Old Orchard Shoal Light

Old Orchard Shoal Light was a sparkplug lighthouse in lower New York Bay marking a large shoal area. It was destroyed by Hurricane Sandy on October 29, 2012.

Old Orchard Shoal Light

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Location	New York City, US
Coordinates	40°30′44.272″N 74°5′55.369″W
Year first constructed	1893
Year first lit	1893
Automated	1955
Deactivated	destroyed 2012
Foundation	Concrete/Cast Iron Caisson
Construction	Cast Iron
Tower shape	Conical "Spark Plug"
Markings / pattern	lower half brown, upper half white, on black pier
Tower height	35 feet (11 m)
Focal height	51 feet (16 m)
Original lens	Fourth Order Fresnel lens
Current lens	9.8 inches (250 mm)
Range	W 7 nautical miles (13 km; 8.1 mi) R 5 nautical miles (9.3 km; 5.8 mi)
Characteristic	Fl W 6s (Red from 087 deg to 203 deg
Fog signal	Removed/ Original air siren and horn
ARLHS number	USA-565
USCG number	1-35395[1][2][3]
Heritage	place listed on the National Register of Historic Places
Orchard Shoal Light Station, Old
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Nearest city	Staten Island, New York
Area	less than one acre
Architect	US Lighthouse Board
NRHP reference No.	06000864[4]
Added to NRHP	September 20, 2006

History

Old Orchard Shoal Light was destroyed by Hurricane Sandy on October 29, 2012.

Old Orchard Shoal Light was completed and lit on April 25, 1893.[5] The Fresnel lens was removed in 1950.

Before moving on to Governor's Island and then finally Coney Island Light, Frank Schubert, said to be the last civilian lighthouse keeper in the United States, was stationed at Old Orchard Shoal Light.

Old Orchard Shoal Light is listed on the National Park Service's Maritime Heritage Program as Lighthouse to visit[6] and as one of New York's Historic Light Stations.[7]

On May 29, 2007, the Secretary of the Interior identified Old Orchard Shoal Light Station as surplus under the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act of 2000. The property was described as

Gedney Channel/Lower New York Bay, 3.5 miles south of New Dorp Beach. Remote 35 ft. conical, 3-story "spark plug" style light (1893) with keeper's quarters (approx. 1000 SF). Interior lined in brick up to 3rd floor. On 0.72 acre submerged land. Constructed of cast iron on concrete/cast iron caisson. Markings: white upper/black. Protective riprap and breakwater sheltering light's boat basin. Accessible by boat only.[8]

No group was identified under the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act as willing and able to preserve the Old Orchard Shoal Light, and on June 5, 2008, the General Services Administration placed the light up for sale via an auction. The initial bid was $10,000 and the light finally closed on August 27, 2008 at a final bid of $235,000.[9]

The lighthouse was destroyed by Hurricane Sandy on October 29, 2012.[10][11]

References

1. Light List, Volume I, Atlantic Coast, St. Croix River, Maine to Shrewsbury River, New Jersey (PDF). Light List. United States Coast Guard. 2009. p. 297.
2. "Historic Light Station Information and Photography: New York". United States Coast Guard Historian's Office. Archived from the original on 2017-05-01.
3. "ARLHS World List of Lights". Archived from the original on December 1, 2008. Retrieved 2009-01-24.CS1 maint: BOT: original-url status unknown (link)
4. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
5. Annual report of the Light-House Board to the Secretary of the Treasury for the Fiscal Year ended June 30, 1893, Treasury Department, Document No 1647
6. "Maritime Heritage Program". Retrieved 7 April 2016.
7. "Maritime Heritage Program". Retrieved 7 April 2016.
8. "Maritime Heritage Program". Retrieved 7 April 2016.
9. GSA listing (1-PR-08-005) for Old Orchard Shoal
10. "Old Orchard Shoal Light Is No More", Mai Armstrong for Working Harbor Committee, blog post November 9, 2012. Archived November 16, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
11. USCG 'Local Notice to Mariners" week 44/12, LLNR 35395 states "Structure Destroyed" Archived 2012-11-19 at the Wayback Machine