Champlain Lighthouse anniversary observed

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September 12, 2008

By LOHR McKINSTRY The Press Republican Fri Sep 12, 2008, 12:00 AM EDT

CROWN POINT -- The 150th anniversary of the Crown Point Lighthouse will be celebrated this weekend during the Festival of Nations here.

Now called the Champlain Memorial Lighthouse, its public birthday party is at 8 p.m. Saturday and will feature sparklers and music by the Seth Warner Fife and Drum Corps.

Unfortunately, the Rodin bust that adorns the lighthouse hasn't been reattached after restoration, but it is expected back in time for events next year.

TODAY

Crown Point Historic Site Manager Thomas Hughes said two state historic sites, Crown Point in New York and Chimney Point in Vermont, are co-hosting this weekend's public event and offering activities at both ends of the Champlain Bridge.

The celebration begins today, when visitors will get to meet French explorer Samuel de Champlain, portrayed by Don Thompson, between 11:30 a.m. and 12:45 p.m. at the Crown Point State Historic Site.

That will be followed by a 1 p.m. concert of 18th-century British and American songs performed by musician Linda Russell.

SATURDAY

The Crown Point Post Office staff will be at the festival at 11:15 a.m. Saturday offering a special cancellation celebrating the 150th anniversary of the lighthouse at Crown Point. Thompson will also be giving an encore Champlain presentation at that time.

The cancellation shows the original lighthouse and station, built in 1858, and a set of three items will be sold to benefit the Champlain 2009 celebration.

Programs will be offered Saturday at both historic sites, including walking tours of Crown Point at 9:30 a.m. and 12:10 p.m. and an illustrated lecture at 3 p.m. on "Works of Art: The Champlain Memorial Lighthouse," by Dr. Frances Chevalier.

New York contributed $730,000 to restore and repair the lighthouse in time for the celebration.

The lighthouse was a 55-foot octagonal limestone tower originally connected to a wooden Cape Cod-style cottage.

In 1910, the lighthouse was turned into the Champlain Memorial Lighthouse, and the cottage was torn down. The limestone exterior of the lighthouse was replaced with eight Doric columns on a conical base made of Fox Island granite from Maine.

On the side of the memorial facing Lake Champlain is a sculpture by Carl Heber showing Champlain flanked by a Huron Indian and a French soldier.

NO RODIN FOR NOW

In 1912, the French donated a bronze bust by Auguste Rodin for the monument. The Rodin was mounted on the memorial below the sculpture of Champlain but was taken away last year for restoration.

Work on the Rodin was finished in July by restoration expert Jonathan Taggart at the Peebles Island Resource Center of the State Historic Preservation Office.

Most of the work on the lighthouse itself is finished, but the nearby pier is still under construction, said Lake Champlain Visitors Center Coordinator Suzanne Maye.

She said that although the Rodin is restored, it isn't back yet.

"The Rodin is still in Albany at the state lab. It's supposed to return next year."

Everyone is looking forward to its rededication, she said.

"It was a gift to the American public, to the people of New York and Vermont. No work of art is thoroughly appreciated unless it sits in the context for which it was intended."

Hughes said the bust should be back by spring 2009.

lmckinstry@pressrepublican.com