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    • Maine Lighthouses
      • Baker Island Lighthouse, Maine
      • Bass Harbor Head Lighthouse, Maine
      • Blue Hill Bay Light, Maine
      • Boon Island Lighthouse, Maine
      • Browns Head Lighthouse, Vinalhaven, Maine
      • Burnt Coat Harbor Lighthouse, Swans Island, Maine
      • Burnt Island Lighthouse, Maine
      • Cape Elizabeth Light, Maine
      • Cape Neddick (the Nubble) Light, Maine
      • Cuckolds Light, Maine
      • Curtis Island Light, Maine
      • Deer Island Thorofare Light, Maine
      • Doubling Point Lighthouse, Maine
      • Dyce Head Lighthouse, Maine
      • Eagle Island Light, Maine
      • Egg Rock Lighthouse, Maine
      • Fort Point Lighthouse, Maine
      • Franklin Island Light, Maine
      • Goat Island Lighthouse, Maine
      • Goose Rocks Lighthouse, Maine
      • Great Duck Island Lighthouse, Maine
      • Grindle Point Lighthouse, Maine
      • Halfway Rock Lighthouse, Maine
      • Hendricks Head Lighthouse, Maine
      • Heron Neck Lighthouse, Maine
      • Indian Island Light, Maine
      • Kennebec River Range Lights, Maine
      • Libby Island Lighthouse, Maine
      • Little River Lighthouse, Maine
      • Lubec Channel Lighthouse, Maine
      • Marshall Point Lighthouse, Maine
      • Matinicus Rock Light, Maine
      • Monhegan Island Lighthouse, Maine
      • Moose Peak Lighthouse, Maine
      • Mount Desert Rock Lighthouse, Maine
      • Narraguagus Island Light, Maine
      • Nash Island Light, Maine
      • Owls Head Lighthouse, Maine
      • Pemaquid Point Lighthouse, Maine
      • Perkins Island Lighthouse, Maine
      • Petit Manan Lighthouse, Maine
      • Pond Island Light, Maine
      • Popham Beach Life Saving Station
      • Portland Breakwater Lighthouse, Maine
      • Portland Head Lighthouse, Maine
      • Prospect Harbor Lighthouse, Maine
      • Pumpkin Island Lighthouse, Maine
      • Ram Island Ledge Light, Maine
      • Ram Island Lighthouse, Maine
      • Robinson Point Lighthouse on Isle Au Haut, Maine
      • Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse, Maine
      • Rockland Harbor Southwest Light, Maine
      • Saddleback Ledge Light, Maine
      • Seguin Island Lighthouse, Maine
      • Southern Island Light, Maine
      • Spring Point Ledge Lighthouse, Maine
      • Squirrel Point Lighthouse, Maine
      • Two Bush Island Lighthouse, Maine
      • West Quoddy Head Lighthouse, Maine
      • Whaleback Light, Maine
      • Whitehead Island Lighthouse, Maine
      • Winter Harbor Lighthouse, Maine
      • Wood Island Lighthouse, Maine
    • California Lighthouses
      • Alcatraz Light, California
      • Battery Point Lighthouse, California
      • Fort Point Lighthouse, California
      • New Point Loma Light, California
      • Old Point Loma Light, California
      • Pigeon Point Light, California
      • Point Arena Light, California
      • Point Bonita Light, California
      • Point Cabrillo Light, California
      • Point Fermin Light, California
      • Point Montara Lighthouse, California
      • Point Pinos Lighthouse, California
      • Point Reyes Lighthouse, California
      • Point Sur Light, California
      • Point Vicente Light, California
      • Santa Cruz Light, California
      • Table Bluff Lighthouse, California
      • Trinidad Head Memorial Light, California
    • Connecticut Lighthouses
      • Avery Point Lighthouse
      • Faulkners Island Lighthouse, Connecticut
      • Fayerweather Island Lighthouse, Connecticut
      • Five Mile Point Light, Connecticut
      • Great Captain Island Lighthouse
      • Latimer Reef Lighthouse, Connecticut
      • Lynde Point Lighthouse, Connecticut
      • Morgan Point Lighthouse, Connectitcut
      • Mystic Seaport Lighthouse, Connecticut
      • New London Harbor Lighthouse, Connecticut
      • New London Ledge Lighthouse, Connecticut
      • Penfield Reef Lighthouse
      • Race Rock Lighthouse, Connecticut
