Chesapeake Bay lighthouse auctioned, with strings attached

HOOPERSVILLE, Md. (AP) — The federal government has sold off a lighthouse in the middle of the Chesapeake Bay for a six-figure sum after a bidding war at auction. The Washington Post reports the Hooper Island Lighthouse at first drew little interest but ended up selling for a winning bid of $192,000. The rusting and rather inhospitable lighthouse known locally as the “sparkplug” has an outer ladder but no nearby dock for a boat to moor. A 2019 inspection also found lead-based paint, asbestos, benzene and other dangerous substances inside, where there is no water, electricity or other utilities. The identity of the new owner wasn’t immediately clear.