Navesink Twin Lights

Navesink Twin Lights

File:TwinLights.jpg The historic Twin Lights of Highlands, New Jersey
Location	Highlands, New Jersey
Coordinates	40°23′46.4″N 73°59′8.8″W
Constructed	1862
Power source	lard, kerosene, electricity
Heritage	National Register of Historic Places listed place, National Historic Landmark
Light
First lit	1828
Deactivated	1952
Lens	sixth order Fresnel lens

The Twin Lights Lighthouse is a non-operational lighthouse and museum located in Highlands, New Jersey overlooking Sandy Hook Bay, the entrance to the New York Harbor and the Atlantic Ocean. The Twin Lights, as the name implies, are a pair of beacons located approximately 200 feet (60 m) above sea level on the Navesink Highlands.

In 1962, the State of New Jersey acquired Twin Lights. At the current museum facility, tours of the lighthouse, a climb of the North Tower and its expansive ocean view, and a view of the lighthouse equipment, await visitors. Twin Lights is listed on the State and National Register of Historic Places.

The Twin Lights State Historic Site is part of the New Jersey Coastal Heritage Trail Route.

History

A lighthouse existed on the site since 1828, when it became an important guide and landmark for ships navigating the treacherous entrances to New York Harbor.

The current lighthouse was constructed in 1862. The non-identical towers by day and the two beacons by night — one flashing and one fixed — allowed ready identification by mariners of the identity of the facility, thus allowing a rough determination of their location approaching the harbor.

The Twin Lights were decommissioned in 1949, the victim of improved technologies that allowed ships to navigate without the aid of lighthouses that were perceived to be antiquated and expensive to operate.

External links

• Twin Lights of Navesink Homepage
• Lighthouses of New York Harbor - Navesink Twin Lights