Located on the Southwest shore of the Saint John River near Oromocto Island, the Wilmot Bluff Lighthouse was first established in 1869 along with several of the other river lights. The current tower is from 1908 and was decomissioned in 1967. The light is on private property which is owned and maintained by the decendents of the last lightkeeper. The light sits on a high bluff which is some distance back from the river's edge. The light is not far from the Fredericton Airport. Photographs taken in March 2012.
I grew up on the farm beside it at the old Wilmot house. The last original owner was Mrs. Gillies, who was an absolute gem. She loved cats and dogs and had two spaniels who were so friendly that you never wanted to leave. We called her Grandma Gillies because she was so nice. The court in that area is named after that family. Her grandson used to practice with his band called Dreamkick in the lighthouse and on a dark cold winter night it was very uplifting to hear the music while delevering papers.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment. It is always good to get some local information about the lights. This one I almost didn't find as I drove right by and didn't see it tucked into the trees. Cheers, Neal
DeleteMy name is Chris Waddell and I was the singer in Dreamkick. We started out practicing in Mrs. Gillies' basement. She was a doll, we called her the Rock 'n'Roll Grandma. The band would occasionally practice in the lighthouse which was always a great. I had just stumbled upon this story about the lighthouse, which I always thought it was just for show.... But I'd been all through that building and really enjoyed practicing there. It's great to learn it had an actual purpose and history in the area.
DeleteThanks for your comment. It is neat to hear you practiced in the lighthouse, just another bit of it's history! Cheers!
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