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Newport News Middle Ground Light
Newport News Middle Ground Light is a lighthouse near the Monitor–Merrimac Memorial Bridge–Tunnel (MMMBT) on Interstate 664 in Hampton Roads. It is the oldest caisson lighthouse in Virginia. History An L-shaped shoal sits in the middle of major shipping lanes just off the coast of Hampton Roads, Virginia, creating a hazard in the 1880s as ships drew more water. The US Lighthouse Board identified the need for a lighthouse in this area in 1887, and, after several economizing changes to the design, construction began in 1890 and was completed in the spring of the following year. This was the first sparkplug lighthouse built in Virginia. The station was automated in 1954, at which time the light and fog bell were altered. The light flashed a white 3,000 candlepower every six seconds, and the fog bell sounded one stroke every 15 seconds, instead of two. The lighthouse was also downgraded along with these changes; the Coast Guard reclassified it as a "second class tall nun buo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
US Lighthouse Board
The United States Lighthouse Board was the second agency of the U.S. federal government, under the Department of Treasury, responsible for the construction and maintenance of all lighthouses and navigation aids in the United States, between 1852 and 1910. The new agency was created following complaints of the shipping industry of the previous administration of lighthouses under the Treasury's Lighthouse Establishment, which had had jurisdiction since 1791, and since 1820, been under the control of Stephen Pleasonton. The quasi-military board first met on April 28, 1851, and with its establishment, the administration of lighthouses and other aids to navigation would take their largest leap toward modernization since the inception of federal government control.Amy K. Marshall "Frequently Close to the Point of Peril: A History of Buoys and Tenders in U.S. Coastal Waters, 1789–1939'", A Master's Thesis In 1910, the Lighthouse Board was disestablished in favor of a more civilian Lig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Register Of Historic Places In Newport News, Virginia
__NOTOC__ This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Newport News, Virginia. This is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in the independent city of Newport News, Virginia, United States. The locations of National Register properties and districts for which the latitude and longitude coordinates are included below, may be seen in an online map. There are 35 properties and districts listed on the National Register in the city. Current listings See also *List of National Historic Landmarks in Virginia *National Register of Historic Places listings in Virginia *National Register of Historic Places listings in York County, Virginia References {{Newport News Newport News Newport News () is an independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. At the 2020 census, the population was 186,247. Located in the Hampton Roads region, it is ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lighthouses Completed In 1891
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Lighthouses mark dangerous coastlines, hazardous shoals, reefs, rocks, and safe entries to harbors; they also assist in aerial navigation. Once widely used, the number of operational lighthouses has declined due to the expense of maintenance and has become uneconomical since the advent of much cheaper, more sophisticated and effective electronic navigational systems. History Ancient lighthouses Before the development of clearly defined ports, mariners were guided by fires built on hilltops. Since elevating the fire would improve the visibility, placing the fire on a platform became a practice that led to the development of the lighthouse. In antiquity, the lighthouse functioned more as an entrance marker to ports than as a warning signal for reefs ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act
The National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act of 2000 (NHLPA; Public Law 106-355; 16 U.S.C. 470w-7) is American legislation creating a process for the transfer of federally owned lighthouses into private hands. It was created as an extension of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966. Background Maintenance of aids to navigation had been assigned to the federal government from the beginning, first under the Department of the Treasury, and then under the U.S. Lighthouse Board (1852-1910) and its successor, the U.S. Lighthouse Service. In 1939 lighthouses were placed under the authority of the United States Coast Guard, which also took over the manning of lights with keepers. Throughout this period the expense of maintaining and staffing lights was constantly stressed. Automation of lights began early in the twentieth century, and a major push in the early 1960s relieved all but a few lighthouses of their keepers. Lighthouses are fairly high maintenance structures, being ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Seagull
