Execution Rocks Light

July 25, 2019
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Execution Rocks Light, Long Island Sound, Mamaroneck, Westchester County, New York

EXECUTION ROCKS LIGHT

WEST END LONG ISLAND SOUND
Station Established: 1849
Year Current Tower(s) First Lit: 1850
Operational? YES
Automated? YES 1979
Deactivated: n/a
Foundation Materials: DRESSED STONE/TIMBER
Construction Materials: GRANITE W/BRICK LINING
Height: 60 feet tall with a focal plane of 62 feet
Tower Shape: CONICAL
Markings/Pattern: WHITE WITH BROWN BAND MIDWAY
Relationship to Other Structure: ATTACHED
Characteristics: Flash every 10 seconds
Original Lens: Fourth Order Fresnel, 1856

Historical Chronology:

  • 1847, March:  Congress appropriated $25,000 for the light to be built.
  • 1849, May:  Construction was completed.
  • 1850:  The lighthouse was first lit.
  • 1856:  A fourth order Fresnel lens was installed.
  • 1868:  The keeper's quarters were added. The keeper no longer had to live in the cramped space inside the tower.
  • 1918. December 8:  A fire with an unknown origin caused $13,500 in damages.  The engine house and machinery were destroyed, the tower and oil house were damaged and the windows, woodwork, gutters and eaves were also damaged.
  • 1979, December 5:  The lighthouse was automated. A VEGA lantern replaced the Fresnel lens.
  • 2002:  The lighthouse is still an active aid to navigation.

Chronology was researched and written by Diane Hackney.