Southwest Ledge Light is an active

lighthouse 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 mar ...

marking the main entrance channel to the harbor of

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134,02 ...

. Completed in 1877, it was one of the first to be built on a cylindrical iron foundation, an innovation by Maj. George H. Elliot to address shifting ice that is regarded to be very important in lighthouse design. The lighthouse was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1990 as Southwest Ledge Lighthouse.

Description

The Southwest Ledge Light is located at the southwestern end of a

breakwater Breakwater may refer to: * Breakwater (structure), a structure for protecting a beach or harbour Places * Breakwater, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria, Australia * Breakwater Island Breakwater Island () is a small island in the Palme ...

on the eastern side of the main channel into New Haven Harbor. The breakwater was built upon an underwater rock formation that the light was originally built as a warning for. The light consists of a three-story structure, which is mounted on a circular iron structure set in concrete surrounded by

riprap Riprap (in North American English), also known as rip rap, rip-rap, shot rock, rock armour (in British English) or rubble, is human-placed rock or other material used to protect shoreline structures against scour and water, wave, or ice erosion. ...

. The structure is octagonal in shape, with an open balcony and railing around its main level, supported by large metal brackets. It is covered by a

mansard roof A mansard or mansard roof (also called a French roof or curb roof) is a four-sided gambrel-style hip roof characterised by two slopes on each of its sides, with the lower slope, punctured by dormer windows, at a steeper angle than the upper. The ...

, above which the lantern house rises. The lantern house is also surrounded by a railing, and is covered by a bellcast roof. The building's architectural styling is Second Empire, with bracketed window surrounds, bracketed eaves, and round-arch dormers in the roof. Most of these parts are cast iron; the interior chambers are framed in wood.

History

Southwest Ledge (New Haven Breakwater) Light (New Haven County, Connecticut)

Construction on the Southwest Ledge Lighthouse started in 1873 and was finished in 1877. The superstructure originally intended for this light was put on display at the

Philadelphia Exposition of 1876 The Centennial International Exhibition of 1876, the first official World's Fair to be held in the United States, was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from May 10 to November 10, 1876, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the signing of the ...

; in order to more quickly finish the light, however, a duplicate superstructure was built and installed at this light. The original house remained at the exposition until its close, and was then used for the Ship John Shoal Light in

Delaware Bay Delaware Bay is the estuary outlet of the Delaware River on the northeast seaboard of the United States. It is approximately in area, the bay's freshwater mixes for many miles with the saltwater of the Atlantic Ocean. The bay is bordered inlan ...

. The foundation of the lighthouse was reinforced in 1911, and boat cranes (of which only foundations remain today) were added in the 1930s to facilitate access. The lighthouse was automated in 1973, and remains an active

aid to navigation In international relations, aid (also known as international aid, overseas aid, foreign aid, economic aid or foreign assistance) is – from the perspective of governments – a voluntary transfer of resources from one country to another. Ai ...

. It was placed up for sale in August 2016, and was sold to Dr. Casey Jordan of Beacon Preservation, Inc., in September 2016.

Head keepers

* Elizur Thompson (1877 – 1881) * Henry C. Thompson (1881 – 1898) * Frank C. Hall (1898 – 1905) * Jorgen Tonnesen (1905 – 1914) * John Petterson (at least 1915 – at least 1917) * David Griffiths (at least 1918 – at least 1919) * Albert Wilkinson (at least 1921 – at least 1922) * John Ostman (at least 1935 – at least 1940) * Michael Scanlan (1942 – 1943)Southwest Ledge (New Haven Breakwater), CT
Lighthouse Friends. Retrieved 22 June 2016

References

External links

{{Authority control Lighthouses completed in 1877 Long Island Sound Buildings and structures in New Haven, Connecticut Tourist attractions in New Haven, Connecticut Transportation in New Haven, Connecticut Lighthouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Connecticut Second Empire architecture in Connecticut Lighthouses in New Haven County, Connecticut National Register of Historic Places in New Haven, Connecticut 1877 establishments in Connecticut

Description

History

Head keepers

See also

References

External links