In 1965, a small group of local residents formed the Coastal Georgia Historical Society with an ambitious vision: to lead in the preservation of the documents, artifacts and buildings that are the treasures of our coast’s heritage. Their goal was to match the best historical societies in existence. The momentum and enthusiasm created in the Society’s first year has never abated.
Preparing for the 21st century, the A.W. Jones Heritage Center opened in 2008. Left to right: Marie Dodd and Jack Hartman, co-chairs of the capital campaign committee; Cesar Rodriguez and Merry Tipton, Board leadership during the project; Bill Jones III, who secured the $1.25 million lead gift from the 2004 G-8 Summit Host Committee.
Today, as owner of the St. Simons Lighthouse and the A.W. Jones Heritage Center and custodian of the Lighthouse Keeper’s Dwelling and the Historic Coast Guard Station at East Beach, the Society has become the guardian of coastal Georgia history and a driver of our area’s heritage tourism. These sites are more than essential pieces of our collective history. They are alive with vibrant interpretation – telling our coastal story through tours, lectures, exhibits and educational programs.
Past and present leadership, Society founders and current Executive Committee. Standing foreground, left to right: Dave Fox, Special Advisor; Dewey Benefield, founding member; Sherri Jones, Executive Director. Standing on porch, left to right: Frank DeLoach Sr., founding member; Kevin Lokey, Secretary; Hillary Stringfellow, President; Albert Fendig, founding member; Rusty Bolt, Treasurer. (Executive Committee members not shown: Anne Stembler, Past President; Lewis Glenn, Vice President; Ralph Jernigan, Endowments; Mimi Rogers, Curator.)
Over the years, the Society has prospered with the support of its members, the community and visitors. From just 56 founding members, the current membership is approximately 750; an endowment of $150,000 established in 1982 has grown to $1.6 million; and the Society’s archival collection now includes over 15,000 documents, maps, photographs, paintings, rare books and other artifacts.
The archives safeguard over 15,000 historically significant items. Curator Mimi Rogers (standing second from right) at work in the archives room with volunteers, Patty Mallicote, Janis Rodriguez, Nancy Jenkins (seated) and Susan Garrett.
1965 to 1975: The Early Years
Under the leadership of Brunswick Junior College president Earl Hargett, a group of community leaders formed the Coastal Georgia Historical Society “to collect, preserve and perpetuate the historical heritage of the South Georgia coastal region.” It soon became apparent that the Society needed a facility to exhibit and store its growing collection of documents and other artifacts. The solution to this dilemma was found when the Society learned that the Keeper’s Dwelling – the historic companion to the St. Simons Lighthouse and the island’s oldest intact brick residence – was being designated as excess property by the Federal government and would be sold to the highest bidder. Albert Fendig Jr. and other Society leaders began a community initiative to preserve the Dwelling as a coastal history museum. Between 1971 and 1973, that initiative led to the Dwelling being listed on the National Register of Historic Places and the award of a Federal historic preservation grant for restoration.
On August 25, 1971, the deed to the Keeper’s Dwelling was conveyed to Glynn County from the Federal government with the agreement that the Society would restore, maintain and utilize the facilities. After restoration under the leadership of Southern decorative arts expert Henry Green, the Dwelling opened in 1975 as the Museum of Coastal History.
During this decade, the Society established its long term relationship with bestselling author Eugenia Price. Her St. Simons Trilogy brought thousands of visitors to the Lighthouse. Ms. Price remained a loyal supporter of the Society throughout her life.
The St. Simons Lighthouse Museum. Housed in the Keeper’s Dwelling at the foot of the St. Simons Lighthouse, the restoration of the historic structure and creation of the new museum was completed in 2014.
1975-1985: A Decade of Expansion
Over the next decade, the Society expanded its educational outreach and more fully engaged the community in its activities. The Society’s first Director/Curator Anne Shelander organized an ambitious series of exhibits, with topics including American lighthouses, Glynn County history 1915-1945, and Cannon’s Point Plantation. Over the succeeding decades, the Society would produce over 40 exhibits interpreting coastal history.
Dedicated men and women established the docent and volunteer program that remains a vital component of Society operations. In June 1980, a “Keeper’s Store” opened in the 1890 Oil House next to the Lighthouse, the forerunner of today’s Museum Store in the A.W. Jones Heritage Center.
In 1984, two significant events furthered the Society’s mission and laid the groundwork for future growth. The U.S. Coast Guard placed the St. Simons Lighthouse under Society stewardship, which added climbing the tower to the museum experience. Also, the Society’s Endowment Trust purchased the St. Simons Post Office property on Beachview Drive, which secured the site for a future heritage center.
At the opening of an American lighthouses exhibit in the Keeper’s Dwelling. Don Carter, President (1985-1986) and Anne Shelander, first Director/Curator (1975-1987).
1985-1995: A Commitment to Excellence
During this decade, the Society completed two important preservation projects. In 1988, the gazebo that had been located next to the 1910 Strachan House was given to the Society. The circular building was carefully trucked to the Lighthouse grounds from Butler Avenue west of the Village and subsequently restored. Today, it is the focal point of the Society’s popular Little Light Music summer concert series and a favorite venue for weddings.
Staff members at the oceanfront Gazebo on the Lighthouse lawn. Left to right: Kathy O’Brien, Assistant Museum Store Manager; Susan Bacon, Development Coordinator; Sandy Jensen, Education Director; Leigh Ann Stroud, Public Relations Director; Carla Herndon, Office Manager; Curt Smith, Events Coordinator and Museum Store Manager.
