Lewis Clarke was a First Assistant Lighthouse Keeper at Crisp Point from April 16, 1919 to December 8, 1920. Lewis was born in Birmingham, England and his date of birth was July 18, 1899. Prior to his service at Crisp Point, he was a Second Assistant Lighthouse Keeper at the Outer Island Light Station in Wisconsin starting on June 23, 1918. Prior to that he reported that he was a fisherman and completed public education to the eighth grade.
He received a letter of commendation from the Assistant Secretary of Commerce, E.F. Sweet, in June of 1920 for the assistance he rendered to the Steamer F.R. Hazard on June 12, 1920. The steamer had been in a collision with another vessel. However, Lewis was charged with sleeping on duty on July 27, 1920 and again on October 8, 1920. The government discharged him from the Lighthouse Service effective on December 8, 1920.
Lewis later applied to be an additional keeper in the 7th Lighthouse District, Florida, but when the Lighthouse Service discovered his dismissal from Crisp Point for allegedly sleeping on watch, his appointment in Florida was cancelled. To see actual documents related to Lewis, go to the following link: https://archives.uslhs.org/people/lewis-n-clarke.
