NJLHS Preservation

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Finns Point Lighthouse
Brett Franks


Finn’s Point Lighthouse is closed.  Not thinking about closing, not planning to close or even temporarily closed.  Just plain closed.  Our annual New Jersey Lighthouse Challenge can no longer boast that all eleven land based lights are open for climbing.  Our efforts to promote preservation of the state’s lighthouses run aground.  How did this happen?  The light became a federal budget victim.

Finn’s Point Rear Range Lighthouse is located in the Supawna Meadows National Wildlife Refuge which is under the authority of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.  As related to us from Ms.Virginia Rettig, Deputy Refuge Manager,” The refuge has recently gone through some significant downsizing in both staff and funding. Essentially, both have been eliminated.” Unfortunately, many programs had to be cut. One of which is Public access to the lighthouse.  Ms. Rettig and the Refuge management were apologetic for this action but it was beyond their control.

The lighthouse is on the National Register of Historic Places.  It was added on August 30th, 1978 for engineering significance from the late 19th Century.  The cast iron components that make up this 115 foot, black, skeleton tower were constructed in Buffalo, NY by the Kellogg Bridge Company.  Delivered by freight train on the West Jersey Railroad to Salem, it was hauled on the final leg of its journey by U.S. Army mule-drawn wagons from the adjacent Fort Mott. Erecting the tower began in 1876 onto a masonry base set at 39° 37' 02" by 75° 32' 03".  It may seem hard to believe but all of this cost the U.S. taxpayers $1,200.00.

First lit in 1877, the tower originally featured a 24 inch diameter Fourth Order Fresnel lens on a focal plane of 105 feet.  The light was produced by a kerosene vapor double wick burner, similar to a modern Coleman camping lantern, but able to put out 150,000 candlepower. The keepers would climb 119 spiral steps up the tower and then up another 11 step ladder to service this lamp.  Built at the same time as the Liston Rear Range Light at Port Penn, Delaware, Finn’s Point Front and Rear Range lights served as a point of entry and exit between the Delaware Bay and River for maritime traffic moving up and down the river.  Over the years the ship channel shifted in the river as silt began to build and in 1895 the U.S. Lighthouse Establishment began planning to move Finn’s Point Range.

During 1901 when one channel dredging evolution took place, a light station at Taylor’s Bridge, Delaware was established.  This station was first lit in 1904, using a locomotive-type reflector headlamp hoisted to the top of a 100-foot wooden pole. The intent was to replace this temporary light by moving the cast-iron tower from Finn's Point Rear Range Light Station across the river. However, the United States Lighthouse Board decided not to abandon the Finn's Point Station, so it had to erect a new iron tower. This tower was completed and first lighted on July 27, 1910 and became the Reed Island Rear Range.  Today, the Reedy Island range lights mark the new channel.

Finn’s Point Light continued to burn steadily until 1933, when it was turned off. It went on again in 1939, but was automated. In 1950, after the Army Corps of Engineers dredged the river channel to 180 feet wide and 40 feet deep, the Finns Point range lights became obsolete and the light was permanently extinguished in 1951.  The keeper's house was demolished in 1977 after repeated arson and vandalism made it unsafe.  Other than the lighthouse itself, the oil house is the only remaining original structure.  In the 1970s, local citizens became concerned about the state of the lighthouse.

In 1981 Mrs. Betty Husarik, a local businesswomen, lead the formation of a "Save the Lighthouse Committee" and teamed with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to preserve Finn’s Point.  The “Lighthouse Lady” petitioned and lobbied Congress to appropriate funds to refurbish the tower.  During those negotiations she even met with then President Ronald Reagan.  In 1983, their efforts were rewarded when the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service awarded a contract to restore the tower. On October 14, 1984, an open house was held commemorate the efforts of the restoration.

Since then Betty Husarik passed away in 1999 and Finn’s Point has become part of the Supawna Meadows National Wildlife Refuge. I won’t strike platitudes about rolling in the grave or lights extinguished.  I just want the membership to understand what a few dedicated people can accomplish.  Betty Husarik went to our elected representatives of the day and restored a national treasure.  Now, three years before the silver anniversary of that restoration, Finn’s Point is again being taken away from us.  Who knows if this time it will be permanent?   

Our Preservation Committee is looking into the matter, trying to see if its status on the National Historic Register ensures public access cannot be denied.  And our Challenge Committee is working on contingency plans if we fail to reopen her before October 14th.  However the true power to reopen this light lies with you.  NJLHS as a non- profit Society cannot lobby, it’s against the law.  But as a concerned citizen, nothing is stopping you from notifying your elected officials that you care about lighthouses, that you want Finn’s Point open and preserved, and that you vote.  And before you think your voice doesn’t matter, remember Betty Husarik and consider writing for her.  


Pictures below are Finn’s Point in the late 60s and one from recent days.

