St. Simon's Island Lighthouse       I visited my sister in Atlanta last year. Before I left, we took a few days and went over to the ocean. I cannot be that close to lighthouses and not visit. The only thing about visiting lighthouses is that there is always one more, close by, that you never get to see. We were close enough that we had to choose between Morris Island, Tybee Island, St. Simons Island, and Sapalo Island. So we chose to go to Tybee Island and then the next day to St. Simons Island. In all of the places I searched for information about St Simons, I kept running across the same two bits of history. First, the area was heavily infested with mosquitoes. Malaria was a real problem and countless people died during the construction of the lighthouses there. Second, the keeper and assistant keeper got into a fight over the keeper's wife and the assistant murdered the keeper. It is said that the ghost of the keeper still haunts the tower today. What I remember most about my trip to St. Simon's is walking along the main street at 10 o'clock at night. The light from the lighthouse flashing all around and feeling safe. It was exciting to be there with an operating lighthouse going about its work while everything happened around it St. Simons is a really wonderful place to visit. It is what I think of when I think "vacation." The keeper's house is one of the more elaborate dwellings as far as cottages go. The tower is open to the public and you can climb the 129 steps to the top. There is a museum in the keeper's house and they have a wide selection in the gift shop. The town is lovely, interesting, and the people are friendly. They have great restaurants and shops, and there are historic tours of the islands and everything else from golf to kayak nature tours. Everything is accessible in one small area. I cannot think of anything better. The lighthouse is still active and is owned by the US Coast Guard. The 1872 brick lighthouse is 104' tall. Its original 3rd order Fresnel lens remains a navigational aid for traffic entering the St. Simons Sound. It really looks beautiful at night and the cool Southern breezes from the sea add a lot to the "seaside" atmosphere. The Museum of Coastal History operates in the keeper's house and consists of four structures, including the brick lighthouse and keeper's dwelling, an 1890's oil house, and a Victorian gazebo. The keeper's house is restored and furnished the way it would have looked at the turn-of-the-century. There is a wheel chair access to the first floor of the keeper's house, and they have installed restrooms and a water fountain. It is air conditioned and much more comfortable to visit than it was for the keepers who lived there. It is a self-guided tour and it is open Monday through Saturday 10:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m., and Sunday 1:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. The Lighthouse closes at 4:45 to assure everyone has time for the tour. It costs $4.00 for adult and children 6-11 get in for $1.00. The gift shop is small but sells a variety of items related to the St. Simon's Lighthouse. You can get replicas, thimbles, T-shirts, lots of novelty items and of course books. They also sell Eugina Price's book, she is a local author who writes about St. Simons History. (Nearby Tybee Island is closed on Tuesday.) The village is quite nice. Mallory Street leads to the pier, and this is the heart of the village. They have souvenir shops and clothing stores. There is a good choice of restaurants on this street also. We ate at a restraunt called Barbara Jeans because we kept hearing how good it was; and that is my daughter's name so I wanted to get her a T-shirt. Everything is within a couple of blocks and we did not even need our car after we arrived. They have a parking lot for the shops, restaurants and the tours depart from that same area. We stayed at St. Simon's Inn by the Lighthouse. And yes, it was on the street by the lighthouse. I took the picture to the right from my window at the hotel. The people at the inn were nice and the prices were good. When I go back, I will stay there again. We took a tour of the island and learned a lot of interesting history. I do always enjoy tours conducted by people that live in the area because you get so much more information and the good local gossip. The Frederica Church is the one thing that stands out most to me. Once you step inside you see huge stained-glass windows that run all around the church. It was truly incredible. Several of the windows are Tiffany, and some are imported from Germany. It is something you should not miss. When my sister and I left, we both had decided that we would like to go back again when we can stay longer. There is a lot of southern hospitably and just so you know, I did not see the mosquitoes.