FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Nancy Gold
The Gold Standard
(914) 232-6583
marketing@thegoldstandard.com “FOLLOW
THE HUDSON RIVER LIGHTHOUSE TRAIL”
New Brochure Marks First Time Hudson Lights Presented
Together
Trail Includes Statue of Liberty Which Was Once
a Federal Lighthouse
(HUDSON RIVER VALLEY, N.Y.) – The Hudson
River Lighthouse Coalition has announced the recent publication
of a brochure entitled “Follow the Hudson River Lighthouse
Trail,” which, for the first time, provides the public with
information on visiting the eight remaining lighthouses along the
Hudson River, from the Statue of Liberty in the south to the Hudson-Athens
Lighthouse in the north. The brochure is accompanied by a website
which can be found at www.hudsonlights.com.
Soon to be distributed to all the historic sites
and tourism information centers in the Hudson Valley, the brochure
tells the history of the lighthouses, all fourteen of which were
built after the opening of the Erie Canal increased commercial traffic
on the river.
The brochure includes a map and information
on the eight lights that still stand today, plus a vibrant photo
of each. These regal and proud guardians echo an earlier time, beckoning
lighthouse enthusiasts and history buffs to retrace the journeys
of sloops and steamboats, tugboats and cargo ships that once depended
on their lights.
Modern navigational tools have rendered most of the Hudson’s
beacons obsolete, but the lighthouses never fail to fascinate visitors
to the region. Several of the lights now hold museums; one offers
overnight accomodations, and a few still proffer warnings to mariners
of rocks and shoals ahead.
In announcing the publication, Coalition chairperson
Louise Bliss of Hudson said, “We are very pleased to be able
to present to the public this concise and inviting guide to the
lighthouses of the Hudson River. It is our hope that visitors and
residents alike will enjoy discovering all that the Hudson Valley
has to offer, while traveling from light to light.”
The brochure’s main sponsor is the Hudson
River Valley Greenway, which provided a $15,000 grant. Carmella
R. Mantello, Executive Director of the Greenway and Director of
the Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area, stated, “The
lighthouses of the Hudson River are fast becoming one of the Valley’s
preeminent tourist attractions, and the joint efforts of the Lighthouse
Coalition and the Greenway will help them and the nearby communities
tap into these historical, cultural and economic resources. With
the Governor and the Greenway’s continued support for such
regional tourism projects, along with our efforts to market the
Valley through the Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area program,
the world will soon discover the beauty, history and serenity of
the great Hudson River Valley.”
Other sponsors include the Teicher Organization,
the Village of Sleepy Hollow, Ginsburg Development Corporation,
Kingston Landings, Historic House Trust of NYC, HVNet.com, Hudson
Mohawk Resource Conservation & Development Council, Inc., Lower
Hudson-Long Island Resource Conservation & Development Council,
Inc., National Park Service Rivers & Trails Program, New York
State/Department of Environmental Conservation/Hudson River Estuary
Program, USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service, Hudson Valley
Enterprises, Blue Sky Restorations and American Heritage Rivers
Initiative.
The Gold Standard, a Katonah-based marketing
communications firm that specializes in tourism development, produced
the brochure. Gene Krackehl Associates of Katonah did the design
and most of the color photography was done by Jim Crowley. The website
for the Lighthouse Coalition was produced by Joe Bigelow of HVNet.com.
The Hudson River Lighthouse Coalition is a consortium of non-profit
organizations that preserve and protect the Hudson Lights. For more
information about visiting the lighthouses of the Hudson River,
go to www.hudsonlights.com.
For tourism information on the Hudson Valley,
call 888-576-4784 for a free brochure on the Hudson Valley National
Heritage Area, or 800-232-4782 for a free regional travel guide.
On the web, go to www.hudsonrivervalley.com or www.hvnet.com.
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DESCRIPTIONS OF THE HUDSON RIVER LIGHTHOUSES
The Statue of Liberty
- Long forgotten is the fact that the famous Statue of Liberty,
at the southern entrance to the Hudson River, was once a lighthouse.
Congress accepted France’s monumental gift as work of art
and a beacon for New York harbor in 1877. After Liberty’s
dedication and unveiling in 1886, President Cleveland appointed
the U.S. Light-House Board to be its caretaker. Engineers set up
a steam dynamo plant on Bedloe’s Island and fourteen arc lamps,
nine in the torch and five others positioned strategically below
at the angles of Fort Wood. Even so, the dimness of the lighting
was little help to vessels entering the harbor and efforts were
made to increase the illumination. In 1897, an oil-generating engine
was installed to power the lights, but they were still insufficient,
and the Liberty Lighthouse closed in 1902. Today, visitors to Liberty
Island can learn more about the old Liberty Lighthouse from park
rangers. (212) 363-3200 www.nps.gov/stli
Jeffrey’s Hook
Lighthouse - Nestled beneath the George Washington Bridge,
“Little Red” served as a beacon to ships navigating
the Hudson River for 26 years between 1921 and 1947. Originally
erected on Sandy Hook, New Jersey, in 1880, the lighthouse became
obsolete and was dismantled in 1917. Four years later, the bright
red, conical iron tower with its 1,000 pound fog signal was reconstructed
on Jeffrey’s Hook at 178th Street in Manhattan to improve
navigation on the Hudson River. Now surrounded by Fort Washington
Park, “Little Red” can be visited by contacting the
Urban Park Rangers at (212) 304-2365.
