09/10/2026
Our beloved hometown of Astoria, Oregon is known for its incredibly rich maritime history. As such, we often see a good number of fantastic nautical objects cross our path...
The first one in the queue is a ship lantern by A. Ward Hendrickson & Co., Inc. which was a specialized American manufacturer of maritime and industrial illumination equipment based in Brooklyn, New York, operating primarily during the late 19th through the mid-20th century. Because they were built to withstand severe saltwater corrosion and turbulent maritime environments, Hendrickson lanterns used incredibly heavy, industrial-grade materials. Their early models were traditional oil- and kerosene-burning lamps, and as electricity became standard on seafaring vessels, they adapted their designs to create rugged, specialized electric fixtures. A defining characteristic of Ward & Hendrickson lanterns is their widespread integration of thick, high-quality Fresnel lenses. These concentric, stepped glass lenses were designed to concentrate and project light over massive distances at sea, maximizing visibility through thick ocean fog and heavy storms.
