Lighthouse replica would illuminate region's past

Greg Latshaw -

 In the late 1800s, Baltimore steamboats sailed to Cambridge regularly, stopping at the docks for everything from fresh produce and local seafood to passengers eager for a return voyage to Charm City.

Along the way, the boats passed the Choptank River Lighthouse, a hexagonal-shaped cottage straddling the waters near the mouth of the Tred Avon River.

The screw-pile lighthouse, like many others that once stood in the Chesapeake Bay region, is gone. Now, a dedicated group of volunteers wishes to build a full-size replica of the lighthouse, placing it on the Cambridge waterfront.

"It's going to be a sight to be seen," said George Wright, a lifelong Cambridge resident and president of the Choptank River Lighthouse Society, the group leading the effort.

Maryland Delegate Rudy Cane, D-37A-Wicomico, along with Delegates Addie Eckardt and Jeannie Haddaway-Riccio, have drafted legislation that would help pay for the lighthouse construction. The measure would provide the Lighthouse Society with $300,000 in bond money, with the stipulation that the society provide $148,000 in matching funds.

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Photo David Harp

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