In order to hear the nautical “clang” of this 1,000-pound polished bell as the town of Barnegat Light did Saturday, a person previously would have had to pass by or work aboard the sturdy lightship Barnegat offshore years ago.
John Hedgepeth did work aboard the vessel 54 years ago. The lightship floated 10 miles off the shoaled Barnegat Inlet as a Coast Guard aid to navigation after the lighthouse was retired in 1927; then it returned after guarding in the Delaware River during World War II.
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