Buffalo Main Light

Buffalo Main Light

Buffalo Main Light as seen through a periscope on board the USS Little Rock (CG-4)
Location Buffalo River, Buffalo, New York
Coordinates 42°52′49″N 78°53′45″W / 42.88028°N 78.89583°W / 42.88028; -78.89583Coordinates: 42°52′49″N 78°53′45″W / 42.88028°N 78.89583°W / 42.88028; -78.89583
Year first lit 1833
Automated No
Foundation Stone molehead
Construction Limestone and cast iron
Tower shape Octagonal
Height 60 feet (18 m)
Focal height
Buffalo Main Light
Area 0.5 acres (0.20 ha)
MPS U.S. Coast Guard Lighthouses and Light Stations on the Great Lakes TR
NRHP Reference # 84002383[1]
Added to NRHP July 19, 1984
ARLHS number USA-090

Buffalo (Main) Light is a lighthouse at the mouth of Buffalo River/Erie canal, directly across from the Erie basin marina, underneath the skyway in downtown Buffalo, New York.

History

The lighthouse was established and lit in 1833 and was deactivated in 1914. The foundation material was stone molehead and the lighthouse was constructed out of limestone and cast iron. The shape of the tower was octagonal and was 60 feet (18 m) high. The lens installed in 1857 was a third order Fresnel lens. The lens was later removed to the Buffalo History Museum.[2]

This 60-foot-tall, octagonal limestone structure is the oldest still standing in its original location in the city of Buffalo. It replaced the original 1818 light on this site along the Lake Erie shore at the mouth of the Buffalo River. Presently, it is part of an outdoor museum located on the grounds of the United States Coast Guard Station.[2]

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.[1]

In 2010, the Coast Guard announced it would relinquish 4.6 acres (1.9 ha) of its 31 acres (13 ha) on the point and Congressman Brian Higgins obtained over $6 million to reconfigure the Coast Guard station to allow public access to the lighthouse. In April 2011, Erie Canal Harbor Development Corporation approved a grant of $170,700 to repair and restore the lighthouse in anticipation of public tours. The work was completed in August 2011.

References

  1. 1 2 Staff (2009-03-13). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  2. 1 2 Carol Poh Miller (May 1979). "HAER Inventory: Great Lakes Lighthouse Survey". New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. Retrieved 2009-07-24.

Further reading

External links

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