Gulls, or colloquially seagulls, are seabirds of the family Laridae in the suborder Lari. They are most closely related to the terns and skimmers and only distantly related to auks, and even more distantly to waders. Until the 21st century, most gulls were placed in the genus ''Larus'', but that arrangement is now considered polyphyletic, leading to the resurrection of several genera. An older name for gulls is mews, which is cognate with German ''Möwe'', Danish ''måge'', Swedish ''mås'', Dutch ''meeuw'', Norwegian ''måke''/''måse'' and French ''mouette'', and can still be found in certain regional dialects. Gulls are typically medium to large in size, usually grey or white, often with black markings on the head or wings. They typically have harsh wailing or squawking calls; stout, longish bills; and webbed feet. Most gulls are ground-nesting carnivores which take live food or scavenge opportunistically, particularly the ''Larus'' species. Live food often includes crustac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tugboat
A tugboat or tug is a marine vessel that manoeuvres other vessels by pushing or pulling them, with direct contact or a tow line. These boats typically tug ships in circumstances where they cannot or should not move under their own power, such as in crowded harbour or narrow canals, or cannot move at all, such as barges, disabled ships, log rafts, or oil platforms. Some are ocean-going, some are icebreakers or salvage tugs. Early models were powered by steam engines, long ago superseded by diesel engines. Many have deluge gun water jets, which help in firefighting, especially in harbours. Types Seagoing Seagoing tugs (deep-sea tugs or ocean tugboats) fall into four basic categories: #The standard seagoing tug with model bow that tows almost exclusively by way of a wire cable. In some rare cases, such as some USN fleet tugs, a synthetic rope hawser may be used for the tow in the belief that the line can be pulled aboard a disabled ship by the crew owing to its lightness ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Candlepower
Candlepower (abbreviated as cp or CP) is a unit of measurement for luminous intensity. It expresses levels of light intensity relative to the light emitted by a candle of specific size and constituents. The historical candlepower is equal to 0.981 candelas. In modern usage, ''candlepower'' is sometimes used as a synonym for ''candela''. History The term candlepower was originally defined in the United Kingdom, by the Metropolitan Gas Act 1860, as the light produced by a pure spermaceti candle that weighs and burns at a rate of . Spermaceti is a material from the heads of sperm whales, and was once used to make high-quality candles. At the time the UK established candlepower as a unit, the French standard of light was based on the illumination from a Carcel burner. They defined the unit was that illumination that emanates from a lamp burning pure colza oil (obtained from the seed of the plant '' Brassica campestris'') at a defined rate. Ten standard candles equaled about one Car ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sparkplug Lighthouse
A caisson lighthouse (also referred to as a sparkplug lighthouse, or bug light) is a type of lighthouse whose superstructure rests on a concrete or metal caisson. Caisson lighthouses were developed in the late nineteenth century as a cheaper alternative to screwpile lighthouses. The caisson design was also more efficient as it could better withstand harsh weather, and was not as fragile. Caisson lighthouses usually have living quarters made of cast iron Cast iron is a class of iron–carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impuriti ..., although some brick examples are known. The two American nicknames were later coined because of the structure's shape. Gallery See also References Lighthouses Marine architecture Caissons {{pharology-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Caisson (engineering)
In geotechnical engineering, a caisson ( or ; borrowed from French ''caisson'', from Italian ''cassone'', meaning ''large box'', an augmentative of ''cassa'') is a watertight retaining structure used, for example, to work on the foundations of a bridge pier, for the construction of a concrete dam, or for the repair of ships. Caissons are constructed in such a way that the water can be pumped out, keeping the work environment dry. When piers are being built using an open caisson, and it is not practical to reach suitable soil, friction pilings may be driven to form a suitable sub-foundation. These piles are connected by a foundation pad upon which the column pier is erected. Caisson engineering has been used at least since the 18th century, and was notably used in the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge, which was completed in 1883. Types To install a caisson in place, it is brought down through soft mud until a suitable foundation material is encountered. While bedrock is pref ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads is the name of both a body of water in the United States that serves as a wide channel for the James River, James, Nansemond River, Nansemond and Elizabeth River (Virginia), Elizabeth rivers between Old Point Comfort and Sewell's Point where the Chesapeake Bay flows into the Atlantic Ocean, and the surrounding metropolitan region located in the southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina portions of the Tidewater (region), Tidewater Region. Comprising the Virginia Beach–Norfolk–Newport News, VA–NC, metropolitan area and an extended combined statistical area that includes the Elizabeth City, North Carolina micropolitan area, Elizabeth City, North Carolina, micropolitan statistical area and Dare County, North Carolina, Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina, micropolitan statistical area, Hampton Roads is known for its large military presence, ice-free harbor, shipyards, coal piers, and miles of waterfront property and beaches, all of which contribute to th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
