Little Gull Island Light is a
lighthouse on Little Gull Island, a small island in
Long Island Sound, located approximately northeast of
Great Gull Island
Great Gull Island is a island separating the Long Island and Block Island sounds, located approximately southwest of Little Gull Island. Both islands are located in the town of Southold in Suffolk County, New York, and lie roughly midway be ...
. Both islands are located in the Town of
Southold, in
Suffolk County, New York, and lie roughly midway between
Plum Island and
Fishers Island
Fishers Island (Pequot: ''Munnawtawkit'') is an island that is part of Southold, New York, United States at the eastern end of Long Island Sound, off the southeastern coast of Connecticut across Fishers Island Sound. About long and wide, it ...
. Little Gull Island is approximately southwest of Fishers Island and the channel of water between them is the main entrance to Long Island Sound, known as "The Race".
The lighthouse, which was built in 1869 and automated in 1978, occupies much of the rocky island, which is only about in size.
History
The first lighthouse was a high tower established in 1806, which was replaced by the current conical tower and a second order
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 ...
in 1869. The lighthouse was automated in 1978 and is still operational. The foundation is a
granite
Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies under ...
pier and the construction material is granite.
In 1813, the light was extinguished by a group of
Royal Marines in a raid led by
Commodore Thomas Hardy during the
War of 1812
The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States, United States of America and its Indigenous peoples of the Americas, indigenous allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom ...
.
On May 12, 1881, the ''Galatea'', bound from
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Rhode Island. One of the oldest cities in New England, it was founded in 1636 by Roger Williams, a Reformed Baptist theologian and religious exile from the Massachusetts ...
to New York, ran aground in the calm due to the dense fog. Two days later, the ship was able to get off the island without damage. The
Lighthouse Board opened an investigation because it was suspected that the fog signal was not operational during that time. The naval officer in charge of the investigation,
French Ensor Chadwick
Rear Admiral French Ensor Chadwick USN (February 29, 1844 – January 27, 1919) was a United States Navy officer who became prominent in the naval reform movement of the post-Civil War era. He was particularly noted for his contributions to nav ...
,
spent time questioning witnesses and others who might have heard the signal, and tested the signal at various locations around Little Gull Island. He concluded that the fog signal was operational during the time as the signal was heard at
Mystic, Connecticut
Mystic is a village and census-designated place (CDP) in Groton, Connecticut, Groton and Stonington, Connecticut, United States.
Historically, Mystic was a significant Connecticut seaport with more than 600 ships built over 135 years starting in ...
and by a tug boat that was farther away than the ''Galatea'', and that the aberrations and eccentricities around Little Gull were even more significant than around
Beavertail Lighthouse where sound tests were run later in 1881.
The
United States Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, mu ...
has designated Little Gull Island Light as an Historic Light Stations in New York.
In 2009 Little Gull Island Light was put up for sale under the
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 o ...
.
Eight bids up to $381,000 were received.
The sale for $381,000 broke the record for the highest bid received to that date under the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act.
Little Gull Island Light is shown on the NOAA Chart 12354
[NOAA Chart 12354](_blank)
/ref>
In popular culture
The Archives Center at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History
The National Museum of American History: Kenneth E. Behring Center collects, preserves, and displays the heritage of the United States in the areas of social, political, cultural, scientific, and military history. Among the items on display is t ...
has a collection (#1055) of souvenir postcard
A postcard or post card is a piece of thick paper or thin cardboard, typically rectangular, intended for writing and mailing without an envelope. Non-rectangular shapes may also be used but are rare. There are novelty exceptions, such as wood ...
s of lighthouses and has digitized 272 of these and made them available online. These include postcards of Little Gull Island Light [Smithsonian lighthouse postcards](_blank)
with links to customized nautical charts provided by National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (abbreviated as NOAA ) is an United States scientific and regulatory agency within the United States Department of Commerce that forecasts weather, monitors oceanic and atmospheric conditio ...
.
References
External links
National Park Service
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Islands of Suffolk County, New York
Long Island Sound
Southold, New York
Tourist attractions in Suffolk County, New York
Islands of New York (state)
Lighthouses completed in 1806
Towers completed in 1806
Lighthouses completed in 1869
Lighthouses in Suffolk County, New York
1869 establishments in New York (state)