Little Gull Island Light is a

lighthouse A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lens (optics), lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Ligh ...

on Little Gull Island, a small island in

Long Island Sound Long Island Sound is a sound (geography), marine sound and tidal estuary of the Atlantic Ocean. It lies predominantly between the U.S. state of Connecticut to the north and Long Island in New York (state), New York to the south. From west to east, ...

, located approximately northeast of Great Gull Island. Both islands are located in the Town of Southold, in

Suffolk County, New York Suffolk County ( ) is the easternmost county in the U.S. state of New York, constituting the eastern two-thirds of Long Island. It is bordered to its west by Nassau County, to its east by Gardiners Bay and the open Atlantic Ocean, to its no ...

, and lie roughly midway between Plum Island and Fishers Island. Little Gull Island is approximately southwest of Fishers Island and the channel of water between them is the main entrance to Long Island Sound, known as "The Race". The lighthouse, which was built in 1869 and automated in 1978, occupies much of the rocky island, which is only about in size.

History

The first lighthouse was a high tower established in 1806, which was replaced by the current conical tower and a second order

Fresnel lens A Fresnel lens ( ; ; or ) is a type of composite compact lens (optics), lens which reduces the amount of material required compared to a conventional lens by dividing the lens into a set of concentric annular sections. The simpler Dioptrics, d ...

in 1869. The lighthouse was automated in 1978 and is still operational. The foundation is a

granite Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly coo ...

pier and the construction material is granite. In 1813, the light was extinguished by a group of

Royal Marines The Royal Marines provide the United Kingdom's amphibious warfare, amphibious special operations capable commando force, one of the :Fighting Arms of the Royal Navy, five fighting arms of the Royal Navy, a Company (military unit), company str ...

in a raid led by Commodore Thomas Hardy during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

. On May 12, 1881, the ''Galatea'', bound from

Providence, Rhode Island Providence () is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Rhode Island, most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. The county seat of Providence County, Rhode Island, Providence County, it is o ...

to New York, ran aground in the calm due to the dense fog. Two days later, the ship was able to get off the island without damage. The Lighthouse Board opened an investigation because it was suspected that the fog signal was not operational during that time. The naval officer in charge of the investigation, French Ensor Chadwick, spent time questioning witnesses and others who might have heard the signal, and tested the signal at various locations around Little Gull Island. He concluded that the fog signal was operational during the time as the signal was heard at Mystic, Connecticut and by a tug boat that was farther away than the ''Galatea'', and that the aberrations and eccentricities around Little Gull were even more significant than around

Beavertail Lighthouse Beavertail Lighthouse was built in 1856 and is the premier lighthouse in Rhode Island, marking the entrance to Narragansett Bay. The lighthouse lies on the southernmost point of Conanicut Island in the town of Jamestown, Rhode Island in Beaverta ...

where sound tests were run later in 1881. The

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and Admiralty law, law enforcement military branch, service branch of the armed forces of the United States. It is one of the country's eight Uniformed services ...

has designated Little Gull Island Light as an Historic Light Stations in New York. In 2009 Little Gull Island Light was put up for sale under the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act. Eight bids up to $381,000 were received. The sale for $381,000 broke the record for the highest bid received to that date under the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act. Little Gull Island Light is shown on the NOAA Chart 12354NOAA Chart 12354
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In popular culture

The Archives Center at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History has a collection (#1055) of souvenir

postcard A postcard or post card is a piece of thick paper or thin cardboard, typically rectangular, intended for writing and mailing without an envelope. Non-rectangular shapes may also be used but are rare. In some places, one can send a postcard f ...

s of lighthouses and has digitized 272 of these and made them available online. These include postcards of Little Gull Island Light Smithsonian lighthouse postcards
with links to customized nautical charts provided by

National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA ) is an American scientific and regulatory agency charged with forecasting weather, monitoring oceanic and atmospheric conditions, charting the seas, conducting deep-sea exploration ...

References

External links

National Park Service

{{authority control Islands of Suffolk County, New York Long Island Sound Southold, New York Tourist attractions in Suffolk County, New York Islands of New York (state) Lighthouses completed in 1806 Towers completed in 1806 Lighthouses completed in 1869 Lighthouses in Suffolk County, New York 1869 establishments in New York (state)