Exterior work on Hunting Island crown jewel complete
By Mike McCombs
The Island News
HUNTING ISLAND – As National Lighthouse Day – Thursday, Aug. 7 – approaches, those fond of Hunting Island will be pleased to know that as far as the restoration work on Hunting Island State Park’s Lighthouse goes, we can finally see the proverbial lighthouse in the distance.
According to Kirby Brady, Park Manager for Hunting Island State Park & Saint Phillips Island, “a major milestone” has been reached in the restoration work on the iconic lighthouse.
“Exterior restoration work [is] now complete and interior renovations [are] underway,” Brady recently wrote in a document updating the project’s progress. “This marks a new chapter in preserving one of South Carolina’s most treasured landmarks.”
Restoration needed
The Hunting Island Lighthouse closed to tours in early 2022 because of safety concerns.
Bennett Preservation Engineering was hired to oversee architecture and engineering, while Huss, Inc., was hired as the project contractor. After two years of securing funding for the project, structural repairs and restoration work began soon after the end of hurricane season last year..
“Their work requires extraordinary care to protect the historic millwork, structural wood, masonry, glass, ironwork, and distinctive decorative finishes. Much of their focus will be on stabilizing and strengthening the stair system; repairing, cleaning, and recoating the metal and iron elements of the structure; and repainting the interior and exterior of the lighthouse,” Linda Miller, President of the Friends of Hunting Island (FOHI), wrote at this time last year.
State of progress
On the exterior, Brady said crews finished sandblasting to remove old paint and applied fresh, protective coatings that restore the iconic appearance. In May, the scaffolding surrounding the lighthouse was dismantled and removed, signaling the end of major exterior work.
Brady said that inside the lighthouse, interior coatings are underway and expected to be completed in September. Simultaneously, castings of the lighthouse’s historic brackets and stair treads were fabricated in July 11 and are being installed. This phase will be followed by final masonry restoration through August.
According to Brady, visitors will also be pleased to know that the watch and lantern levels have been outfitted with brand-new glass panes, and the restored railings are complete.
“We are thrilled with the progress made thus far and the excitement is building as we look forward to reopening either late 2025, or early 2026,” Brady said in her report.
When asked Sunday if there could be any unforeseen delays, Brady said the quiet part out loud.
“It’s the ‘H’ word,” Brady laughed. “If a hurricane comes though, there will be a delay. As far as construction-wise, there’s no telling. Everything has gone smoothly so far, no hiccups. … Weather-related issues are our only real only concerns.”
Related work
According to Brady, HISP is also working on a virtual lighthouse trailer. The project involves a virtual reality set housed in a trailer with heat and air conditioning that can go anywhere in the state.
Brady said the trailer will greatly benefit “people that can’t climb the lighthouse,” as well as, provide other teaching and programming opportunities.
The trailer will is expected to be completed in early 2026.
“We’re trying to get that in collaboration with the opening for the lighthouse,” Brady said, “but there’s no guarantee they will be at the same exact time.”
And then there’s the 1875 Fresnel Lense.
Prior to the start of renovation work, the lense — an 1875 Fresnel Lens of the largest 1st Order size – was displayed in the base of the lighthouse.
The lens was originally installed in the Charleston Lighthouse on Morris Island at the entrance to Charleston Harbor. But through good fortune, the state acquired the lense in 1962 from the U. S. Coast Guard.
According to Miller last year, in preparation for the Lighthouse restoration, the lens was disassembled in October 2023 and was in storage awaiting completion of an updated design which was completed in May 2024 by Artworks Florida and Dan Spinella. The design specifications used modern materials (marine-grade stainless steel) to greatly reduce or eliminate the need for maintenance to ensure quality of sustainability to the weather elements.
Friends of Hunting Island hired Pender Brothers of Port Royal to construct the newly designed frame, which is complete.
Now it appears HISP is close to announcing what the plans are for displaying the frame and lense.
“There will be a housing for the lens and we are very excited about it,” Brady said, though shedeclined to divulge any details. “Nothing [is] set in stone.”
Brady said they are hoped to announce something “if not at the same time as the opening for the lighthouse, then shortly afterward.”
Still going strong
Hunting Island State Park is the No. 1 visited state park in South Carolina with more than 1,000,000 visitors per year, according to Brady, and one of its main attractions has been closed to the public for three years.
“We still have very high visitation,” she said. “There has not a decline,” though she said park staff still gets questions.
She said the lighthouse closure does “affect revenue. It costs $2 to climb. But as far as admissions, we’ve been keeping steady.”
Editor’s note: Kirby Brady was named Park Manager for Hunting Island State Park & Saint Phillips Island in February 2024. The previous Park Manager, Zabo McCants, was promoted to SCPRT’s Lower Coastal Regional Chief.
Mike McCombs is the Editor of The Island News and can be reached at TheIslandNews@gmail.com.
