West Bank Light, officially West Bank Front Range Light,[2] is a lighthouse in Lower New York Bay, within New York City, and acts as the front range light for the Ambrose Channel.[2][3][4] It is currently active and not open to the public. The tower was built in 1901 and heightened in 1908. Staten Island Light serves as the rear range light.

West Bank Light
Map
Locationwest of Ambrose Channel
lower New York Bay
Coordinates40°32′16.8″N 74°02′34.1″W / 40.538000°N 74.042806°W / 40.538000; -74.042806
Tower
Constructed1901
FoundationConcrete/cast-iron caisson
ConstructionCast iron
Automated1985
Height55 feet (17 m)
ShapeFrustum of a cone sparkplug
MarkingsBrown on black base
HeritageNational Register of Historic Places listed place Edit this on Wikidata
Fog signalHorn: 2 blasts every 20 s
Light
First lit1901
Focal height69 feet (21 m)
LensFourth-order Fresnel lens (original), 12 inches (300 mm) (current)
Range16 nmi (30 km; 18 mi) (white), 12 nmi (22 km; 14 mi) (red) Edit this on Wikidata
CharacteristicIsophase 6s
white from 181° to 004°
red from 004° to 181°.
West Bank Light
Nearest cityNew Dorp Beach, Staten Island, New York City
Area0.1 acres (0.040 ha)
ArchitectU.S. Lighthouse Board
MPSLight Stations of the United States MPS
NRHP reference No.06001230[1]
Added to NRHPJanuary 9, 2007

On May 29, 2007, the Secretary of the Interior identified West Bank Light, offshore in Ambrose Channel–Lower New York Bay, as surplus under the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act of 2000. The property was described as 55 feet (17 m) tall with two floors, a keeper's dwelling, and located on 0.1 acres (0.040 ha) of underwater area. The keeper's dwelling, located on the second story (about five standard stories above the ground), was 1,500 square feet (140 m2). It could be seen as far as the Riegelmann Boardwalk in Coney Island, Brooklyn, as well as from South Beach, Staten Island.[5]

No group was identified as willing and able to preserve the West Bank Light, and on June 5, 2008, the General Services Administration placed the light up for sale via auction with an initial bid was $10,000. The auction ended on August 27, 2008 at a final bid of $245,000.[6] The sale did not close, and the light was auctioned a second time in September 2010, selling for $195,000 to Sheridan Reilly.[4]

References

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  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. ^ a b Light List, Volume I, Atlantic Coast, St. Croix River, Maine to Shrewsbury River, New Jersey (PDF). Light List. United States Coast Guard. 2012. p. 298.
  3. ^ "Historic Light Station Information and Photography: New York". United States Coast Guard Historian's Office. Archived from the original on 2017-05-01.
  4. ^ a b Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of the United States: Downstate New York". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
  5. ^ Available properties through the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Program for 2007
  6. ^ GSA listing (1-PR-08-004) for West Bank Light
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