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January 2010 |
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case studies
| news |
techtalk |
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Helping Visitors See the Light |
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The City of Ludington,
Michigan, is partnering with a historic lighthouse group
to get visitors to "see the light" – using radio.
In the summer of 2009 the
Sable Points Lighthouse Keepers Association (SPLKA)
installed a special "Information
Radio Station," which broadcasts on the AM frequency
1610, atop the City's 3-story water treatment building.
From this high point along the lakeshore the signal
propagates across the City of Ludington, up and down the
Lake Michigan shoreline and can be tuned in by visitors
in vehicles within a 3-5-mile-radius range.
(See more below, left.) |
Big Sable Point
Lighthouse
Ludington, Michigan
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The Big Sable Point Lighthouse, located
on Lake Michigan, is one of three
lighthouses touted by the new radio
station. Designated a National Historic
Site, its marker reads...
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Called Grande Pointe au Sable
by French explorers and
traders, Big Sable Point was an
important landmark for mariners
traveling a treacherous stretch
of Lake Michigan shoreline
between Big Sable Point and
present-day Ludington. In 1855,
twelve ships wrecked in that
area. Commerce linked to the
burgeoning lumber industry
required that Big Sable Point be
suitably lighted. State senator
Charles Mears pressed the
legislature to ask the federal
government for a light station
at Big Sable. In 1866 the U.S.
Congress appropriated $35,000
for a lighthouse, which was
built the following year. As the
lumbering era waned, steamers
carrying coal, foodstuffs, and
tourists continued to rely on
the lighthouse for navigation.
The Big Sable Point Lighthouse
is one of the few Michigan
lights with a tower reaching 100
feet. Completed in 1867, Big
Sable's tower measures 112 feet
high. In 1902 the deteriorating
brick tower was encased in
steel. The keeper's dwelling,
which once housed a single
family, has been enlarged over
the years, resulting in the
present three-family residence.
Indoor plumbing and heating and
a diesel electric generator were
added in 1949. In 1953, power
lines were extended to the
Point. In 1968 the tradition of
light-keeping begun in 1867 by
Alonzo A. Hyde and his wife,
Laura, ended when the station
was fully automated. Big Sable
Point Light Station is listed in
the National Register of
Historic Places. |
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The
broadcast, whose handle is "Light Talk
1610," tells travelers how to locate three
1800's era lighthouses, and gives them
historic details as well as hours and dates
that each is open for tours.
Download a sample broadcast message.
SPLKA president David Hawley declares, "We've
had nothing but positive feedback about
'Light Talk 1610.'"
To give the the broadcast spice and
variety, the group worked with Information
Station Specialists to conduct interviews
with volunteers, visitors and Association
management. Their voices can be heard,
intermingled with informational messages.
The City also has access to the
broadcast to insert current event
information during the beach town's busy
summer season.
 The
content of the station's broadcasts are
calculated to get people's appetites up for
a visit to one of the lighthouses and to the
many other attractions in the city of
Ludington, which is strategically centered
amidst them all.
The equipment
employed operates by conventional audio
files on flash drives; and, when a new
broadcast is required, it only requires a
quick change to get it done. Like the
lighthouses it speaks of, the station is out
there serving visitors and potential
visitors 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
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Robert
Sperling
Lighthouse Director
of Maintenance
Posing with
the Antenna
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"We value our
partnership with ISS, Inc.;
and we look forward to
working with [them] more in
the...future."
...David A.
Hawley
SPLKA President
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ISS' Bob Bateman Interviews
Lighthouse Gift Store Manager
for Broadcast Preparation |
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Related Links . . . |
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