
Great work!
I always quite fancied the idea of working as a lighthouse keeper but never in a wooden one, must have been hell.
This is essentially a nonfiction version of an Edgar Allan Poe short story.
This is the first video ive seen from this channel, that was great!
Glad to see a new video. I had gone thru the entire great lakes series on Wednesday and was hoping for some new material soon.
Honey! Wake up from your turkey coma! Big Old Boats dropped a video!
😂😂😂
My grandfather was stationed on Muckle Flugga in the north of Shetland from 1936-1947. He was built of different stuff.
I Would've loved to work in a light house...! 100% solitude, no annoying people, no backtalk from the wife, fishing during the day....! Starry nights...!
Tasting History with Max Miller did a video awhile back about what lighthouse keepers ate while on duty and he covered the mental challenges they faced.
Another great production, Sir
That's a terrific channel.
“Should pale death with treble dread, Make the ocean caves our bed. God who hearst the surges roll, deign to to save the suppliant soul.” -Thomas Wake
does this mean we could possibly get a flannan isle lighthouse video in the future?
I couldn't imagine being stuck all alone for months and a rock in the middle of the ocean
Nope, you’re going in the drink.
Here is why from my experience.
1990s, late teens early 20s.
Worked at a retired power station on Lake Erie, as a security guard. One 1 guard on 3 shifts. Beyond creepy, snow was like The Shining.
One of the guards stuffed a full body jumpsuit uniform, put boots on it, an over the ears winter hat and my contribution, a Jason Voorhees mask.
It was funny at first, but they kept hiding him in this power station, so “BoB” would be alarmingly found during rounds. It was so bad that one night when 3rd shift came in, the first words out of his mouth, in all seriousness was “where’s Bob?”.
This guard also almost shot him because he was put on the toilet, he didn’t know about Bob and it was his 1st encounter.
I told him I honestly didn’t know, I didn’t see him on my rounds, so…
Ended up in a small discussion about just taking the guy apart, because even Bob sitting with you in the office…stressed you out, didn’t help that someone drew eyes on paper and glued them behind the mask.
We even stood him up and tied his glove hands to the door, out on the landings outside, not unlike this story…
So me and this guard start looking for Bob, we looked all over, kinda like a tragic comedy. It was like 2am now and we had about 1 working light on each floor, 3+ levels below ground and 3 above.
Both of us with mag lights and we get to the very top floor, leaving the turbine Bay last, as it was the scariest. The overhead crane has a special door to go out from, as if the crane isn’t lined up with the door on the other side, you could enter and fall around 6 stories into the basement.
So we’re pushing and pulling on the safety lever, whole time talking about how to open it, wanted to just leave it but he said that sometimes he eats lunch in the control chair, on the crane, so I take his mag light so he has 2 hands to operate the safety gate, it’s dark, he’s like 375lbs, yanking on this when suddenly it pops open and Bob comes spilling out just like a 80s horror flick, Scott falls on his back, falling backwards and me with 2x Mag Lights, both 8 D-Cells start doing some sort light show drum solo..
It was like Jaws when Hooper pulled the tooth out of Ben’s boat and the head floated into view.
Now it’s a maritime Museum in Erie PA .
You can look the place up and even see the overhead crane.
Do you yearn for this life? How about FIRE LOOKOUT, FOREST RANGER, or GAME WARDEN? In spite of drones and satellite technology, manned watchtowers and embedded wilderness ranger outposts DO STILL EXIST in the remote West...solitude, fresh air, and what views! Go for it, my dears.
He said the lighthouse was built 20 miles off the coast, and at the end said it’s one of the most remote lighthouses. Is that true? Are lighthouses usually closer?
I have a friend like that. He's like a brother, but we also quarrel over anything. Animated discussions. People sometimes mistake it for a fight.
I'll tell you man the music you pick is spot on😊
This would have been a great Halloween story, it's absolutely dreadful! Thanks again for the excellent work!
Smalls? You're killing me, Smalls...
-"The Sandlot
Being someone who has a phoebia with deep waters and it doesn't help that this lighthouse is literally in the middle of the ocean....nope...smh...lol
This was a very atmospheric video. Thanks!