An iconic feature of the Maine coast (and in a few places inland), lighthouses have served as important navigational aids but also as art subjects and tourist attractions and advertising symbols. This highly illustrated third volume in Historic New England's new series explores the lives and legends of lighthouse keepers, shares tales of maritime disasters, explores the architecture of lighthouses, and discusses efforts to preserve lighthouses themselves. It also examines the influence of Maine's lighthouses, from literature to paintings and photographs to tabletop models and all sorts of practical bric-a-brac. They were key to the development of the tourist trade in Maine (beyond facilitating safe landings), and they are a ubiquitous symbol on corporate logos, advertising symbols, souvenirs, and collectibles from the past to the present.

The ten chapters are from a variety of contributors, and each chapter is richly illustrated with photographs and ephemera culled from private and public collections. The fold-out covers feature daytime postcards of Maine lighthouses at the front and nighttime postcards at the back.