Let’s start with the friends of the house, as among them there were three prominent cultural figures of Estonia. And all these were from one family; they were the Krusten brothers. There were actually six Krusten brothers, who were the sons of Jaan, a gardener at Muraste mansion and his wife Triino. Otto, the oldest of the brothers, was born in 1888 and he became a known cartoonist. The youngest brother Ernst was born in 1900 and he became the writer Erni Krusten. And between those two there were 4 other boys, among which Peter (1897) became the writer Pedro Krusten. The sister of their mother Triino, the aunt of the Krusten boys, was married to a retired soldier who was the keeper of the lower lighthouse, so the boys had a reason to visit it often. The mother Triino died in the lower lighthouse in 1914. Specifically, the mother of the Krustens suffered a heart attack from joy when she met her son in the lighthouse, who was thought to be killed in the war.

Lighthouse servant Alexey Feodorov and his wife.

Between 1907 and 1955 worked ath the Suurupi lighthouse servant Alexey Feodorov together with his wife.

After World War II, the keeper of the Suurupi lower lighthouse, Elmar Kares, became the keeper of the upper lighthouse. At that time the keeper of the lower lighthouse was the landlord Johannes Mänd. He left in 1963 and Hilda Oja, who was born in 1922, became a lighthouse keeper (being 41 at that time). Hilda was on duty for 10 years. Officially, some man was registered as a lighthouse keeper. It’s not known exactly, why. In those days of Hilda Oja, 1963-1973, there was a gas light in the lighthouse.

In 1973, when Hilda Oja quit the lighthouse keeper’s position, the lighthouse went over to electricity. After the connection of electricity, the lower lighthouse was controlled from the upper lighthouse and the position of keeper of the lower lighthouse was eliminated.

Avo Oja on stairs of Suurupi Lighthouse Front. Photo: Mati Õun

The buildings next to the lighthouse belonged to the sons of Hilda Oja in early 2000. Avo Oja lived in a former lighthouse sauna, built in 1906. The living house of the lighthouse people was owned by Avo’s brother, Edward Oja. They acquired the buildings by privatisation.

The Oja brothers sold the buildings.

The work of the lighthouse itself is automated like its “big brother’s” on the high bank.