St. Simon's Island: Part II

The interior of Christ Episcopal Church.

The present sanctuary was erected in 1884, built in the shape of a cross, with beautiful stained-glass windows throughout, including one by Tiffany, and another depicting John Wesley preaching to the settlers. The woodwork is also unusually fine.

 

Stained-glass window in Christ Episcopal Church depicting John and Charles Wesley preaching to the settlers on St. Simon's Island.
 

 

 

 

 

  

Best-selling author Eugenia Price, who made Christ Church nationally known through her historical novels, is buried among the live oaks in the church's cemetery.

 

 

 

St. Simon's Island Lighthouse and Museum on Beachview Drive.

Dating from 1872, the St. Simon's light replaced one built in 1810 that was destroyed by the Confederates during the Civil War to make navigation more difficult for Yankee ships.The original light was 75 feet high and made of tabby taken from the ruins of Fort Frederica, in case you were wondering why so little is left of that fort. Some of it probably went into other building projects on the island as well. The use of  tabby was the idea of James Gould, who, after building the lighthouse, became its keeper for 27 years. Eugenia Price wrote about Gould in her historical novel, Lighthouse, the first book in her St. Simon's trilogy.

Congress authorized building a new lighthouse in 1867, but the project was delayed because of unhealthy living conditions. Stagnant ponds near the site bred mosquitoes, and two contractors died of fever before the lighthouse and Victorian-style keeper's residence were completed in 1872.

Now owned and managed by the Coastal Georgia Historical Society, the lighthouse and keeper's residence, currently a museum, are open for tours, including climbing the 129 steps to the top of the 104-foot tower.

 If you're hungry after climbing the lighthouse and would like to do a bit more exploration of a very interesting place, go left  on Beachview for a few blocks to a shopping area with some very good restaurants. My wife and I have eaten seafood several times at The Half Shell SSI, 504 Beachview Drive and always found it excellent. (Adapted from my book Backroads and Byways of Georgia.)

Both photos were made with an Olympus E-M5 digital camera with a Panasonic Lumix Vario-G 12-32mm lens.

Click on the link at left for information about ordering original signed prints from the Rock City Barns book.

If you like my pictures, visit my online gallery at https://davejenkins.pixels.com/  

Signed copies of my book Backroads and Byways of Georgia are available. The price is $22.95 plus $4.95 shipping. My PayPal address is djphoto@vol.com (which is also my email). Or you can mail a check to 8943 Wesley Place, Knoxville, TN 37922. Include your address and tell me how you would like your book inscribed.

Photography and text copyright 2026 David B.Jenkins.

I post Monday, Wednesday, and Friday unless life gets in the way.

Soli Gloria Deo -- For the glory of God alone.

Tags:   photography    digital photography   travel photography    St. Simon's Island, Georgia    Georgia coast    Panasonic Lumix 12-32mm Vario-G lens   Olympus E-M5 camera    Christ Episcopal Church    Eugenia Price