Whitehead Light, 1798-1819 - NARA - 81128634 (page 79)

Scope and content: This file unit consists of correspondence related to Whitehead Light off of Saint George, Maine received by Benjamin Lincoln, Henry Dearborn, and Henry A. S. Dearborn in their capacity as Superintendents of Massachusetts Lighthouses. The correspondence relates to the appointment of lighthouse keepers, the acquisition of land for the lighthouse, and to expenses for supplies. Also included is a 1798 petition to Congress from individuals “employed in boating to and from Penobscot Bay” requesting that a lighthouse be built on Whitehead Island. Included are letters from Treasury Secretary Albert Gallatin, Revenue Commissioner William Miller, contractor and lamp-maker Winslow Lewis, and Lighthouse Keepers Ellis Dowlf, Ebenezer Otis, and Charles Haskell. Of note are several letters from Rebeccah Otis, wife of the late keeper Ebenezer Otis, petitioning to continue operating the lighthouse with her son.