The passage connecting the Lighthouse and the Keeper’s Dwelling was reconstructed in 1990, which recreated the original design built by architect Charles B. Cluskey in the 1870s. A ramp for the disabled was also added.
Also in 1990, the Society launched a popular summer event that continues today – the Chautauqua Lecture Series. Now in its twenty-fifth year, the four part series draws hundreds to lectures given by recognized experts and authors based on a compelling theme developed by the Society’s curator.
The Society's commitment to museum best practices was affirmed in 1991 with accreditation by the American Alliance of Museums, the highest honor a museum can receive. The Society was then one of only nine museums in Georgia with this prestigious designation. Today, it is one of only fifteen.
At the end of the decade, Buddy Sullivan presented the inaugural series of his coastal history lectures, beginning a much beloved tradition that continues today.
1995-2005: A Master Plan to Fulfill Our Mission
The decade began with the opening of the Society’s most ambitious traveling exhibit to date, Transatlantic Linkage: The Gullah/Geechee – Sierra Leone Connection. Curated by Society Director Linda King, this examination of the cultural exchange between the West African coast and the southern coast of America was chosen as an official event of the Cultural Olympiad during the 1996 Atlanta Olympics.
Furthering the Society’s commitment to education, a grant from the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation in 1993 funded development of a heritage education program for Glynn County schools. In recognition of this outstanding teacher training initiative, the Society received the National Award for Museum and Library Service, an honor given to only three museums in 1999.
The Society receives a National Award for Museum Service in 1999. Standing left to right: Ruth Kolumber, President (1999-2000); Pat Morris, Curator and later Executive Director (2000-2010); Linda King, Director (1987-2000); U.S. Congressman Jack Kingston.
In 2001, the Society became custodian of the Historic Coast Guard Station, and by February 2005, restoration of the building had been completed. The Maritime Center later opened to the public with exhibits focusing on the natural history of the barrier islands and the Coast Guard Station experience.
In 2002, Executive Director Pat Morris and the Society’s Board set in motion a plan to build a heritage center on the site of the old Post Office. This initiative would provide much-needed archival storage, meeting facilities, exhibit space, staff offices and a museum store. To fund the project, the Society launched its Lighting Our Way Campaign with a goal of $5 million. Achievement of this ambitious goal became possible when Bill Jones III recommended support of the center as the legacy project for the 2004 G8 Summit of World Leaders held on Sea Island. A stunning $2.5 million challenge grant from the Summit Host Committee and the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation was then matched by $2.5 million raised by the Society from individual donors, businesses and foundations. Subsequently, an additional $500,000 was raised to outfit the Coast Guard Station boathouse as an education center.
In 2004, the Society celebrated acquisition of the Lighthouse, when the tower was transferred from the Federal government by the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act. On July 11, Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton made it official saying, "Groups like the Society and its volunteers are the lifeblood of lighthouse preservation around the country.”
2005 to 2015: Realizing Dreams
The last ten years have realized many Society dreams and initiatives. In April 2006, the Maritime Center at the Historic Coast Guard Station opened. The Lighting Our Way Campaign reached its goal, enabling construction of the A.W. Jones Heritage Center, the Society’s new headquarters building, which opened in 2008.
The Society then launched two major restoration projects. In September 2009, the Lighthouse beam was turned off with a special event dubbed "The Big Turn Off" in preparation for restoration of the tower – an extensive $700,000 top-to-bottom project. “The Big Turn On” event in May 2010 marked the completion of the project and was attended by thousands.
From 2011 to 2013, research, design, and engineering for restoration of the Keeper’s Dwelling were undertaken, accompanied by a $1.3 million capital campaign. On May 17, 2014, the St. Simons Lighthouse Museum re-opened in the restored Dwelling with a newly imagined museum experience featuring interactive exhibits, rare artifacts and historical images that tell the story of the Lighthouse and our area’s history.
The quality preservation and programming initiatives of the Society have been recognized through awards from the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation and the Governor’s Awards for the Humanities. But the success of the Society can be measured in more than awards garnered. It is reflected in record-breaking admission revenues, the dramatic increase in high-level Keeper of the Light memberships and capacity attendance at lectures and programs. These achievements represent not only increased financial security for maintaining historic structures and providing educational programs, but also the continued belief in the importance of the Society’s work by our members, friends and visitors, for which we are deeply grateful.
The Future: An Educational and Cultural Center for the Community
As the Coastal Georgia Historical Society celebrates 50 years, it looks confidently ahead to new projects, new opportunities and new challenges that reflect its mission and reward our community and visitors.
The Society’s bold five-year strategic plan envisions the following: creation of a WWII Museum at the Historic Coast Guard Station with interactive exhibits interpreting the events that took place here during wartime; expansion of the A.W. Jones Heritage Center to include a new exhibit hall to provide a venue for regular exhibits of the Society’s collections as well as traveling exhibits; more programming for members including a new winter series, regular oral history presentations, rotating exhibits of the Society’s collections and expert-led field trips to historic sites; and doubling the number of school children served by engaging students with hands-on living history and archaeology programs that reveal the fascinating stories of our past.
Involving students from the ground up! The Society engages thousands of area school children annually in coastal history activities from the new archaeology program at the Historic Coast Guard Station to climbing the Lighthouse and exploring the Museum.
Join Us as We Celebrate History!
To learn more about events, activities, programs and membership opportunities, call Sherri Jones, Executive Director at 912-634-7080 or visit saintsimonslighthouse.org.
