New York Lighthouses

Published: 2007 - October, New York Itinerary

Whereas around Long Island and along the Hudson River the old lighthouses are still operating, aiding navigation, around Manhattan the lights that used to mark the shoreline shine no more. They are a thing of the past, left by the wayside in the race for modernization, losers in a competition against the flashy highrises and towers.
What has remained are two old ‘lightships’ anchored by the Manhattan piers. One is the Ambrose Lightship, at South Street Seaport, easy to spot with its red paint and name printed in huge letters along its bow. From 1908 through 1932 this lightship was used to mark a navigation crossroads in the New York Bay, at the mouth of the Ambrose Channel, the main waterway for large ships heading to the New York Harbor. Now a modern tower has taken its place. The other surviving lightship is the Frying Pan, at Pier 63 along the Hudson. Berthed on the other side of the river, in New Jersey, is another lightship, the Liberty Landing Marina. It operated in various locations from 1924 to 1968 and was used as an “Examination Vessel” during the Second World War, and later as a floating museum. Its planned dismantling has been averted thanks to an enterprising businessman who set up a restaurant aboard it called Lightship Bar and Grill: a perfect place to eat a burger while enjoying the view of the Manhattan skyline.
These are the few lucky lightships that survived the wear and tear of time – especially the not infrequent bumping with passing ships. But there are still several charming historical lighthouses around New York. Of distinct charm, thanks to its structure and history, is the Blackwell Island Light. The lighthouse, built of granite stones, is 50-foot high and rises on the northern end of Roosevelt Island. It is interesting, that while the island has changed names a number of times, the lighthouse still bears the name of its original owners, the Blackwell family. In 1828 the small island was bought by the city administration, to be used as prison and other public services. This in a way explains why the lighthouse is not included among the ‘official’ ones which were commissioned by the Coast Guard, but was built by the city – with prisoners as construction workers. A plaque on the lighthouse wall reads, “This work was done by / John McCarty / who built the light / house from the bottom to the / top all ye who do / pass by may / pray for his soul when he dies.” It was operational until 1940, and in 1975 was registered as a city historical landmark and, thanks to an anonymous donation of $120,000, was later restored.
Just outside Manhattan, under the George Washington Bridge, stands the Jeffrey’s Hook Lighthouse (for a guided tour, call +1 (212) 304-2365). The small red lighthouse is testimony to the intense traffic of merchant ships sailing between the Dutch and British colonies and of the Wiechquaesgeck Indian tribes – so intense, in fact, that boat accidents were quite common. The first improvised light was set up in 1889 to assist in navigation, and in 1921 the Coast Guard built the present lighthouse which would flash a bright red beam. The tower originally stood at Sandy Hook, New Jersey, where it was built in 1880. In 1917 it was dismantled and a few years later rebuilt at Jeffrey’s Hook. In 1979, and notwithstanding the huge bridge built right over this little lighthouse, it was entered into the National Register of Historic Places. It was even made operational again in 2002 for the 10th edition of a cultural festival celebrated around it annually during the month of September.
Six historical lighthouses for all of New York City are a meager number, but then you travel around Long Island and you see plenty of them – at Throgs Neck, Sands Point, Eaton’s Neck, Horton Point, Long Beach Bar, Cedar Island, Montauk Yacht Club, Montauk Point and on Fire Island, to name just a few.
Around the New York Bay we find the Robbins Reef Lighthouse, the small Fort Wadsworth Lighthouse (from atop which you can enjoy an amazing view of New York City), and the Staten Island Range and Princes Bay lighthouses.
But the real guardian of the New York Bay was the Navesink Lightstation, built atop the Navesink Highlands, which since its activation in 1841 (it was the first in America to be fitted with special Fresnel lenses) became the primary guiding light for ships approaching the United States. Its beacon was probably the first coastal light that many immigrants, Italians too, would see near the end of their long journey to “La Merica.”