Baker Island Lighthouse
Cranberry Islands, Maine
Built in 1828
Location:
South West entrance to Frenchman Bay.
Latitude: 44° 14' 29" N
Longitude: -68° 11' 56" W
Historic Snapshots:
Baker Island is one of the five Cranberry Islands in Frenchman Bay. The lighthouse was established in 1828 to guide mariners away from the sandbar and treacherous ledges located nearby. The Gilley family owned the island in the early 1800’s and their son William became the lighthouse’s first Keeper in 1828. He was later removed over twenty years later for political reasons. The Keepers who came after Gilley’s removal found themselves harassed by his sons. Legal battles ensued over the years between the government trying to remove the Gilley family from the island and the Gilley family claiming the island as theirs anyways. The government finally was granted the right to keep the station and its surrounding grounds on the island, and the Gilley family was able to stay and keep the rest of the island.
During a fierce gale storm in November 1932, Keeper Joseph Muise’s wife went into labor. The assistant was on shore leave so Muise had to enlist the help of a lifesaving crew on a neighboring island to help bring his wife ashore as he could not leave his post. As they were heading for Northeast Harbor about 10 miles away, Mrs. Muise’s labor pains became more frequent. The men found themselves quickly donating their jackets and clothing and still two miles away from the mainland, helped to deliver a baby girl. Both mother and daughter were quickly attended to on the mainland and remained healthy.
The lighthouse was deactivated in 1955, and then reactivated in 1957 as an automatic unattended light for local mariners. The lighthouse was refurbished in 1989 and is now solar powered.
In the early 1990’s the Coast Guard announced it was going to deactivate the lighthouse because the surrounding trees were obscuring its view. Local mariners petitioned to leave it alone and the Coast Guard decided to leave the light as is, slowly being engulfed by the trees. The park service offers trips to the island and hikes to the lighthouse in the summer season.
Places to Visit:
The lighthouse and grounds are closed to the public.
The Acadia Park service offers a narrated cruise and natural history walk (hike) to Baker Island aboard the Islesford ferry from Northeast Harbor. As you can see the lighthouse is nearly engulfed in the surrounding trees from the water's view. You'll also find the trees very close to the lighthouse as you take the hiking tour to the lighthouse.
The Islesford ferry also goes to the other Cranberry Islands. Visit these islands and you’ll find yourself going back in time as little has changed over the years. It is possible (but not condoned here) during extreme low tide to walk to the island from the sand bar that stretches about ¾ of a mile from Little Cranberry Island to Baker island.
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Local Boat Tours
Boat cruises mentioned below offer many types of cruises. While some may offer specific lighthouse cruises, some will pass by specific lighthouses as part of charters, narrated wildlife and historic tours, ferrying passengers, whale watching, fishing tours and other types of excursions. Contact info is provided to help you plan your special trips to New England’s shorelines. Enjoy!
Sea Princess Cruises
Narrated wildlife cruises.
Box 545
Mount Desert, ME 04660
Phone: (207) 276-5352
E-mail: rliebow@acadia.net
Lighthouses: Baker Island, Bear Island, Bass Harbor Light, Burnt Coat Harbor
Islesford Ferry Terminal
Main Rd,
Cranberry Isles, ME 04625
Phone:
(207) 244-5882
Lighthouses: Baker Island Light, Bear Island Light
Bar Harbor Whale Watch Company
Lighthouse and Park Tour Baker Island and other five lighthouses.
1 West Street
Bar Harbor, Maine 04609
Phone: (207) 288-2386 or 1-888-WHALES-4
Lighthouses: Baker Island Light, Bear Island Light, Great Duck Island Light
Bunker & Bunker, Inc.
Mail and passenger ferry to Cranberry Islands.
PO Box 33
Cranberry Isles, ME 04625
Phone (207) 244-3575
Lighthouses: Baker Island Light, Bear Island Light
Maine Tours
Lighthouse and national park tours.
Phone: (888) 794-8289
Fax: (888) 478-1464
Lighthouses: Baker Island Light, Bear Island Light, Egg Rock Lighthouse, Great Duck Light, Winter Harbor Light
Bar Harbor Whale Watch Company
Lighthouse and Park Tour covers five lighthouses.
1 West Street
Bar Harbor, Maine 04609
Phone: (207) 288-2386 or 1-888-WHALES-4
Lighthouses: Baker Island Light, Bear Island Light, Great Duck Island Light
Sea Venture Custom Boat Tours
Very specific boat tours you can enjoy with a minimum of passengers.
Capt. Winston Shaw
Phone: (207) 288-3355
Bar Harbor, Maine
Email: info@svBoatTours.com
Lighthouses: Pond Island Light, Petit Manan Light, Prospect Harbor Light, Mark Island Light, Egg Rock Light, Baker Island Light, Bear Island Light, Bass Harbor Head Light, Great Duck Light, Burn Coat Harbor Light, Blue Hill Bay Light, Pumpkin Island Light
Schooner Mary Day
Windjammer sailing that included 4 and 6-day lighthouse cruises.
P.O. Box 798, Camden, Maine 04843
Phone: (800) 992-2218
captains@schoonermaryday.com
Lighthouses: Curtis Island, Indian Island, Rockland Breakwater, Owls Head, Browns Head, Goose Rocks, Heron Neck, Saddleback Ledge, Deer Isle Thorofare (Mark Island), Robinson Pt (Isle Au Haut), Bear Island, Baker Island, Egg Rock, Bass Harbor Head, Blue Hill, Pumpkin Island, Dice Head, Eagle Island, Fort Point, Grindel Point
Maine Expressions
Lighthouse excursions all along the coast of Maine.
Post Office Box 2114
Augusta, Maine 04330
Phone: (207) 622-0884
Scenic Flights
Acadia Air Tours
Flights from a Biplane or glider. Lighthouse tour includes Schoodic Peninsula, the community of Winter Harbor, the Cranberry Islands, Southwest Harbor, Bass Harbor and four area lighthouses.
Bar Harbor Airport
Trenton, ME 04605
Phone: (207) 667-7627
E-mail: acadiaair@acadia.net
Lighthouses: Bear Island Light, Baker Island Light, Egg Rock Light, Bass Harbor Head Light, Petit Manan Light, Prospect Harbor Light, Winter Harbor Light, Great Duck Light, Burn Coat Harbor Light
Island Soaring
Email: info@islandsoaring.net
Lighthouses: Winter Harbor, Egg Rock Light, Baker Island Light, Bear Island Light, Bass Harbor Head Light, and Blue Hill Bay Light.