Gives the history of lighthouses in the state of Texas as well as the life and work of the keepers and their families.

Not long after winning their independence from Mexico in 1836, Texans began clamoring for lighthouses. Hundreds of miles of barrier islands, shifting sandbars, and shallow bays made the Texas coast treacherous at a time when few overland routes provided access to the new republic. Beginning in 1852, twenty-eight lighthouses were built along the Texas coastline, on land and over water. Lighthouse service was often a family affair, with husbands, wives, and children working together as keepers and assistants. For nearly 70 years, construction continued as coastal erosion, hurricanes, and wars regularly damaged or destroyed those lighthouses already built. These sentinels of the sea lessened but did not eliminate the chance of shipwreck, so lifesaving stations, manned by able seamen with unsinkable surfboats, were established as well. As Texass lighthouses were gradually automated throughout the 20th century, many were sold to private owners or abandoned. Today, several have been restored, and twoat Aransas Pass and Port Isabelstill function as aids to navigation.--Amazon.come.

ISBN 0963641212 LCCN 96072414.

Lighthouses and ghosts are two popular passions. Melded together by master storyteller and lighthouse expert Ray Jones, these tales of spirited lights are guaranteed to grab the attention of all readers. As an added bonus, practical information is given for those who wish to visit the featured lighthouses for themselves . . . if they dare.

Beautiful photographs, maps, and descriptions of the fabled reef lights forming a 3,000-mile semicircle from Key West, Florida, to Corpus Christi, Texas.