New Map for Lighthouse Lovers

RHINEBECK, N.Y., Aug. 2, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --Every year millions of travelers visit the historic beacons that light the shores of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, Gulf Coast, Great Lakes and inland waters. To aid those voyages of discovery, Bella Terra Publishing – http://www.bellaterramaps.com – has produced an all-new edition of the United States Lighthouses Illustrated Map & Guide. More than 75,000 copies of the map have been sold since 1999, with the last update in 2004.

(Photo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110802/NY44218 )

The United States Lighthouses Illustrated Map & Guide locates nearly 800 standing lighthouses across the 50 states. The detailed cartography and comprehensive directory are complemented by 46 original watercolor illustrations, most of them specially commissioned. Lighthouse buffs can engage in armchair travel, plan future trips, or simply enjoy the evocative paintings—from Portland Head, Maine, to Kilauea Point, Hawaii.

Derived from Bella Terra's new database, the directory includes the operating status of each lighthouse, its official name, alternate names, year of first lighting, year of current structure, location description, plus latitude and longitude. And it can be used to stump friends with trivia questions. For example: Which state has the most lighthouses? (Answer: Michigan, with 130.)

Keeping the map up to date isn't easy, says Bella Terra's publisher, Bella Stander. "Some lighthouses disappear. Over the past decade, hurricanes destroyed six just in Louisiana. Some are rebuilt, such as Cape St. George in Florida, which toppled into the sea in 2005 and was reconstructed using the original bricks. Some reappear as replicas, such as Roanoke Marshes, North Carolina. And new ones are still being built, such as Clover Island, Washington." While there are many so-called lighthouses, the map includes only those accepted as official aids to navigation by the Coast Guard or local authorities.

United States Lighthouses Illustrated Map & Guide is available as a folded map ($9.95) and rolled laminated poster ($14.95) at lighthouse and maritime museum stores, gift shops and bookstores, and online at amazon.com.

Bella Terra® also publishes lighthouse illustrated maps and guides for Maine, Massachusetts, the Mid-Atlantic (NJ-VA), the Southeast (NC-GA), Florida and the Northwest (OR-AK). California & Hawaii Lighthouses will be released this fall.

CONTACT:
Bella Stander, Publisher
Bella Terra Publishing LLC
+1-845-876-5750
[email protected]

SOURCE Bella Terra Publishing LLC