Race Rock Light
Race Rock light
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| Location | Entrance to Long Island sound |
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| Coordinates | 41°14′36.6″N 72°2′49.2″W / 41.243500°N 72.047000°WCoordinates: 41°14′36.6″N 72°2′49.2″W / 41.243500°N 72.047000°W |
| Year first constructed | 1878 |
| Year first lit | 1879 |
| Automated | 1978 |
| Deactivated | Active |
| Foundation | Granite and concrete caisson and pier. |
| Construction | Granite |
| Tower shape | Square/octagonal |
| Markings / pattern | Natural color with white lantern |
| Height | 45 feet (14 m) |
| Focal height | 67 feet (20 m) |
| Original lens | Forth order Fresnel lens |
| Range | 16 nautical miles (30 km; 18 mi) |
| Characteristic | Flashing Red 10s |
| Fog signal | Fog Horn points southeast. HORN: 2 every 30s |
| Admiralty number | J0686 |
| ARLHS number | USA-681 |
| USCG number |
1-19815 |
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Race Rock Light Station
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| Nearest city | Fishers Island, New York |
| Area | less than one acre |
| Architect | Francis Hopkinson Smith |
| Architectural style | Gothic Revival |
| MPS | Light Stations of the United States MPS |
| NRHP Reference # | |
| Added to NRHP | April 29, 2005 |
1-19815
Race Rock Light is a lighthouse on Race Rock Reef, southwest of Fishers Island, New York. The reef is a dangerous set of rocks off the coast of Fishers Island on Long Island Sound and was the site of many shipwrecks. It is currently owned and maintained by the New London Maritime Society as part of the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act program.
Race Rock Light was built between 1871 and 1878. Designed by Francis Hopkinson Smith (1838–1915), the lighthouse is an excellent example of 19th-century engineering and design. The massive masonry foundations on the reef required seven years to complete. Once the foundations were secure, the stone structure, including the keeper's quarters and the tower, were built in only nine months. The lighthouse has a fourth-order Fresnel lens in a tower standing 67 feet (20 m) above the waterline. The Coast Guard automated the light in 1978.
The lighthouse is believed by some to be haunted. It was featured on an episode of Ghost Hunters and seen in the show's opening credits.
Race Rock Lighthouse, in Long Island Sound, 8 miles (13 km) from New London, Connecticut, was built under great difficulties. The builder was Captain Scott. His engineer was F. Hopkinson Smith, who later became famous as a writer of lighthouse stories. Race Rock Lighthouse is off Fisher’s Island Sound, at the mouth of the Race, where the waters of the Sound rush both ways, according to the tide, with great velocity and force, and where, in heavy weather, the waves run high. By 1837 eight vessels had been lost in 8 years on Race Point reef.
In 1838 Congress appropriated $3,000 for erecting a lighthouse at Race Rock but the money was never expended. In 1852 the Lighthouse Board reported:
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