Stratford, Connecticut, was an active port in coastal trade, shipbuilding and oystering in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. To mark the entrance to the harbor, the first Stratford Point Lighthouse was built on the west side of the dangerous mouth of the Housatonic River in 1822. The present tower, 35 feet tall, was built along with a new keeper’s house in 1881. Theodore of “Theed” Judson was keeper from 1880 to 1921. In his more than 40 years at Stratford Point, Judson frequently made the local newspapers with sightings of sea monsters and mermaids.

The light station is still owned by the Coast Guard, but the town of Stratford holds occasional open houses for the public. Our guest in this episode, David Wright, is the Stratford town historian. He gives walking tours and writes articles about local history. When the lighthouse is open, David takes on the identity of Keeper Theodore Judson while his wife portrays the keeper’s wife, Kate.