Fairhaven Range Front

Type:
Year Established:
1872
Existing:
No
Source:
LL-1901
Fairhaven NY 1907.jpg
Download:
File Type:
jpg (image/jpeg)
Photo Date:
1907
Photo Credit:
US Lighthouse Establishment
Photo Courtesy of:
US Lighthouse Society
Collection / Donor:

LOCATION

Location:
Little Sodus Bay/lake Ontario
Latitude:
43° 21'02"
Longitude:
76° 42'42"
City / Town:
FAIR HAVEN
U.S. State:
New York
Country:
United States

OWNER & ACCESS

Open to Public:
No
Light List Data:
  1. Fairhaven Range Front
Light list data courtesy Gary Riemenschneider

STRUCTURE

Year Discontinued:
1943
Disposition:
Range Lights Est. 1884; Replaced W/20 Foot Skeletal Tower in 1943
Year Tower Established:
1872
Tower Construction Material:
WOOD
Tower Foundation:
CRIB/PIER
Height of light above mean high water, in feet:
31.25 FT ABOVE WATER
Height, in feet, from base of structure to center of lantern:
26.5 FT
Tower Daymark:
White
Fog Signal Building?:
No
Keeper's Quarters?:
No
Year Keeper's Quarters:
1872
Other Structures:
WOODEN WALKWAY/PIER, BOATHOUSE

OPTICS

Active Aid to Navigation?:
No
Original Optic Type:
FOURTH ORDER, FRESNEL
Year Original Lens Installed:
1872
Private Aid:
No
Year Automated:
1943
USCG Access to Optics:
No
Comments:

Historical Information:

  • The town of Fair Haven is located on Lake Ontario between Niagara Falls and Alexandria Bay. The town was originally a shipping port, but is now a resort community. Originally there were two lighthouses located in Fair Haven.
  • 1872: When the lighthouse was first built at the end of the pier jutting out into Lake Ontario, it was realized that a keeper’s house was needed. The second floor of the tiny tower only contained a bunk, stove and oven.
  • 1873: The Lighthouse Service built a residence on shore. The cost for this residence was $9,900. The living quarters in the tower were originally intended for emergency overnight stays if bad weather occurred, and the keeper was stranded at the lighthouse. An elevated walk was eventually bolted to the pier with a steel band cable so that the keeper could get back to land, even during bad weather.
  • 1884: A second tower, a range light, was built at the south end of the pier.
  • 1943: A skeleton lighthouse with a metal frame about 20 feet high was installed, and it was at this time the position of Light Keeper was abolished.
  • 1945: The lighthouses were torn down around 1945, however the keeper’s house still stands.
  • 1965: The keeper's house was sold to a private individual.
Entered by:
t.wheeler
Entered Date:
Jan 15, 2018