Beacon. in Good Morning Providence.

-I've developed a fascination with lighthouses in recent weeks. With limited personal understanding of maritime activity and the historical institutions and implications of the structure, I will take it upon myself to research and visit them.
-Each feels out of place in space and time : a rotating spotlight situated within a sturdy tower, emblazoned in brilliant colors, or a compartment jutting from the rooftop of seaside houses, the architectural conspicuousness, coupled with a tradition spanning millennia, the It is a current blessing to live within such close proximity to the shoreline, and in turn, possible access to many lighthouses along the Pacific.
-Given the progression of modern technology, swift, efficient airlines, high-speed rail systems, and an ever declining national propensity to consume fish, I can only presume that the institution of the lighthouse is currently within its twilight.
-To what extent has our small, private maritime industry become so obsolete, that the iconic lighthouse as depicted by Kinkade (ugh..), Rockwell, and other illustrators of American lore, become unused, and possibly condemned to spend the remainder of its existence as an obelisk, curated, and described upon a brass plate, or to be demolished then replaced by additional high-density housing?
-I intend to embark upon a coastal trip in the next year to answer these questions, to better assess what consequence the institution of the American Lighthouse bears upon the future?