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History
The Highlands of Navesink, rising 200 feet above sea level,
were a
natural location for the erection of an aid to navigation. TheHighlands
had been used for signalling purposes as early as 1746. (Click here for
John
Hamilton's letter regarding the accidental lighting of the beacon at
the Highlands of Navesink during the War of Austrian Succession, 1746.),
but it wasn't until 1828, that the Federal Government constructed the
first aid to navigation upon the Highlands. The first "twin lights"
were two identical unconnected towers constructed of rubble. Just 10
years after their construction an 1838 report described the station:
Highlands of Neversink.--The revolving light burns
fifteen lamps, with
parabolic reflectors; the works slightly out of repair; the
window-sills and many of the beams rotten; silver burnt off the
reflectors. The Highland stationary light burns six lamps with
parabolic reflectors; the beams under the floors rotten; tower leaks in
many placed; the light shows badly towards the north. Keeper's dwelling
in good repair.
Despite their condition, in 1841, the towers became the first
lighthouses in the United States to be equipped with Fresnel lens. The
Frensel lens was invented by a frenchman, Augustin Fresnel, and
consisted of a beehive arrangement of glass prisms designed to
concentrate ambient light. The system of prisms produced a light vastly
superior to anything in this country at the time. (Click here for Excerpts from Stephen Pleasonton's letter
regarding the installation of the First Fresnel lens in the
United States in the Navesink Twin Lights.
By 1862 however, the lighthouses were in such a state of
disrepair
that the Government decided to build the structure which still stands
today. The two light towers were connected by storage galleries and
keepers quarters. The station became a showcase for the Lighthouse
Establishment, where new navigational technology was tested before
being employed in widespread use at other stations. Twin Lights became
the initial first-order light to be fueled by mineral oil (kerosene) in
1883, and the first electrically powered lighthouse in 1898, when a
huge bi-valve lens was installed in the south tower illuminated by an
electric arc lamp. At that time, the south tower became the most
powerful lighthouse in the country, producing a light of 25,000,000
candle-power that could be seen 22 miles at sea, though there were
reports of it having been seen as far away as 70 miles when the light
was reflected off a low lying cloud bank.The light-station was used
until it was decommissoned by the Coast
Guard in 1949. Highly sophisticated aids to navigation, including the
Ambrose Light-tower, made Twin Lights unnecessary. The huge bivalve
lens was acquired by the Boston Museum of Science and Technology from
the Coast Guard in 1951, and placed on exhibit there.
In 1960, the facility became a New Jersey State
Historic site. In 1979, through the efforts of the Twin Lights
Historical Society, Rumson Garden Club, and NJ Division of Parks and
Forestry, the Fresnel lens was returned home to Twin Lights.
Today, the museum features well-interpreted exhibits of
lighthouse,
Life-Saving Service and other memorabilia. For more information call,
(732) 872-1814
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