                                                          
 




Preserving NJLHS’s Documentary Heritage
Barbara Pepe, NJLHS Archivist
     According to the New Jersey Lighthouse Society constitution and by-laws, one of our goals is to “acquire and preserve lighthouse lore and artifacts.” Another is to “establish archives/library with books, articles, photographs, postcards and artifacts obtained by the Society.” New Jersey lighthouse artifacts and documents are an integral part of the Society’s history. They help to tell the story of who we are. They are a record of what our goals are, what we’ve accomplished as an organization, where we’ve been, and where we’re going.
 
      In 2002, when I first took on the role of NJLHS Archivist, I found the Society’s archival collection stored in an upper room at Twin Lights in no apparent order. Since one of my responsibilities is to preserve these precious documents as records of and for the NJLHS, I started out on a mission to organize the documents. So, with the help of the Society’s Historian, Jack Slavin, the archival collection was sorted out and reorganized into two filing cabinets and some boxes. I worked on a list of categories and a retention schedule for our inventory. Since then, there have been additions to the collection, mostly organizational documents, such as meeting minutes and financial records. But there is so much more that needs to done.

    In the coming year, I hope to create an inventory that will allow us to track the artifacts and documents we have stored in the archives. Sometime in the future, the membership, and eventually the public, will have access to these records. Until then, I’ll keep working on preserving the Society’s documentary history.



A Question of Preservation
By Brett Franks, Chairman NJLHS Preservation Committee

   I had an uncle who expounded the virtue of drink.  He put away a pint of whiskey per day for many years.  He said he was preserving himself from the inside out.  Pickled maybe, but preserved?  My Granny preserved crabapples for years, trying to pass them off as jelly.  Which makes the point that just because you can preserve something doesn’t always mean you should.

    But what exactly is preservation?  Do we simply sum it up as keeping old things around that we have a history with?  If that’s true my wife’s doing a great job of preserving me.
 
   One of the NJLHS cornerstones, and something I find myself in a leadership role for, is promoting preservation. But exactly what does that mean to the membership?  And how do you promote something when you’re not sure everyone understands what is involved?  I guess we should find some common ground to work from.  A realization of the factors that decide what NJLHS should work to preserve.
 
   Is the meaning of preservation as simple as saving old buildings?  Probably not, lots of buildings have history and relevance. Most get knocked down because they’re too far-gone, cost too much to repair, or we really don’t care about them.  So consider this.  How do we relate historic value to economic value, and economic value to societies desires? Can these factors create a simple formula? One that will answer which things are worth our effort?  Possibly, in broad terms a politician might appreciate. The product of concern multiplied by historic value, divided by cost.
 
   Logically that should work.  We can’t change historic value, but we can manipulate the other two factors. Therefore our preservation concerns hinge on two things, human effort and money. Relax, take your hand off your wallet, I’m not looking for money this time (but if you have an abundance you want to be rid of…think of me).  I’m writing this to gain some reaction of our members, that human effort piece.  Let me give you two candidates for you’re interest.  Both will have additional information and contacts listed on the Preservation page of our web site.
 
   Conover Beacon stands on the shore of Raritan Bay, most days.  On some it stands in Raritan Bay.  Conover is cast iron, bottom to top.  It has already rusted away at the foundation line and is in serious disrepair.  It doesn’t look like much; it isn’t very grand. The history isn’t familiar to all but the most ardent of lighthouse lovers.   Should we be concerned?

   Ludlum Beach Lighthouse stands in Sea Isle City.  Problem is, it doesn’t look like a lighthouse.  The tower and light were removed years ago.  Now the owner is tired of caring for 120-year-old building.  So either he tears it down or a few dedicated people convince the town to salvage the lighthouse.  The structure is the original, but without the tower is it worth saving?
 
    We already have eleven other land-based lights vying for our attention, are these two additions worth preservation?  Considering the costs, current interest and states of each, the politicians answer is no.  But we can change that according to our formula.  We can increase concern.  So what should we do?  Better yet, what can we do?

   I’ve written previously about the effort to have Conover Beacon recognized on the National Historical Register.  Now a Conover Beacon Society is trying to form.  Forming this organization shows the local community officials that there is interest in preserving this light.  You can help.  Sign up to be a member of the Conover Society.  Simply show if you care. Just having your name helps show the interest and possibly you could help out by sending a letter or making a phone call.  It’s a small effort but it can bring big results.
 
   Ludlum Beach is on a doomsday timeline lasting only till the end of summer.  Right now a few individuals are pulling together to try to get one of the local governments interested in saving the lighthouse.  They need backing.  They need grants, plans, studies and probably a miracle or two.  They need a partner with clout.  Is NJLHS that partner, not sure.  I truly hope so.  But again you can help.  Drop a line to Sea Isle City, write to the editor of your paper, and see if your company is looking for a tax write off or has a matching grant program.  There are more ways to help lighthouses taking twenty minutes at your computer drafting a letter than you would think possible.
 
   The one factor I skipped over is when is something too far-gone.  That is a function of time and as the saying goes, “time waits for no man”.  Time claims what we choose to ignore.   So please consider investing just a little time to help us preserve New Jersey’s Lighthouses.




