Fire Island Lighthouse

Fire Island Lighthouse

Fire Island Lighthouse
Location Fire Island inlet, Long Island
Coordinates 40°37′56.8″N 73°13′6.9″W / 40.632444°N 73.218583°W / 40.632444; -73.218583Coordinates: 40°37′56.8″N 73°13′6.9″W / 40.632444°N 73.218583°W / 40.632444; -73.218583
Year first constructed 1826
Year first lit 1858
Automated 1986
Deactivated Active, inactive 1974–1986
Foundation Connecticut River Blue Stone/timber
Construction Brick encased in cement
Tower shape Conical tower
Markings / pattern Four black and white bands
Height 168 feet (51 m) [1]
Original lens First order Fresnel 1856
Current lens Carlisle & Finch Company
Range 24 nautical miles (44 km; 28 mi)
Characteristic Flashing White 7.5 seconds counterclockwise.
ARLHS number USA-286 [2]
USCG number

1–695

Fire Island Light Station; Fire Island Light Station Historic District
Nearest city Bay Shore, New York
Area 0.3 acres (0.12 ha)
Built 1858
Architect Morton, J.T.
NRHP Reference # 81000082[3] 09001288[4]
Added to NRHP September 11, 1981; January 29, 2010 (boundary increase)

The Fire Island Lighthouse is a visible landmark on the Great South Bay, in southern Suffolk County, New York on the western end of Fire Island, a barrier island off the southern coast of Long Island. The lighthouse is located within Fire Island National Seashore and just to the east of Robert Moses State Park. It is part of the Fire Island Light Station which contains the light, keepers quarters, the lens building containing the original first-order Fresnel lens, and a boat house.

History

The original first order Fresnel lens

The current lighthouse is a 180-foot (55 m) stone tower that began operation in 1858 to replace the 74-foot (23 m) tower originally built in 1826. The United States Coast Guard decommissioned the light in 1974. In 1982 the Fire Island Lighthouse Preservation Society (FILPS) was formed to preserve the lighthouse. FILPS raised over $1.2 million to restore the tower and light. On May 25, 1986 the United States Coast Guard returned the Fire Island Lighthouse to an active aid to navigation. On February 22, 2006, the light became a private aid to navigation. It continues to be on the nautical charts, but is operated and maintained by the Fire Island Lighthouse Preservation Society and not the USCG. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1981 and a boundary increase for the national historic district occurred in 2010.[3][4][5][6]

It is listed as Fire Island Light, number 695, in the USCG light lists.[7]

When the lighthouse was built it was on the edge of Fire Island Inlet and marked the western end of Fire Island. However Fire Island has extended itself through accumulating sand so that the lighthouse is now nearly five miles (8.0 km) from the western end of the island at Democrat Point.[8]

The Archives Center at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History has a collection (#1055) of souvenir postcards of lighthouses and has digitized 272 of these and made them available online. These include postcards of Fire Island Light[9] with links to customized nautical charts provided by National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration.

The lighthouse celebrated its 150th Anniversary in 2008, the same year as the 100th Anniversary of Robert Moses State Park.

Access

Fire Island Lighthouse

The lighthouse can be accessed by a short walk from Robert Moses State Park – Field 5. It is open to the public daily. Tower tours are available for a small fee.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Inventory of Historic Lighthouses". National Park Service. Retrieved 2007-08-14.
  2. ↑ ARLHS World List of Lights
  3. 1 2 National Park Service (2009-03-13). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  4. 1 2 "WEEKLY LIST OF ACTIONS TAKEN ON PROPERTIES: 1/25/10 THROUGH 1/29/10". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2010-02-05.
  5. ↑ Steven Kesselman (April 1981). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Fire Island Light Station". New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Retrieved 2010-02-20. See also: "Accompanying three photos".
  6. ↑ Stephen Olausen and Laura Kline (January 2009). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Fire Island Light Station Historic District (boundary increase)". New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Retrieved 2010-02-20. See also: "Accompanying 18 photos".
  7. ↑ Light List, Volumes 1-7. United States Coast Guard.
  8. ↑ "Robert Moses State Park/Fire Island National Seashore". Geology of National Parks. United States Geological Survey. Retrieved November 22, 2015.
  9. ↑ Smithsonian lighthouse postcards
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