      • Saybrook Breakwater Lighthouse, Connecticut
      • Sheffield Island Lighthouse, Connecticut
      • Stamford Harbor Lighthouse
      • Stonington Harbor Lighthouse, Connecticut
      • Stratford Point Lighthouse, Connecticut
      • Stratford Shoal Lighthouse
      • Tongue Point Lighthouse
    • Delaware Lighthouses
      • Harbor of Refuge Light, Delaware
      • Delaware Breakwater Lighthouse, Delaware
      • Fenwick Island Lighthouse
      • Liston Rear Range Light
      • Overfalls Lightship, Delaware
      • Mispillion Lighthouse, Delaware
      • Reedy Island Rear Range Light
      • Marcus Hook Rear Range Light
    • Florida Lighthouses
      • Amelia Island Lighthouse, Florida
      • American Shoal Lighthouse, Florida
      • Cape Canaveral Light, Florida
      • Cape Florida Lighthouse, Florida
      • Crooked River Lighthouse
      • Faro Blanco Light, Florida
      • Garden Key Lighthouse, Florida
      • Gasparilla Island Lights, Florida
      • Hillsboro Inlet Lighthouse, Florida
      • Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse
      • Key West Lighthouse, Florida
      • Loggerhead Key Lighthouse, Florida
      • Pensacola Lighthouse
      • Ponce Inlet Lighthouse, Florida
      • Sand Key Lighthouse, Florida
      • Sanibel Island Lighthouse, Florida
      • St. Augustine Lighthouse, Florida
      • St. John's River Lighthouse, Florida
      • St. Marks Lighthouse, Florida
      • Sombrero Key Lighthouse
    • Georgia Lighthouses
      • St. Simons Island Lighthouse, Georgia
      • Tybee Island Lighthouse, Georgia
    • Hawai'i Lighthouses
      • Diamond Head Lighthouse, O'ahu, Hawai'i
      • Kilauea Point Lighthouse, Kaua'i, Hawai'i
      • Lahaina Harbor Lighthouse, Mau'i, Hawai'i
      • Makapu'u Light, Oahu, Hawai'i
      • Moloka'i Lighthouse, Moloka'i, Hawai'i
    • Illinois Lighthouses
      • Grosse Point Light, Illinois
    • Indiana Lighthouses
      • Michigan City Light, Indiana
    • Louisiana Lighthouses
      • New Canal Lighthouse, Louisiana
    • Maryland Lighthouses
      • Baltimore Light, Maryland
      • Chesapeake Lightship, Maryland
      • Concord Point Lighthouse, Maryland
      • Cove Point Light, Maryland
      • Choptank River Lighthouse
      • Drum Point Lighthouse, Maryland
      • Fishing Battery Light, Maryland
      • Hooper Strait Lighthouse, Maryland
      • Piney Point Light, Maryland
      • Point Lookout Lighthouse, Maryland
      • Sandy Point Light, Maryland
      • Seven Foot Knoll Lighthouse, Maryland
      • Thomas Point Shoal Lighthouse, Maryland
      • Turkey Point Lighthouse, Maryland
    • Massachusetts Lighthouses
      • Annisquam Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Baker's Island Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Bass River Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Bird Island Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Brant Point Lighthouse, Nantucket
      • Butler Flats Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Boston Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Cape Poge Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Chatham Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Clark's Point Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Cleveland Ledge Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Deer Island Light, Massachusetts
      • Derby Wharf Light, Massachusetts
      • Dog Bar Breakwater Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Duxbury Pier Light, Massachusetts
      • East Chop Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Eastern Point Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Edgartown Harbor Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Gay Head Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Graves Light, Massachusetts
      • Great Point Lighthouse, Nantucket, Massachusetts
      • Highland Lighthouse, Cape Cod, Massachusetts
