Little Red Lighthouse

Infobox nrhp
name =Little Red Lighthouse
nrhp_type = nrhp

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caption =
location = Hudson River and George Washington Bridge, Manhattan, New York City, New York State
area =
built = 1880 originally, moved 1921
architect =
architecture =
added = 1979
visitation_num =
visitation_year =
refnum = 79003130
mpsub =
governing_body = New York City Parks Department

The Little Red Lighthouse (officially known as the Jeffrey's Hook Lighthouse) is a small lighthouse located on the Hudson River in New York City. It was made famous by the 1942 children's book "The Little Red Lighthouse and the Great Gray Bridge" by Hildegarde Swift and Lynd Ward. [ISBN 0-15-204571-6]

Location

The Little Red Lighthouse stands on a small point called Jeffrey’s Hook at the base of the eastern pier of the George Washington Bridge, which connects the Washington Heights neighborhood in Manhattan to Fort Lee, New Jersey. The shoreline north and south of the lighthouse makes up Fort Washington Park. Access to the lighthouse is either via a steep footpath leading down from the north side of the bridge or, somewhat more easily, via the riverside promenade leading south to Riverside Park and Riverbank State Park.

History

The lighthouse was erected in 1880 as the North Hook Beacon at Sandy Hook, New Jersey, where it stood until 1917. It was reconstructed in 1921 in its current location by the United States Bureau of Lighthouses as part of a project to improve Hudson River navigational aids, and was in operation until 1947.

The proposed dismantling of the lighthouse in 1951 resulted in a public outcry, largely from fans of Swift's book, leading to the preservation of the lighthouse by the City of New York/Parks & Recreation. The lighthouse is now a New York City landmark (New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission) and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. There are tours on an infrequent basis, especially on the Little Red Lighthouse Festival day in mid-September and Open House New York day in October.

References

External links

* [http://www.nycgovparks.org/sub_about/parks_divisions/historic_houses/hh_little_red_light.html Official NYC Parks Site]
* [http://www.lighthousefriends.com/light.asp?ID=393 Jeffrey's Hook Lighthouse] - from Lighthousefriends.com
* [http://www.lighthousemuseum.org/nylights/lred.htm National Lighthouse Center and Museum webpage]