The Green Lantern
5:01
A Great Lakes folk tale that is retold via this new, original folk song about the spooky legend of a lighthouse keeper on an island in Lake Michigan whose children disappeared when rowing a small boat back to the island from their school on the mainland.
"The Green Lantern"
Written by Scott CooleyThere was once a lighthouse keeper who was a good father
He wanted a good education for his son and his daughter
He bought them a small dory so they could row to school
Their mother had died years before when life had been so cruel
Each day they braved the lake to the mainland and back with laughter
To the happy home that became known for a green lantern
The island’s empty now, the lighthouse abandoned, but along that rocky shoal
You can see the green lantern and the man’s old wandering soul
St. Martin’s Island had a lighthouse for good reason
It guided ships away from rocks to Green Bay in any season
One day when rowing home from school, they got caught in a sudden squall
Their boat capsized by a Lake Michigan wave ten feet tall
They were never to be seen again, and their father was shattered
Their bodies never found with or without his green lantern
The island’s empty now, the lighthouse abandoned, but along that rocky shoal
You can see the green lantern and the man’s old wandering soul
He scoured the beach every night for the rest of his life
He never stopped searching ‘til the day he died
Ever since that day, whenever it’s about to storm
You can see a green light carried by a phantom form
The lighthouse keeper’s spirit living sadly ever after
Until he finds his children, we’ll always see the green lantern
The island’s empty now, the lighthouse abandoned, but along that rocky shoal
You can see the green lantern and the man’s old wandering soul
On the next stormy night, keep your sight trained along the island shore
For the green flickering light of restless fright and hope forever more