      • Hospital Point Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Lewis Bay Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Marblehead Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Mayo's Beach Lighthouse
      • Minots Ledge Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Monomoy Point Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Nantucket Lightship, Massachusetts
      • Nauset Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Ned's Point Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Newburyport Harbor Range Lights, Massachusetts
      • Nobska Point Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Palmer Island Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Plum Island Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Plymouth Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Race Point Lighthouse, Cape Cod Massachusetts
      • Sandy Neck Lighthouse
      • Sankaty Head Lighthouse
      • Scituate Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Stage Harbor Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Straitsmouth Island Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Tarpaulin Cove Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Ten Pound Island Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Thacher Island Twin Lights, Massachusetts
      • Three Sisters of Nauset Lighthouses, Massachusetts
      • West Chop Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Wings Neck Lighthouse, Massachusetts
      • Winter Island Lighthouse
      • Brant Point Lighthouse, Nantucket MA
    • New Hampshire Lighthouses
      • Isles of Shoals Light, New Hampshire
      • Portsmouth Harbor Light, New Hampshire
    • New Jersey Lighthouses
      • Absecon Lighthouse, New Jersey
      • Barnegat Lighthouse, New Jersey
      • Brandywine Shoal Light, New Jersey
      • Cape May Lighthouse, New Jersey
      • Chapel Hill Rear Range Light, New Jersey
      • Conover Beacon Front Range Light, New Jersey
      • East Point Lighthouse, New Jersey
      • Finns Point Lighthouse
      • Fourteen Foot Bank Light, New Jersey
      • Hereford Inlet Lighthouse, North Wildwood, New Jersey
      • Miah Maull Shoal Light, New Jersey
      • Sandy Hook Lighthouse, New Jersey
      • Sea Girt Lighthouse, New Jersey
      • Ship John Shoal Light, New Jersey
      • Twin Lights of Navesink, New Jersey
      • Tinicum Rear Range Lighthouse, New Jersey
    • New York Lighthouses
      • Ambrose Lightship, New York
      • Big Sodus Light, New York
      • Blackswell Island Light, New York
      • Buffalo Main Lighthouse, New York
      • Cape Vincent Breakwater Lighthouse, New York
      • Clayton Memorial Lighthouse, New Yrok
      • Coney Island Lighthouse, New York
      • Crossover Island Lighthouse, New York
      • Dunkirk Light, New York
      • Esopus Meadows Lighthouse, New York
      • Execution Rocks Lighthouse, New York
      • Fire Island Lighthouse, New York
      • Horton Point Light, New York
      • Montauk Point Lighthouse, New York
      • Ogdensburg Harbor Lighthouse, New York
      • Old Field Point Lighthouse, New York
      • Rock Island Lighthouse, New York
      • Rondout Creek Lighthouse, New York
      • Saugerties Lighthouse, New York
      • Selkirk Lighthouse, New York
      • Sister Islands Lighthouse, New York
      • Staten Island Light, New York
      • Stepping Stones Lighthouse
      • Stony Point Lighthouse, New York
      • Sunken Rock Lighthouse, New York
      • Tarrytown Lighthouse, New York
      • Tibbetts Point Lighthouse, New York
    • North Carolina Lighthouses
      • Bodie Island Light, North Carolina
      • Ocracoke Light, North Carolina
      • Cape Hatteras Light, North Carolina
    • Ohio Lighthouses
      • Fairport Harbor Light, Ohio
      • Fairport Harbor West Breakwater Light, Ohio
      • Marblehead Light, Ohio
    • Oregon Lighthouses
      • Cape Meares Light, Oregon
      • Cleft of the Rock Light, Oregon
      • Coquille River Lighthouse, Oregon