The 1883 Lighthouse
at Sleepy Hollow - Commonly known as the Kingsland Point
Lighthouse or the Tarrytown Lighthouse, the 1833 Lighthouse at Sleepy
Hollow is located in Kingsland Point Park in the shadow of the Tappan
Zee Bridge. First lit on October 1, 1883, the rock-rimmed cast iron
tower alerted ships to the dangerous shoal water on the river’s
eastern shore until 1965, when its light was extinguished after
more than 75 years of service. On exhibit in the lighthouse are
logbooks and chronicles, photographs and furnishings that show what
family life was like in a lighthouse more than 100 years ago. Group
tours are available by appointment by calling the Village of Sleepy
Hollow 914-366-5109.
Stony Point Lighthouse
– Stony Point lighthouse, the oldest on the Hudson, marked
the entrance to the Hudson Highlands for nearly a hundred years.
Built of blue split stone in 1826, the lighthouse is a three-story
octagonal structure sited on a promontory on the western shore of
the Hudson, where the river narrows above Haverstraw Bay. A fourth-order
Fresnel lens, c.1850, has been restored to the lantern room, making
the historic lighthouse fully operational, although no longer an
aide-to-navigation. Today the lighthouse is part of the Stony Point
Battlefield State Historic Site, operated by New York State Office
of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation and the Palisades
Interstate Park Commission. Tours are available by appointment most
weekend afternoons from April through October, 845-786-2521. Located
on Park Road, off Route 9W in Stony Point.
Rondout Lighthouse
– The Rondout Lighthouse, built in 1913 at Kingston, is the
last and largest lighthouse constructed along the Hudson River.
In 2002, the U.S. Coastguard turned over ownership of the lighthouse
to the City of Kingston, which partners with the Hudson River Maritime
Museum to care for the structure. Although no longer inhabited,
the Rondout light continues to operate. Visitors can enter the lighthouse
to view period furnishings and to learn of the experiences of lightkeepers
such as Catherine Murdock. In the tower they can see the working
Fresnel lens and enjoy fantastic Hudson River views. For more information,
log onto www.hrmm.org or call 845-338-0071.
Esopus Meadows Lighthouse
- Mud flats to the west on the Hudson River at Port Ewen
created the necessity for this lighthouse, which is surrounded by
water and framed by the Catskill Mountains. The foundation of the
lighthouse consists of 250 forty-foot-long piles driven into the
riverbed and cut off three feet below the mean water mark. A 49-foot
round pier topped with stacked granite blocks supports the wood-framed
keeper’s dwelling. Attached to the dwelling is a 53-foot-high
octagonal tower, which holds the lantern. The lighthouse, nicknamed
“Maid of the Meadows” is a historical treasure, as it
is the only remaining Hudson River Lighthouse built with a wood
frame and clapboard exterior. Extensive renovation continues. The
light can best be viewed from the river, or from the west bank at
Lighthouse Park in Ulster Park and from the east bank at Staatsburgh
Mansion For more information, call 845-297-1569 or go to www.esopusmeadowslighthouse.org.
Saugerties Lighthouse –
In 1869, a stately red brick lighthouse was constructed at the mouth
of the Esopus Creek at Saugerties, replacing an original 1835 structure.
A family lighthouse of strong Federal and simple Italianate styles,
the Saugerties light was erected on a massive circular stone base.
After being decommissioned in 1954, the lighthouse deteriorated.
Today, the restored working lighthouse welcomes visitors for tours
and overnight B&B accommodations. Visitors enjoy swimming, picnicking
and boating. Overnight guests have a quiet, restful stay with a
magnificent river view. In the lighthouse are a museum, parlor,
kitchen, and two bedrooms, appointed as they would have been during
the early 20th century. The Saugerties Light can be reached by a
half mile nature trail found at the end of Lighthouse Drive. For
information, call 845-247-0656 or go to www.saugertieslighthouse.com.
Hudson-Athens Lighthouse
– The northern-most lighthouse on the Hudson River at Hudson-Athens
rises from the river like a tiny gem. Hazards created by the Middle
Ground Flats opposite the city of Hudson made navigation of this
portion of the Hudson River risky. Built in 1874, the lighthouse
is still an active aid to navigation. The lighthouse, designed as
a Family Station, was home to Emil Brunner, the last civilian lightkeeper
(1932 -1949), his wife and four children. Visitors can hear the
operational fog signal bell and see one of the last remaining operational
“clock works,” manufactured by the Gamewell Fire Alarm
Telegraph Company of New York. On the outside deck, just feet from
passing ships, guests are treated to a panoramic view of the river
and the Catskills. For information on tours given May-October by
the Hudson/Athens Lighthouse Preservation Society, call 518-828-5294
or go to www.hudsonathenslighthouse.org.
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