Penfield Lighthouse
Penfield Lighthouse has alerted boaters to the hazards of Penfield Reef since 1874, that extends for over a mile. It has also had a reputation for being haunted by a lighthouse keeper, who, anxious to see his family for the Christmas holidays in 1916, headed toward shore in a small rowboat.
Frederick Jordan, the keeper, never made it. His boat capsized and as Jordan’s assistant watched helplessly, Jordan drifted away, never to be seen again — at least not in the flesh.
Legend has it that Jordan’s successor once claimed to see a hazy presence coming out of the dead keeper’s former room, and after looking around the station, found the logbook had been taken down and opened to the page that described Jordan’s death.
Others have reported the light not flashing properly, for no apparent reason, though the problems were attributed to the atmospheric conditions, and still other boaters claim they see the ghost of the keeper guiding them to safety in bad weather.
Plans by the Coast Guard in 1969 to tear down the granite structure and replace it with a pipe tower met with vocal opposition and the original structure still stands.
The lighthouse was automated in 1971 and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990. Ownership of Penfield was transferred in 2008 to Beacon Preservation, which plans to use it a research facility.
The Haunting
On December 22, 1916. Lighthouse Keeper Frederick A. Jordan (sometimes spelled Jordon) rowed a dory for the mainland, to join his family for Christmas. The sea was rough, and about 150 yards (140 m) northwest of the lighthouse, the boat capsized. Assistant Keeper Rudolph Iten said he was unable to launch a boat against a strong wind and an outgoing tide, and so he could only witness Jordan’s disappearance into the water. Jordan’s body was soon recovered, and Iten was absolved of blame for the death and became the next keeper.
According to a local legend, Jordan has haunted the place ever since. Iten wrote in the keeper’s log that Jordan’s ghost appeared two weeks later. Iten wrote that the ghost floated down the tower’s stairs before dissolving into the darkness, and Iten said he found the log opened to the page that recorded the man’s death. Iten also said the Penfield light began “behaving strangely” when the ghost appeared.
Jeremy D’Entremont, author of The Lighthouses of Connecticut, said that since Iten had tried to save the man, the new keeper would be unlikely to make light of Jordan’s death by fabricating a ghost tale. Other lighthouse keepers later said Jordan’s ghost appeared to them, and Iten even got them to sign affidavits describing the apparitions.
In one tale, Jordan was said to have pulled two boys from the water in 1942 after their boat capsized near Penfield Light. The boys said a man rescued them, but they couldn’t find him when they went to the lighthouse to thank him. The boys identified Jordan as their rescuer after seeing his picture, the story goes.[ad#news-articles-bottom-ads]
