Tinicum Rear Range Lighthouse - Paulsboro, NJ
N 39° 50.852 W 075° 14.383
18S E 479492 N 4410862
This interpretive explains the history of the 1880 Tinicum Island Rear Range Light, the rear of a pair of range lights marking a section of the channel in the Delaware River south of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Waymark Code: WMHWH9
Location: New Jersey, United States
Date Posted: 08/19/2013
Views: 7
The interpretive is located to the front left of the lighthouse, just outside the fence, attached to a black pole. It appears to be of plastic or some other flexible, synthetic, long-lasting material. The sign reads:
The Tinicum Rear Range Lighthouse began operation on the evening of December 31, 1880. The lighthouse is a steel skeletal structure standing 85 feet tall with 112 steps leading from the neoclassical pavilion at the base of the tower to the lantern room. Directly below the lantern room is the watch room, which has a unique wood lined closed that curves along the circular outer wall of the tower. The accompanying illustrations show the light station as it appeared in 1913. Along with the light tower was a keeper's dwelling, consisting of seven rooms, brick oil house, frame barn and barnyard, cow shed, poultry house and privy situated on 4.8 acres of land. At various times, in the early days, "day marks", consisting of a four foot diameter iron disk, mounted on a tall staff above the lantern room and slatted frames on each side of the tower, just below the watch room were added to show above interfering trees at the old Lincoln Park. Today, only the lighthouse remains, although a few of the original bricks, which once were part of the nearby laid walkways concerning the station's buildings may still be located around the base of the tower. Benjamin Hannold was the first lighthouse keeper at Tinicum and Captain John Birch served as the light's last official keeper.
In 1890 the light was described as a fixed red light of the 5th order, 109 feet above sea level and visible for a distance of 8.5 nautical miles. The light would later be changed to a white light with a red sector which marked the turning point to the next range. In 1917, the light was changed from oil to electric. Today, still an active aid to navigation, it is a fixed red light exhibiting 500,000 candlepower from a 1,000 watt lamp.
The Tinicum Rear Range Lighthouse works in conjunction with the Tinicum Front Range Light. The light actually serves two rear range lights, Tinicum and Fort Mifflin Bar Cut Range. It too was activated on December 31, 1880 and is located on the Delaware River bank approximately 5/8 of a mile southwest of the rear light. The accompanying illustration shows the Tinicum Front Range Light Station, which was also referred to as the Billingsport Front Light, as it appeared after the detached tower was built in 1908. Originally, the lights were housed in the dwelling, moved to a detached tower in 1887 due to a change in the shipping channel and moved again to a new tower in 1908 due to another shift in the channel. Today, only the base of the tower remains, upon which is a modern skeletal tower supporting two automated lights, that continue to mark the Tinicum and Mifflin Ranges.
Interpretive Sign Made Possible By A Grant From The New Jersey Lighthouse Society
What an exceptionally odd place to find a light house...at a little league baseball field. The lighthouse is in terrific shape although there is a fence about it and so I could not get close. There are hours available to go up and tour the structure. The installation date, 1880, is displayed in white lettering above the door. When I arrived there were huge vultures or some other prehistoric monster attached to the skeletal frame. It was very spooky.
I was surprised to find this light is still used for navigation on the Delaware River. It works with its sister, the Tinicum Front Range Light, known as the Billingsport Front Light, located on the Delaware River at the front of Fort Billings Park next to the Paulsboro Refinery.
U.S. Lighthouses Site
The federal government acquired 4.8 acres of land along the Delaware River on February 28, 1880 for establishing a set of range lights to guide ships up and down the river. The tower, constructed of iron, with a hexagonal skeletal framework rises 85 feet with a focal plane of 109 feet. The tower housed a fifth order Fresnel lens which displayed a fixed red light that was visible for 8.5 nautical miles, which first displayed on December 31, 1880. The front range lighthouse was a frame dwelling with an attached tower located about 5/8 of a mile southwest of the Tinicum Rear Range Lighthouse. However, this would change over the years as the front range would need to be realigned with shipping channel changes.
The Tinicum Island Rear Range Lighthouse with its skeletal framework is somewhat unique in that it has a metal neoclassical pavilion at its base which was used as an oil room and it also has a unique wood-lined closet at the watchroom level. The wood curves to match the circular outer walls of the watchroom. These two unique features are what set this tower apart from the several other skeletal towers in the Delaware River area, such as Finn's Point Rear Range Lighthouse. SOURCE
The Tinicum Rear Range Lighthouse Society conducts regular tours the third full weekend of each month April through October. Special tours are available with advance notice. The lighthouse is also available for weddings and other special occasions. A small donation is accepted to the support their efforts.
A complete, comprehensive history can be found HERE.