June 20, 2015

1685 UNITED STATES (Maine) - West Quoddy Head Light


West Quoddy Head in Lubec is the easternmost point of the contiguous United States and the closest point to Europe from a point in the fifty States. Since 1808 there has been a lighthouse there to guide ships through the waterway, but the current one was built in 1858. The tower is painted with narrow horizontal red and white stripes (a pattern unique in the U.S.), the lantern is black, and the roof is red. The original 1-1/2 story Victorian wood keeper's house was renovated in 2001-2002 as a visitor center and museum. The complex contains also a brick fog signal building (1887) and an oil house (1892).

About the stamps
The first two stamps are part of the series Snowflakes, issued on October 5, 2006. The second was issued on 2004 to celebrate the Christmas.

References
West Quoddy Head Light - Wikipedia
Lighthouses of the United States: Eastern Maine - The Lighthouse Directory 

Sender: Cooper and Lillian
Sent from Boston (Lebanon), on 25.07.2014
Photo: William Johnson / 1995

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