Robbins Reef Light

The Robbins Reef Light Station is a sparkplug lighthouse located off Constable Hook in Bayonne, Hudson County, New Jersey, United States, along the west side of Main Channel, Upper New York Bay. The tower and integral keepers quarters were built in 1883. It replaced an octagonal granite tower built in 1839. The U.S. Coast Guard owned and operated the light station until the 2000s.

Robbins Reef Light
LocationSW Upper New York Bay, 2.6 mi. SE of I-78 Interchange 14A, Bayonne, New Jersey
Coordinates40°39′26.512″N 74°3′55.277″W
Year first constructed1839
Year first lit1883 (current structure)
Automated1966
DeactivatedN/A
FoundationGranite caisson
ConstructionBrick / Cast iron
Tower shapeConical
Markings / patternLower half: brown
upper half: white
lantern: black
Tower height45 feet (14 m)
Focal height56 feet (17 m)
Original lens4th order Fresnel lens
Current lens12 inches (300 mm)
Range7 nautical miles (13 km; 8.1 mi)
CharacteristicFlashing Green, 6s
Admiralty numberJ1156
ARLHS numberUSA-695
USCG number1-34975

[1] [2]

[3]
Heritageplace listed on the National Register of Historic Places 
Robbins Reef Light Station
ArchitectU.S. Lighthouse Board
MPSLight Stations of the United States MPS
NRHP reference No.06000631[4]
Added to NRHPJuly 19, 2006

Position

The light is located on a small ridge of sand named Robyn's Rift by the Dutch settlers of the area. The reef is now called Robbins Reef. It is situated near the entrance to the Kill van Kull, a strait connecting New York Bay to Newark Bay.[5] The channel is one of the most heavily used in the Port of New York and New Jersey, accessing Port Newark-Elizabeth Marine Terminal.

History

The name derives from the New Netherland era of the 17th century. In Dutch rob or robyn means seal, groups of which would sometimes lie on the reef at low tide.[6] The structure is also called Kate's Light for Kate Walker who "manned" the station alone after the death of her husband Captain John Walker in 1886, until 1919. She rowed her children to school in Bayonne. Herman Westgate was the last keeper of the lighthouse before it was finally automated. In 2009 Robbins Reef was put up for sale under the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act.[7] In 2011, the Noble Maritime Collection, a maritime museum on Staten Island, was granted stewardship of the light station by the U.S. General Services Administration.[8] The octagonal structure near Robbins Reef Lighthouse is not the base of the original 1839 tower but rather a sewer outfall that was constructed around 1915.

Recent developments

Recently volunteers for the Noble Maritime Museum have been restoring the lighthouse, with the interior restoration nearly complete. A local shipping company provides periodic transportation for the volunteers. Total renovations are expected to be complete in the early 2020s, at which time the lighthouse will offer tours and even serve as a bed and breakfast. [9]

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See also

References
  1. Light List, Volume I, Atlantic Coast, St. Croix River, Maine to Shrewsbury River, New Jersey (PDF). Light List. United States Coast Guard. 2010. p. 303.
  2. "Historic Light Station Information and Photography: New York". United States Coast Guard Historian's Office. Archived from the original on 2017-05-01. Note that although the light is clearly shown on the USGS topo in Hudson County, New Jersey, it is listed on this site as being in New York State.
  3. Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of the United States: New Jersey". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
  4. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  5. Robbins Reef Lighthouse at Lighthousefriends
  6. Roberts, Bruce and Jones, Ray, Lighthouses of New York, Globe Pequot Press, Guilford CT, 2008
  7. "NHLPA 2009 Program, Notices of Availability". www.nps.gov. Retrieved June 6, 2009.
  8. http://www.silive.com/northshore/index.ssf/2010/12/staten_island_museum_expected.html
  9. Massarella, Linda. Volunteers to restore historic lighthouse off Staten Island. NYPost.com October 8, 2017. Accessed October 14, 2017
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