      • Heceta Head Light, Oregon
      • Umpqua River Light, Oregon
      • Yaquina Bay Light, Oregon
      • Yaquina Head Lighthouse, Oregon
    • Pennsylvania Lighthouses
      • Presque Isle Lighthouse, Pennsylvania
      • Presque Isle North Pierhead Light, Pennsylvania
      • Turtle Rock Lighthouse
    • Rhode Island Lighthouses
      • Beavertail Lighthouse, Rhode Island
      • Bristol Ferry Lighthouse, Rhode Island
      • Castle Hill Lighthouse, Rhode Island
      • Conanicut Island Light, Rhode Island
      • Conimicut Lighthouse, Rhode Island
      • Dutch Island Lighthouse, Rhode Island
      • Goat Island Lighthouse, Rhode Island
      • Hog Island Shoal Lighthouse, Rhode Island
      • Ida Lewis Rock Light, Rhode Island
      • Nayatt Point Lighthouse, Rhode Island
      • North Lighthouse, Block Island, Rhode Island
      • Plum Beach Lighthouse, Rhode Island
      • Point Judith Lighthouse, Rhode Island
      • Pomham Rocks Lighthouse, Rhode Island
      • Poplar Point Light, Rhode Island
      • Prudence Island Light, Rhode Island
      • Rose Island Lighthouse, Rhode Island
      • Southeast Lighthouse, Block Island, Rhode Island
      • Warwick Neck Lighthouse, Rhode Island
      • Watch Hill Lighthouse, Rhode Island
    • South Carolina Lighthouses
      • Morris Island Light, South Carolina
      • Hunting Island Light, South Carolina
    • Vermont Lighthouses
      • Colchester Reef Lighthouse, Vermont
      • Isle La Motte Lighthouse, Vermont
      • Windmill Point Lighthouse
    • Washington Lighthouses
      • Admiralty Head Lighthouse, Washington
      • Alki Point Lighthouse, Washington
      • Cape Disappointment Lighthouse, Washington
      • Grays Harbor Lighthouse, Washington
      • Lime Kiln Light, Washington
      • Mukilteo Lighthouse, Washington
      • North Head Lighthouse, Washington
      • West Point Lighthouse, Washington
    • Wisconsin Lighthouses
      • Wind Point Light, Wisconsin
      • North Point Lighthouse
    • New Brunswick Lighthouses
      • Gannet Rock Lighthouse, Grand Manan, New Brunswick
      • Machias Seal Island Lighthouse, New Brunswick
      • Swallowtail Lighthouse, Grand Manan
    • Nova Scotia Lighthouses
      • Cape Forchu Light, Nova Scotia
      • Georges Island Light, Nova Scotia
      • Peggys Cove Light, Nova Scotia
      • Seal Island Light, Nova Scotia
      • West Pubnico Light, Nova Scotia
    • Prince Edward Island Lighthouses
      • North Rustico Lighthouse, Prince Edward Island
    • Quebèc Lighthouses
      • Pointe à la Renommée Light, Quebec
    • Lighthouse Trips
      • 2012-06-22 Penobscot Bay Cruise, Maine
      • 2011-09-10 Boothbay Lighthouse Cruise with NELL
      • 2011-09-18 Trip to Mount Desert Rock Light
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Fire Island Lighthouse, New York

Fire Island, located off the southern coast of Long Island, has long been an important point for both local and trans-Atlantic shipping traffic. Fire Island derives its name from the Dutch word 'vier' which means 'four'. When the Dutch settled New Amsterdam they referred to the area near Great South Bay as the 'Vier' islands which the English mapped as the 'Fier Islands' which gradually became 'Fire Island'. As the American economy grew in the 19th century, the need to mark the sandbars lying just off the southern Long Island coast became necessary to safeguard marine commerce.
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FireIslandLight017

  • In 1825 the government purchased a tract of land on the eastern side of Fire Island Inlet for $50.  Construction began in 1826 of a lighthouse tower built of blue split stone in the shape of an octagonal pyramid 74 feet in height.  The lantern of the tower was fitted with a chandelier of 18 oil lamps with 15 inch reflectors.  The chandelier was made to rotate every 1 1/2 minutes to create a flashing pattern for the light.  The tower was completed for a cost of almost $10,000.
