BARBERS POINT NY

Year Established:
1873
Existing:
Yes
Source:
LL-1903
File Type:
jpg (image/jpeg)
Photo Date:
2006
Photo Credit:
Mike and Carol McKinney
Photo Courtesy of:
US Lighthouse Society
Collection / Donor:

LOCATION

Location:
LAKE CHAMPLAIN
Latitude:
44° 15.43'
Longitude:
73° 40.45'
City / Town:
WESTPORT
U.S. State:
New York
Location County:
ESSEX
Country:
United States

OWNER & ACCESS

Open to Public:
No
Light List Data:
  1. BARBERS POINT NY
Light list data courtesy Gary Riemenschneider

STRUCTURE

Year Discontinued:
1935
Disposition:
Sold to private party
Year Tower Established:
1873
Tower Construction Material:
BLUE LIMESTONE/WOOD
Tower Foundation:
BLUE LIMESTONE
Height of light above mean high water, in feet:
83 feet above water
Height, in feet, from base of structure to center of lantern:
36 feet
Tower Shape:
OCTAGONAL
Fog Signal Building?:
No
Keeper's Quarters?:
Yes
Year Keeper's Quarters:
1873
Keeper's Quarters Style:
SECOND EMPIRE COTTAGE
Keeper's Quarters Construction:
STONE
Other Structures:
GARAGE, 1950S ADDITION TO HOUSE

OPTICS

Active Aid to Navigation?:
No
Current Optic:
REMOVED
Original Optic Type:
FIFTH ORDER, FRESNEL
Year Original Lens Installed:
1873
Private Aid:
No
Year Automated:
1935
USCG Access to Optics:
No

Comments:

Historical Information:

  • Barber’s Point is roughly midway between Split Rock Point to the north and Crown Point to the south. This stretch of 125-mile-long Lake Champlain is quite narrow, averaging only two miles in width. Barber’s Point was thus a logical place for a ferry, and records indicate that Hezekiah Barber operated one that crossed Lake Champlain between Barber’s Point, NY and Arnold Bay (Panton), VT. The geography at Barber’s Point also made it a prime candidate for a lighthouse.
  • 1868: The Lighthouse Board petitioned Congress for the necessary funds. A sum of $15,000 was finally allocated on July 15, 1870.
  • 1872: Construction began after delays due to but due to difficulties in securing a valid title for the desired parcel. The Second Empire design used for the Colchester Reef Light (as well as others in the area) was reused, but executed in blue limestone rather than the more usual granite. Because of the light's isolation the keeper was provided with a barn in which to keep a horse to procure supplies for his family. Work on the lighthouse, a two-story structure with a Mansard roof and an integrated 36-foot tower, continued through the end of this year.
  • 1873: The light made its debut at the opening of navigation on Lake Champlain. The lower story of Barber’s Point Lighthouse is faced with blue limestone blocks and originally had a brown-shingled roof. A fifth-order Fresnel lens, with a focal plane of eighty-three feet above the lake, beamed a fixed white light, which was visible for 14-3⁄4 miles.
  • 1935: The Barber’s Point Lighthouse was replaced by a steel skeletal tower, topped with an automatic light. The lighthouse and surrounding property were sold in 1936 and have been used as a private residence ever since. The lighthouse is included in the Camp Dudley National Historic District, just south of Westport, New York.

Entered by:
t.wheeler
Entered Date:
Jul 21, 2017