What started as a lighthearted joke a few years ago, has evolved into the Summersville Lake Lighthouse, a joke no more. This is a 105-foot-7-inch, 72,000-pound, 10-story, full-beam lighthouse on the shores of the lake, and it is one of the region’s highlight tourist destinations, gaining ground on the New River Gorge Bridge. This is the coast of West Virginia.  The big, metal lighthouse, which started life as the base for one of those huge windmills that dot the countryside, was built by high school students and a legion of community volunteers over five years, cost half a million dollars and brought the community together in a spectacular way.  Tourists, who pay $7 to enter, can climb the metal, student-designed stairs to a viewing ledge that gives a spectacular view of the lake and surrounding mountain region. Steve Keblesh, the lighthouse’s unofficial keeper, launches into a tale about the lighthouse, full of enthusiasm, detail and [...]

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