Selkirk Light
Location | In New York, at the mouth of the Salmon River, on Lake Ontario, Pulaski, New York |
---|---|
Coordinates | 43°34′24″N 76°12′06″W / 43.57333°N 76.20167°W |
Tower | |
Constructed | 1838 |
Foundation | Natural/Emplaced |
Construction | Wood Tower on Fieldstone House |
Automated | 1989 |
Shape | Octagon |
Markings | Red Tower w/ Silver Lantern on three-story gray house |
Heritage | National Register of Historic Places listed place |
Light | |
First lit | 1838 |
Deactivated | 1858–1989 |
Focal height | 50 feet (15 m) |
Lens | 8 lamps, 14-inch (360 mm) reflectors (original), 7.5-inch (190 mm) (current) |
Characteristic | Flashing White 2 seconds |
Selkirk Lighthouse | |
NRHP reference No. | 79001618 |
Added to NRHP | March 30, 1979[1] |
Selkirk Lighthouse is located at mouth of the Salmon River in New York.[2] It is one of only four lighthouses in the United States that retains its original bird-cage lantern.
Construction
Land for the
The bid was awarded to Joseph Gibbs and Abner French, local
Keepers
- Lewis Conant, August 1838 – July 1849
- Lucius B. Cole, July 1849 – October 1854
- Charles M. Lewis, October 1854 – March 1857
- A. H. Weed, March 1857 – 1858
Deactivation
Selkirk Lighthouse Hotel
On October 16, 1895, Leopold Joh, a German émigré, purchased the lighthouse at auction from the US Government for $155. The lighthouse was first used as Joh's private residence before it was incorporated into a hotel complex that Joh started to develop in 1899. While on an errand procuring refreshments for his guests, Joh died of a massive coronary on August 21, 1907. His family continued to operate the hotel until it was sold to the Heckle family in 1916.
The Heckles eventually doubled the size of the hotel and the property attracted vacationers from as far away as New York City and Philadelphia. The hotel and nearby marina was purchased by the Walker Family in 1987 and then again by the Barnell Family in 2014. Multiple upgrades to the entire property have been made, including complete renovations of the Lighthouse and all 3 cottages, a new boat launch ramp and new state-of-the-art floating docks.
The former hotel, boarded up since an explosion in 1987, could not be restored and was razed in early 2016.
Reactivation
In 1989, a Coast Guard-approved solar light was installed in the lantern room. On August 6 of that year, the Selkirk Lighthouse was reactivated as a Class II navigation aid.
Other Remaining Birdcage Lights
- Prudence Island Lighthouse, Rhode Island
- Baileys Harbor Lighthouse, Wisconsin
- Waugoshance Light, Michigan
References
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
- ^ Light List, Volume VII, Great Lakes (PDF). Light List. United States Coast Guard.
Further reading
- Oleszewski, Wes. Great Lakes Lighthouses, American and Canadian: A Comprehensive Directory/Guide to Great Lakes Lighthouses, (Gwinn, Michigan: Avery Color Studios, Inc., 1998) ISBN 0-932212-98-0.
- Price, Scott T. "U. S. Coast Guard Aids to Navigation: A Historical Bibliography". United States Coast Guard Historian's Office.
- U.S. Coast Guard. Historically Famous Lighthouses (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1957).
- Wright, Larry and Wright, Patricia. Great Lakes Lighthouses Encyclopedia Hardback (Erin: Boston Mills Press, 2006) ISBN 1-55046-399-3
External links
- Selkirk Light on the World List of Lights
- Media related to Selkirk Light at Wikimedia Commons
- Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) No. NY-6112, "Salmon River Lighthouse, Lake Ontario, Port Ontario vicinity, Oswego County, NY", 2 photos, supplemental material
- Selkirk Lighthouse Website
- Lighthouse Friends