Lighthouse Encyclopedia Definitive Reference [HC,2004]

by Ray Jones

Thoroughly updated and expanded with even more information on the world’s lighthouses, The Lighthouse Encyclopedia is the definitive reference on these maritime beacons and coastal icons.A wealth of facts and history fill this beautifully designed book, packed with full-color and vintage photos, containing everything a lighthouse lover or maritime historian wants to know about lighthouse history, changing technologies, lighthouse keepers, and the lenses themselves. A detailed index of more than 150 lighthouses around the world offers quick and easy access to basic the height, age, elevation, optic type and status for every lighthouse! An appendix listing lighthouse groups nationwide makes it easy to see these historic treasures, visit museums and get involved with preservation.

Genres: Nonfiction, Architecture, Reference

Leather Bound

First published January 1, 2013

Reviews

[Mick Bordet · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very disappointing. The book comes in three sections: a history of lighhouses, a glossary and a per-lighthouse reference, all of which are reasonably interesting in their own right, but there is far to much repetition of information across the sections. That might not be so bad, but there is a lot that could have been included that was lacking: nothing about life in a lighthouse, little detail about lenses next to nothing about lighthouses in literature, art, music, etc. Although there is some coverage of European lighthouses, the book is highly US-centric.
The only reason I gave this 2 stars instead of 1 is for the photographs of the lighthouses, which are generally either reasonably artistic or of historical interest, though again there were some missed opportunities and the pictures are often placed pages away from the text associated with them.
If you are a real lighthouse fan and want a coffee table book, then take a look, otherwise you'd learn more from an hour or two trawling around Wikipedia.

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very comprehensive with great photos.

[Darcee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lighthouse history and lore - a very specific and interesting slice of history.

[John Anderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice Pictures, some history. Would have liked to learn more about the construction methods of some of the unique structures and more in-depth history of some of the more famous lights.

[Josh Liller · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title is a bit too lofty, but this is still a good book for learning about lighthouses. The book has three parts: a history of lighthouses, a list of lighthouse terms, and a partial list of lighthouses around the world. The history section is a good short history, although very US-centric. The terms list is pretty thorough and useful. The lighthouse list is far from complete with about 200 lighthouses out of more than 1000 in the US (about 700 still standing) and upwards of another 1000 in the rest of the world. However, the formatting and information is nicely standardized and the lighthouses listed provide a wide selection of styles, sizes, ages, and locations. This book doesn't live up to its "definitive" title, but if you were to read only one book about lighthouses this is by far the best I have come across.

[Patrick]

I have always liked lighthouses so acquiring this book was a given. It is more of a coffee table book, but I finally sat down and went thru the entire book. Very nice book with some nice photos. The listing of included lighthouses, while seemingly a lot, is only a sample of those around the world. For 15 years I lived about 6 miles from a historic lighthouse in Oregon. And 40 miles from the next nearest lighthouse. But neither were mentioned so I was slightly disappointed. In order to list all the lighthouses in the world, the book would probably be 3 times as thick so the situation is understood. Still a nice book. The book that covers all known or past lighthouses is yet another future acquisition.

[Winnie Thornton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read (okay, skimmed) this for novel-writing research. Great photos.

[Preston Clocksin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read

Excellent overview of American lighthouses and some others from around the world. Shows a plethora of shapes, sizes and architectures.