Great Beds Light

Great Beds Light is a sparkplug lighthouse in Raritan Bay, about 1 mile (1.6 km) from South Amboy of Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. Over the years the lighthouse has become the symbol for the city of South Amboy. Named as Great Beds Light Station, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 29, 2008, for its significance in architecture, engineering, transportation, and maritime history.^[3]

Great Beds Light

Great Beds Light
Location	Raritan Bay, South Amboy, New Jersey
Coordinates	40°29′12″N 74°15′12″W
Tower
Constructed	1880
Foundation	Caisson
Construction	Cast iron
Automated	1945
Height	61 feet (19 m)
Shape	White conical tower on black conical pier with black lantern
Heritage	National Register of Historic Places listed place
Light
First lit	1880
Focal height	19 m (62 ft)
Lens	Fourth order Fresnel 1880
Range	6 nautical miles (11 km; 6.9 mi)
Characteristic	Flashing red, 6 s
Great Beds Light Station
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
New Jersey Register of Historic Places
Architectural style	US Lighthouse Board
MPS	Light Stations of the United States
NRHP reference No.	08000467[1]
NJRHP No.	4106[2]
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	May 29, 2008
Designated NJRHP	March 6, 2008

History and description

Perth Amboy waterfront with view to lighthouse

The light was built in 1880 with a fourth order Fresnel lens to mark the Great Beds Shoal, hazardous shallow water in the Raritan Bay. The 30-foot (9.1 m) foundation, a conical caisson, sits in about 11 feet (3.4 m) of water. The five-story tower and lantern are 47 feet (14 m) high.^[3]

Lighthouses of Raritan Bay

• Chapel Hill Rear Range Light, Sandy Hook Bay (deactivated 1957)
• Conover Beacon, