Pomham Rocks Lighthouse’s Sixth Keeper Honored with Marker

On June 13, 2026, sixteen members of Friends of Pomham Rocks Lighthouse met at the gravesite of Keeper William James Howard at Pocasset Cemetery, Bourne, Mass., to honor his service, from 1937-1951, as Pomham Rock’s sixth light keeper. Born in Nantucket, Mass. in 1891, both his father, Alfred, and brother, George, were also light keepers. The group was honored to be joined by Keeper Howard’s great granddaughter, Kimberly Boutin, who brought family photographs, official documents, uniform patches and memorabilia of Keeper Howard, his wife, Alice, who was a published poet, and son, William Alfred, who honed his artistic talent at Rhode Island School of Design.

Prior to Pomham Rocks, Keeper Howard served as a laborer at Miah Maull Shoal Lighthouse in Delaware from 1914 to 1915. He then served as Second, then First Assistant Lighthouse Keeper at Boston Light, from 1919-1925. For the next ten years, he was first Assistant Lighthouse Keeper to his brother, George, at Wings Neck Lighthouse in Pocasset, Mass. From 1935 to 1937 Keeper Howard was First Assistant Keeper at Highland in North Truro, MA. in 1937, he was promoted to Principal Lighthouse Keeper at Pomham Rocks Lighthouse, and he remained there until he retired in 1951. Keeper Howard lived at Pomham with his wife, Alice and son, William Alfred.

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Life on the island lighthouse was isolated and still quite rustic during his tenure on what Keeper Howard referred to as “Little Alcatraz.” There was no running water. A cistern in the basement collected rain water which the family accessed through a hand pump in the kitchen. There was no electricity on the island and no bathtub. A refrigerator and stove ran on kerosene and a radio was powered by a small windmill. To pass the time, Keeper Howard played guitar and harmonica and carved models of ships. During the brutal winter of 1939, the waters surrounding Pomham Rocks froze over completely, leaving Keeper Howard and his family stranded. When his wife needed medical assistance, he had to drag her across the ice and snow to the mainland.

During his more than three decades of lighthouse service, Keeper Howard gained a reputation as a lifesaver. In 1921, he rescued a fellow assistant keeper whose boat had capsized. He also rescued a man and four boys from an overturned boat and, in 1940, saved four men in a disabled motorized craft which was drifting toward dangerous rocks.

Friends of Pomham Rocks Lighthouse President Alex Dias and Lighthouse Service Ceremony Chair Joseph Silvestri placed a United States Lighthouse Service marker on Keeper Howard’s grave. Following the ceremony, members met for lunch with Keeper Howard’s great granddaughter at The Lobster Trap in Bourne. Keeper Howard is the sixth of seven civilian lighthouse keepers to be honored by Friends of Pomham Rocks Lighthouse.