New London — The New London Maritime Society is dedicating efforts to increase public access and lighthouse preservation with trips and a New London family discount this summer.

NLMS has dubbed July and August of this year Lighthouse Summer. NLMS will offer weekend trips to Harbor and Ledge lighthouses through July and August, and two trips to Race Rock on Aug. 13 and 20.

Special for New London residents only, thanks to a grant from Veolia/New London Water Authority, boat tickets to explore inside Ledge Light and visit New London Harbor Light are just $5 for New London youth ages 7 through 18, and their parents. All tickets must be purchased in advance online.

Otherwise, the lighthouse tours are:

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[naviga:li]Harbor Light, $35 for adults, $30 for NLMS members, $25 for kids[/naviga:li]

[naviga:li]Ledge Light, $50 for adults, $35 for NLMS members, $35 for youths[/naviga:li]

[naviga:li]Race Rock, $100 for NLMS members, $135 for the general public[/naviga:li]

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Links to tours and other special Lighthouse Summer events will be posted on the maritime society website, nlmaritimesociety.org. 

Also, on July 26 at 4 p.m., the Henry Ferguson Museum on Fishers Island, N.Y., will host a benefit premiere of "The History of Race Rock Light." This 45-minute video, directed by Marisela La Grave and Pierce Rafferty, chronicles the story of how the lighthouse came to be erected in the 1870s on a dangerous submerged ledge amid some of the most unpredictable and swiftest-moving tides on the East Coast. The event is free and will be held at the Fishers Island Theater on Fishers Island, with a reception immediately following, and is a benefit to launch the New London Maritime Society’s restoration campaign for Race Rock Light. The campaign follows on the conditions assessment and preservation plan for Race Rock prepared by architects Walter Sedovic and Jill Gotthelf of Walter Sedovic Architects.