Posted by Peter Noyes

Ford Reiche’s passion for Maine and its history stems from his family’s many generations in the state. A self-made historian, he has acquired and restored several buildings on the National Register of Historic Places, including houses, a railroad station, and most notably, Halfway

Rock Lighthouse—a complex, hands-on, extensively researched undertaking. Maine Preservation Association recognized the project with its 2016 Preservation Award, and the American Lighthouse Foundation presented Reiche its 2017 “Keeper of the Light” award honoring his “contribution to the preservation of America’s lighthouses and their rich tradition.” 

Perched on a barren ledge of two acres at the mouth of Casco Bay, Halfway Rock Light Station is a remote, wave-swept beacon, nearly inaccessible and totally exposed to the ravages of Mother Nature. The lighthouse’s 76-foot-tall granite tower and the attached two-story wood structure built of huge frame timbers present a striking image on the water.

Halfway Rock was a fully staffed lighthouse of the federal government from 1871 until 1976, when it was automated and essentially abandoned. The lighthouse was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1988, but its deteriorating condition soon earned it recognition on lists of endangered and “doomsday” lighthouses. In 2014, it was deemed surplus federal property and auctioned. Ford Reiche, the winning bidder, acquired the light in 2015.

Reiche has devoted significant energy and resources to preserving Halfway Rock Light Station in what Lighthouse Digest has described as “a miracle restoration in Casco Bay, Maine.”

A former attorney and entrepreneur, Reiche’s background includes founding Safe Handling, a firm that reduced the cost of moving certain goods by eliminating their water so they could be shipped in a dry state to their point of use. He was named a business leader of the year in 2008 by Mainebiz.

A graduate of the University of Maine, Orono, with a JD from the University of Maine School of Law, Ford lives in Freeport with his “quite patient” wife, Karen.