How did a landlocked town on a slab of granite in Southern New Hampshire settle on a lighthouse as its most iconic symbol?
Here’s the backstory. The lighthouse was created circa 1955 by Brooklliner Peter Mourgis, who lived on Lake Potanipo just above where his lighthouse now stands. He gave it to the town to be helpful to boaters at night or in the fog, daughter Haralyn Mourgis Charius told “Nestled Here: A History of Brookline, New Hampshire, 1915-2018” – another project driven by local volunteers.
Near the end of the 20th century, Brookline’s genial beacon went dark. But in 2017, volunteer Brookliners restored it with a new wooden frame, plaster, fresh paint and LED lights on a timer. And there it stands, perched permanently (one hopes) at the point where Potanipo pours into the Nissitissit, one of the last free-flowing rivers in Southern New England.
It’s not clear whether this lighthouse is a replica of any other. But to me it recalls the Portland Head Light, the oldest lighthoue in Maine and, according to its brochure, “the most photographed lighthouse in America.” Perhaps. But there is no doubt that ours is the most photographed lighthouse in Brookline. When it came to choosing a logo for Brookline603, the lighthouse was our first and only choice.
Our logo was also a gift from a volunteer. Podcasts need logos, our podcast hosts at Simplecast told us. The Internet site they recommended promised that anyone could design a logo in 10 minutes. Anyone! I finished mine at 4 a.m.
Happily, Maria Toupin, a senior at Southern New Hampshire University, learned that we needed a logo. She is studying Mechanical Engineering but had taken graphic design classes online. She sent me her version of a lighthouse logo overnight. I sent both options off to the designers. “HERS!” they said, without hesitation. “It’s clear and simple. Just look at Elon Musk. His logo for [the new Twitter] X is X.”
I later asked Maria how she came up with her design. “I tried to come up with things people most relate to lighthouses, which is most definitely the light part. So I wanted to make sure I had light somewhere. And I also wanted it to be simple. But not much else, lighthouses are very recognizable.”
My logo had our name, lighthouse, the lake, trees on the far shore, and as much of our our mission statement as I could wedge into the required small square. Hers had the name, a black line representing the light house, and light. Simple.
So thank you, Maria And thank you, all those Brookline volunteers who keep the town running or found ways to make it better down the ages,
Perhaps our lighthouse, in addition to its beauty and value to befogged boaters looking for the parking lot, is also a standing tribute to the record for good of volunteers in our town.
credit: Rob Chaddock