Conover Beacon Friends Society

     The first meeting of the Conover Beacon Friends Society will be held
February 24th, 2007 at 1:30 PM. The meeting will be held at Croydon
Hall, located at 900 Leonardville Road in Middletown Township (in the
Middletown Township Complex). Anyone interested in being a part of the
effort to save Conover Beacon is welcome to attend this meeting.

     Local residents from the Middletown/Leonardo/Keansburg area as well as
concerned lighthouse enthusiasts from throughout the state are launching
this society. This first organizational meeting will outline the future
plans for preservation and promotion of the light.

     Recently added to the 'Lighthouse Digest's Doomsday List", Conover
Beacon is a cast iron range light that was part of the Chapel Hill
Range. That channel range runs from the tip of Sandy Hook to the town
of Leonardo. This same tower once served as the Front Range for the
Waackaack Range also located in Raritan Bay. Before being moved to it's
current location in Middletown, the light stood in Keansburg and was
known as Point Comfort Light or Bayside Beacon.

     Anyone interested in helping to save Conover and would like to join the
Friends Society, please contact Dennis Robbins at (609)871-4425 or email
him at DenRob45@aol.com.



Preservation Committee


Preservation Committee Ends Year on a High Point
By Brett Franks, Chairman NJLHS Preservation Committee

Thanks to the generous support from our membership and lighthouse enthusiasts around the country, our Annual Preservation Raffle was once again a big success.  The raffle profits exceeded those from every previous drawing except 2001 when the handcrafted NJ Lighthouse Quilt was the grand prize.  Our grand prize this year, the 6½-foot tall replica of Sandy Hook Lighthouse,(pictured below) was built by Ed Chiasson of Sea-Lites, Inc. and those who saw it in person can certainly attest to the magnificent job he did in its production. 
I was lucky enough to find Ed’s work while driving through Woodstown, NJ.  I was having no luck convincing my wife it was a shortcut home and not a roundabout way to Richman’s Ice Cream (South West Jersey understands my coercion in the name of sweet, creamy necessity!) when I saw a beautiful 9-foot tall rendition of Cape Hatteras.  You’d be amazed how fast a Ford pickup can come to a full stop from 60 mph, while completing a hard right turn into a parking lot.  When my wife climbed back onto the seat from her sudden launch under the dashboard, and saw the model, she too was amazed at how good it looked and forgot about beating me senseless. 
The store owner was very helpful and put me in contact with Ed.  He had many versions to choose from, including Barnegat, but we started talking about creating a new NJ lighthouse replica for our contest. Fortunately for us, Ed was up to the challenge of building Sandy Hook’s octagonal tower.  He did a tremendous job, I can’t thank him enough for his effort and artistry. His work really helped make this Raffle the success it was.  Anyone who might want to own his or her own lawn size version of a lighthouse, larger or smaller, please look Ed up on the web.  He has graciously volunteered to donate a portion of his sales to NJLHS for anyone who mentions finding him through our society.
 
I’d also like to thank the Renaissance Hotel in Portsmouth, Virginia for their generous prize donation to NJLHS.  I’ve had the pleasure of staying there several times and I’ve always enjoyed the experience.  During my last stay, the room had a view overlooking the Portsmouth Lightship and the Elizabeth River. It’s a nice experience to see the flash from the lightship as you drift off to sleep.  Again, thanks to all of the people who donated prizes to our raffle this year and every year.  Without them we would not have this event to raise funds for preservation.  A listing of this years winners is at the end of this article.
 
I’m sure many of you would like to know how these funds are put to use.  Well, first and foremost, we always take care of our NJ lights.  One of the things we recently did was to donate $1000.00 to the Tinicum Rear Range Lighthouse Society for being our hosts during the fall NJLHS membership meeting last year.  Our donation will help them maintain the light and possibly pay for some nice accent lighting on their new National Historic Register plaque.  Congratulations Tinicum on that preservation milestone. This year we have some national lighthouses concerns to consider along with those specific to NJ.  The summer hurricane season was devastating to several lights along the Gulf Coast.  While we can’t help them all, we will try to provide some support for those in the worst financial condition. 

Over the next few months the Preservation Committee will be discussing this and several new projects to propagate the society’s role in “hand’s on” efforts as well as other means to help further the NJLHS preservation goals.  If you know of any efforts or issues with lighthouse you think our committee should be aware of, or just want to discuss an idea please feel free to e-mail me or just drop by our table at any membership meeting and talk. Remember during each membership meeting to come over anyway and buy your chances for the Door Prizes and “Harry’s 50/50” Drawing, both of which support the preservation budget.  Even though Harry Megonigal is no longer sitting there, smiling and greeting us all, it doesn’t mean he has stopped urging you to buy those tickets.        
 
2005 Raffle prize

                               Prize - Sandy Hook Replica                                  Brett Franks and prize                             Brett Franks and Ed Chiasson(builder)


                                                      Winner - Mary Ann Valeski                      Preservation check presentation to Marc Kemp(right) of
                                                                                                                   Tinicun Rear Range Lighthouse Society by Brett Franks
                                                                                                                   and Debbie Megonigal
 
© 2007 NJLHS