GOULDSBORO — A ceiling ventilation fan is to blame for the Monday morning fire that partially destroyed the Prospect Harbor Lighthouse keeper’s cottage.

The heavily damaged dwelling is still standing on the grounds of the U.S. Naval Satellite Operations Center in Prospect Harbor. The 173-year-old light tower was not damaged, but the U.S. Navy says it’s too early to determine whether the heavily damaged historic keeper’s quarters will be rebuilt.

In a statement Tuesday, the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard’s deputy public affairs officer, Gary Hildreth, said the Navy is aware of the Prospect Harbor light station’s historical significance and the Schoodic Peninsula community’s interest, but he said “it is too early in the damage assessment to make any final decisions regarding the cottage’s future.”

Called Gull Cottage, the two-story, wood-frame house has been used as a vacation retreat for active and retired military personnel, National Guard reservists and 100 percent disabled veterans and their families. A family had been staying in the house and reported the fire around 5 a.m. Family members were able to get out of the dwelling and no was injured.

On Tuesday, Maine Department of Public Safety spokeswoman Shannon Moss reported that the fire was accidental and triggered by a ventilation fan in the ceiling of an upstairs bathroom. The findings were based on an on-site investigation Monday by a Maine Fire Marshal’s Office investigator.

After learning of the fire Monday, Gouldsboro Historical Society members put aside their document scanning and dug out member Bob Stratten’s scrapbook devoted to the Prospect Harbor Lighthouse. During the day, they posted historic images of the lighthouse and keeper’s quarters in the structures’ different phases.

“We don’t have the names of the photographers, but we thank them for depicting this iconic feature in our town, emblematic of our reliance on the sea and the perilous relationship we have with it. The protector now needs OUR protection…” they wrote on the society’s Facebook page.

Flipping through the local phone book, Faulkingham, Noyes, Sargent and Workman are just a few of the names of Schoodic Peninsula’s living descendants of the Prospect Harbor Lighthouse keepers who lived in the white and green-trimmed cottage from 1849 to 1934. Albion T. Faulkingham was the beacon’s last keeper before it was automated in 1934. Of course, the Schoodic area’s various lobster fleets and other watercraft still use the Prospect Harbor Lighthouse and its beacon as a navigational aid. A detailed model of the Prospect Harbor Light Station stands next to the Gouldsboro town office.

When Gull Cottage’s guests called 911, the Gouldsboro and Winter Harbor fire departments and Gouldsboro police were at the U.S. Navy facility within minutes. Billowing black smoke from Gull Cottage’s roof could be seen from across the harbor and beyond. East of Ellsworth, every fire department responded. Steuben, Sorrento, Sullivan, Franklin, Hancock, Cherryfield, Lamoine and Trenton firefighters steadily streamed in to help fight the fire, which initially was concentrated in the wood-frame dwelling’s roof and second story. The Schoodic EMS squad also was on site and Milbridge dispatched an ambulance that stood by on Route 1. The Blue Hill Fire Department served as backup for the Sullivan Fire Department. Gouldsboro police also assisted.

Appointed by selectmen last Thursday, Gouldsboro Fire Chief Todd Daley credited the quick response of area fire departments and steady arrival of tankers to put out the fire. A water retention pond was set up. Daley said a southwest wind suddenly picked up and complicated the firefighting effort. The light tower was unscathed enabling firefighters to use its height to their advantage to track the fire’s progression and as a platform to fight the fire.

While Gull Cottage’s ocean-facing first floor, with its covered porch, looks partially intact, the chief says both fire and water wreaked much damage.

“Between water and fire damage, it is a complete loss,” Daley summed up Monday.

A U.S. Navy rear admiral’s oil painting of the Prospect Harbor Light Station was among the historical pictures saved from the house.

Activated in 1849, the original Prospect Harbor Lighthouse and attached 1.5-story lightkeeper’s quarters were constructed with granite. The first appointed lightkeeper was Nathaniel Noyes. The lantern room was fitted with an improved fifth-order Fresnel lens, changing the beacon’s fixed white light to a flash every 60 seconds. The original lighthouse and cottage were replaced with wood structures in 1891.

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