Twillingate Lighthouse Keeper

Jack May

Jack May of Twillingate carries on the old tradition of lighthouse keepers. I met him at the lighthouse and he told me a little of its history.

THE HISTORY OF THE LIGHTHOUSE, if it was written, I never saw it. And I could never get any information out of Jack Roberts, God rest his soul. He died two falls ago, I guess it was, at the age of 96 or 98. He would never talk about his work at Long Point.

His father was Robert Samuel Roberts. Of course that was shortened to Bob Sam. He was the first principal lightkeeper here. As far as we know, he started here, in 1876, with a lightkeeper by the name of Henry Preston, who came over from England. Now, Henry Preston, it is generally surmised, and I guess mostly by me, was probably an expert on the mechanisms for lighthouses.

He came over as an expert and worked with Bob Sam Roberts, and they were both here together. He stayed in Newfoundland. As a matter of fact, he died and is buried in the United Church Cemetery on the north side.

Except for the tower, there isn't much of the original 1876 equipment left. The light was lit in 1876. It was started the year before, apparently. I think the lighthouse was built because this was one of the major exporting areas for fish, to the Indies and Spain, and places that used salt fish years ago.

I think it was realized very early on, that there were not adequate warnings around here for ships to safely come into Twillingate Harbour. There were large ships coming and going all the time, during the shipping season.

The light was turned by weight-driven clockwork. Weights were cranked up to the ceiling of the first level and as they dropped, they turned a turntable with kerosene lamps and the lens.