Master Ship’s Carpenter Don Conry with two of the perfect replica doors he built for Graves Light.
There’s no better way to test a new pair of heavy oak doors than to install them during a gale.
Using the original 1905 US Light House Service blueprints, Master Ship’s Carpenter Don Conry built us a perfectly accurate pair of double doors for our entry, 40 feet above the sea.
The old lighthouse plans have been essential to our restoration efforts. For the four entry doors, we turned to Don. He fashioned them out of white oak, exactly according to the 1905 specifications.
Until now, Graves Light’s front doors were Coast Guard replacements of the long-gone originals. They were functional but drab, nothing like the original design.
We unearthed a lovely group of twelve antique heavy brass barrel hinges for a solid and weatherproof fit.
Then we added a beautiful porcelain enamel warning sign – an original from the US Light House Service. It’s all about the details.
Just like the long-lost doors installed 113 years ago, these white oak brutes are built to take a beating. They have reinforced security glass and up-rated hardware against intruders.
An identical set of exterior doors, painted regulation red, completes the entryway.
Don labored over the fall and installed them in early November, during a gale. That’s what Master Ship’s Carpenters do. Thanks so much, Sir!
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- Master Ship’s Carpenter Don Conry with two of the perfect replica doors he built for Graves Light.
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- These are the original 1905 US Lighthouse Service plans for the front doors of Graves Light.
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- Master Ship’s Carpenter Don Conry at his workshop with one of the doors he built for Graves from the 1905 plans.
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- Installed: The 2018 doors as the originals would have looked in 1905.
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- An original US Lighthouse Service sign on one of the new white oak doors at Graves.
