The Staten Island Range Light, also known as the Ambrose Channel Range Light, is the rear
range light
Leading lights (also known as range lights in the United States) are a pair of light beacons used in navigation to indicate a safe passage for vessels entering a shallow or dangerous channel; they may also be used for position fixing. At night ...
companion to the
West Bank Light
West Bank Light, officially West Bank Front Range Light, is a lighthouse in Lower New York Bay, within New York City, and acts as the front range light for the Ambrose Channel. It is currently active and not open to the public. The tower was built ...
house.
/ref> Built in 1912, the 90-foot tower sits more than five miles northwest of the West Bank Lighthouse, on Staten Island
Staten Island ( ) is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull an ...
’s Richmond Hill ( Lighthouse Hill), 141 feet above sea level. It shows a fixed white light that can be seen for 18 miles, by all vessels bound to New York and New Jersey Ports coming in from the Atlantic Ocean (on range only).[National Lighthouse Museum – Staten Island Lighthouse]
The original hardware, including the second magnitude Fresnel lens
A Fresnel lens ( ; ; or ) is a type of composite compact lens developed by the French physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel (1788–1827) for use in lighthouses. It has been called "the invention that saved a million ships."
The design allows the c ...
and glass reflector, remain in place. However, the original mineral oil-burning lamp has since been replaced with a 1000 watt General Electric-manufactured Airway Signal incandescent lamp, with the backup light, which automatically turns on in the event of primary lamp failure, being the same. Many lighthouses have transitioned to LED systems, but this legacy equipment remains in use at this light.
The Staten Island Range Light also has a second light, the Swash Channel Rear Light. This light is also a steady white light beacon, and shines continuously 24 hours a day. The Swash Channel is not a major shipping lane like the Ambrose Channel. Rather, it is akin to a "secondary road," connecting the Ambrose Channel with the Sandy Hook Channel. This secondary light is not within the lantern room, as is the main light, the Rear Ambrose Channel Light.
Both the Ambrose Channel Light, as well as the Swash Channel Light, have backup lights independent from each of the main lighting systems (and the main systems' backup lamps). Neither light blinks or rotates, and each is only visible on range. Additionally, the Staten Island Range Light may be powered by banks of on-site batteries in the event of power failure.[Staten Islander News Org - Century Old Staten Island Range Lighthouse: A Tour With The U.S. Coast Guard]
/ref>
It was designated a New York City Landmark in 1968 and remains a valuable aid to navigation for ships entering the Ambrose Channel
Ambrose Channel is the only shipping channel in and out of the Port of New York and New Jersey. The channel is considered to be part of Lower New York Bay and is located several miles off the coasts of Sandy Hook, New Jersey, and Breezy Point, ...
in Lower New York Bay
Lower New York Bay is a section of New York Bay south of the Narrows (the strait between Staten Island and Brooklyn). The eastern end of the Bay is marked by two spits of land, Sandy Hook, New Jersey, and Rockaway, Queens. The waterway b ...
.[ It was listed on the ]National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 2005.
See also
*List of New York City Designated Landmarks in Staten Island
The New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission (LPC), formed in 1965, is the New York City governmental commission that administers the city's Landmarks Preservation Law. Since its founding, it has designated over a thousand landmarks, class ...
*
References
External links
*
*
Lighthouse Friends site (photo)
USCG list of Fresnel lenses still in operation
December 2008
Coast Guard list of LighthousesCoast Guard list of assets
* ttp://www.nps.gov/history/maritime/light/ny.htm National Park Service's Maritime Heritage Program's Inventory of NY Historic Light Stations
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Lighthouses completed in 1912
Lighthouses on the National Register of Historic Places in New York City
Lighthouses in Staten Island
New York City Designated Landmarks in Staten Island
1912 establishments in New York City
National Register of Historic Places in Staten Island