Page 19 - AHATA
P. 19

A10   LOCAL
                    Friday 11 OctOber 2024
            A brief history of the California Light House























































            (Oranjestad)—At the furthest west-                                      to Mr. Fingal, dates back to the day  pulls  it  up,  gradually.  And  while  it
            ern point of the island, there lies the                                 when the cargo ship S.S. California  comes  down,  the  same  weight
            tallest  structure  on  the  island:  The                               sank because of the lack of light.  that  is  descending  causes  many
            California Light House. Standing on                                     In  1913,  Aruba  made  a  request  small wheels to turn in the opposite
            top  of  a  limestone  cliff,  this  light-                             to  Curacao  to  build  a  Lighthouse  direction.  The  Lighthouse  rotates
            house  oversees  the  entire  island,                                   at Westpunt, and the governor of  from  6  pm  in  the  evening,  when
            offering  one  of  few  best  views  of                                 Curacao  responded  to  Aruba  to  the sun sets, until 6 am in the morn-
            the island and the surrounding sea.                                     come back in 1915 with a well-de-   ing. During the entire night, the light
            It is also one of the few monuments                                     tailed plan. “During the First World  shines on the lantern, it goes down
            that hold a rich history.                                               War from 1914 to 1918, they had to  24 meters, and the Lighthouse is 30
                                                                                    wait for the light to be transported  meters  high.  It  is  designed  not  to
            The  lighthouse  was  constructed                                       to Aruba because it was manufac-    collapse,” Mr. Fingal explains.
            in  between  1914-1916,  and  its                                       tured in France. At that time, there
            first  keeper  was  a  young  trained  It was very challenging because it  was  no  electricity,  and  the  light  Mr.  Fingal  further  explains  that  in
            lighthouse  keeper  from  Curacao  was full of goats and donkeys, and  was very interesting because it ro-  one  night,  the  lighthouse  rotates
            names Jacob Jacobs. Mr. Frederi-    it was very isolated. There were no  tated  with  a  kerosene  lamp  that  4,320  times  and  consumes  one
            co Fingal was the last man to have  hotels or roads to get there. There  planes used; clean kerosene,” Mr.  gallon  of  kerosene  for  the  whole
            occupied  this  position  until  1962.  was only a donkey trail. Those were  Fingal said.                   operation. “At that time, the kero-
            Though his son, Mr. Romulo Fingal  the only means of transportation.”                                       sene  was  supplied  from  the  Lago
            did not continue in his father’s foot-                                  Mr.  Fingal  discovered  something  refinery.  Every  day  it  was  brought
            steps, he does have a special con-  Mr. Fingal continues, “In 1939, I was  very  interesting  about  the  light-  down, and to start the light again,
            nection  to  the  lighthouse.  He  sat  born in the lighthouse, and my fa-  house  after  much  research  was  they  had  to  lift  the  weight  up,  so
            down with our reporter and shared  ther was the last lighthouse keeper  documented  in  his  book  ‘History  our job as children was to crank it
            a bit of its history.               until  he  retired  in  1962.  After  that,  of  the  Lighthouse  at  Westpunt.’  and raise the weight back up in the
                                                they  removed  the  power  cables  He  found  many  details:  “I  found  evening when the light stuck, they
            As  Mr.  Fingal  explains,  “In  1915,  all the way to the top. According  out  that  the  height  of  the  light-  would take it down again, and the
            cargo  donkeys  were  hired  from  to the story, we couldn’t have the  house  was  due  to  the  absence  light  stayed  down.  That’s  how  it
            Figaroa di Noord to help build the  light  ourselves  because  they  dis-  of  electricity.  There  was  also  the  worked  for  a  very  long  time,”  Mr.
            Lighthouse  at  Westpunt.  The  don-  mantled it, and after many years,  presence of coral. There is a long  Fingal explains.
            keys had to walk along the beach  I heard that it is in a train museum  steel cable from where the light is,
            all  the  way  to  Westpunt  carrying  in San Nicolas, where we found this  and under the light, at the highest  Thanks  to  the  Monument  Fund
            the cargo, poles, cement, and all  very  special  lens  that,  when  the  point, there is a hanging weight, a  Aruba,  which  worked  hard  and
            these  things.  At  that  time,  it  was  light shines through it, it reaches 30  sort  of  pendulum  that  swings  like  is currently in charge of the Light-
            a  difficult  task  until  Aruba  got  its  kilometers  out  to  sea.”  Mr.  Fingal  that, with a weight that measures  house,  Mr.  Fingal  is  very  happy
            first truck. These things reflect how  told our reporter.               about  1  meter  by  30  centimeters  with its preservation, along with all
            people could have accomplished                                          wide, which is a block of solid iron  the  renovations  that  have  taken
            this  tremendous  job  with  so  little.”  The lighthouse has a long and very  attached  to  a  cable.  When  you  place.  He  hopes  that  the  story  of
            Mr.  Fingal  said,  “At  that  time,  it  interesting history. The reason why  release it upwards, it comes down,  the lighthouse will continue to live
            wasn’t a place for people to work.  the lighthouse was built, according  and the weight that comes down  on for future generations.q
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