  • The tower had problems almost immediately as it was found to have leaks from the poor quality of cement used in its construction.  Also, the light exhibited from the lantern was difficult to see due to small windows and large astragals causing ships to sail closer to the sandbar in an effort to find the light.  In 1842 the lantern was refitted with 14 lamps with 21 inch reflectors, but this did not improve the light.
  • When the Lighthouse Board became responsible for the country's lighthouses in 1852 it set out to upgrade the coastal lights.  On Long Island it immediately planned to make improvements at Montauk Light, build a new lighthouse at the Great West Bay (Shinnecock Light) and build a new lighthouse on Fire Island.  After the builders completed the Shinnecock Light they moved down the coast to Fire Island.  In 1857 they prepared an estimate that it would cost $32,345 to replace the light.
  • Construction of the new 168 foot tower commenced in 1858 just 200 feet from the site of the original tower.  The new tower made of 800,000 handmade bricks was built upon a foundation made from the stone of the old lighthouse.  The sides of the tower curved outward as it reached the bottom to provide additional stability.  In a new process the tower was covered with a cement wash to "render the tower impervious to water".  The cement coated tower was painted a cream color which led to the nickname 'The Winking Lady' as the tower was compared to a tall lady in a dress.
  • **A few of the local residents seen along the boardwalk on the way to the tower**  Fire Island has a large population of deer, birds and other wildlife.
  • The lantern of the new tower was fitted with an 8 sided First Order Fresnel lens.  The lens rotated once every 8 minutes producing a flash every minute.  Keeper Benjamin Smith climbed the 192 steps of the tower and lit a 4 wick Funck lamp for the first time on November 1, 1858.  A new Dutch Colonial dwelling of dressed stone was constructed to house the families of the Keeper and two Assistant Keepers.
  • In 1891 the Lighthouse Board announced a change in the Fire Island Lighthouse's daymark.  It was changed from a cream color to alternating bands of black & white.  This daymark remains to this day.  In 1894 plans were made to replace the lens with a large Bivalve Lens with an electric arc lamp, but these were changed when it was determined a lightship station 9 miles away would better serve the mariner.  The Bivalve Lens was instead sent to the Navesink Twin Lights where it is on display today.
  • As time passed the lighthouse reservation grew larger due to deposits from littoral drift.  In 1924 Congress transferred 600 acres west of the light to New York State for use as a park which was named the Robert Moses State Park.  In 1933 the 1st Order lens from the decommissioned Shinnecock Light replaced the 1858 1st Order lens.  The new lens could rotate faster and produced a flash every 7 1/2 seconds.
  • In 1939 electricity reached the island and the tower was electrified.  In 1952 the 1st Order lens was removed and replaced with a Crouse Hinds light using 1000 watt bulbs.  Life on Fire Island changed in 1964 when a bridge was constructed connecting it to the mainland allowing for visitors to arrive by car.  In 1973 the Coast Guard decided to move the light to a water tower as a cost cutting measure.  The light was decommissioned, abandoned and scheduled to be torn down.  Luckily in 1982 the Fire Island Lighthouse Preservation Society (FILPS) was formed by concerned citizens and raised $1.2 million to save the lighthouse.  In 1986 the light was returned to the tower and after renovations in 1989 the tower was opened to the public.  In 2011 a new building was opened to house and display the old 1st Order Fresnel lens.  In 2012 the lighthouse received minor damage from Superstorm Sandy, however the park was closed due to damage to access routes in and around the lighthouse.  The FILPS continues to maintain the tower and provide tours of the tower and grounds.  It provides a wonderful opportunity to learn about lighthouse history in the museum and experience the wildlife and nature of Fire Island.
  • Old postcard view of the Fire Island Lighthouse
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