Curtis Light Station (undated)
Curtis Light Tower (1896)
Curtis Light Station (2002)
[KUR-tis ISLAND], known for many years as Negro Island, is located in Camden Harbor in Knox County. Established in 1835, a light at the station was first lit in 1896 and was automated in 1972.
White with a black “lantern” holding a 300 millimeter solar powers lens, the concrete tower stands 25 feet in height. The original light featured a fourth order Fresnel lens, now on display at the Camden Public Library.
The island was named for Cyrus Curtis, born in Portland in 1850, a prominent summer resident of Camden and publisher newspapers and magazines including the Saturday Evening Post.
Other Structures on the island include a barn (1889), oil house (1895), boathouse (1889), catwalk (replaced in 1990), and two stairways (1988, 1991). The island is operated as a public park, but access to the light is limited to the U.S. Coast Guard.
Curtis Island with Light Station (2005)
Additional resources
National Park Service. http://www.nps.gov/history/maritime/light/curtis.htm (accessed 2/18/2008).
Source of United States Coast Guard historic photos: (accessed 2/18/2008) http://www.uscg.mil/hq/g-cp/history/WEBLIGHTHOUSES/LHME.html
