Cochranville, Pennsylvania

America's Most Famous Lighthouse:  It's not tubular. It's not even 3-dimensional. But, it's still recognizable as the Cape Hatteras Lighthouse. And, it's popular: Images like this can be found all over the country, even in cemeteries, and not just in North Carolina. Cochranville Cemetery. [2014]

Adairsville, Georgia

America's Most Famous Lighthouse:  Here's the Cape Hatteras Light in the contiguous zone. It may not be tubular, but you can recognize it by its unique stripes. They serve as daymarkers. Every light has a different appearance so mariners will know where they are during the day. What are your daymarkers? What marks your path through life? Eastview Cemetery. [2013]

Lumberton, North Carolina

America's Most Famous Lighthouse:  Do you recognize the Cape Hatteras Light? The candy stripes give it away. Americans love superlatives, and the tower at Cape Hatteras is the nation's tallest. We love it so much we put it on our headstones and take it to heaven with us. In fact, it points toward heaven, presumably so visitors will know where we have gone. Thus, a landscape element becomes a deathscape element. Meadowbrook Cemetery. [2011]

Tuckerton, New Jersey

New Jersey's Barnegat Lighthouse:  How many lighthouses do you see here? What is the lifespan of each? One will last a few hours; one will last a few years; and one will last forever. Which one is which? What about the fourth light, the one who lasted over eight decades? Greenwood Cemetery. [2016]

Tuckerton, New Jersey

New Jersey's Barnegat Lighthouse:  Each lighthouse is given a different pattern, which is sometimes enhanced by different colors. The designs are not for aesthetic purposes, but because the towers are used as navigational aides during the day. In fact, in this role, they serve as daymarkers. When people off the coast see a lighthouse, they know which one it is by its markings, and that's the way they know where they are. Perhaps this fisherman used the Barnegat Light as a daymarker during his many returns from Neptune's domain. Greenwood Cemetery. [2016]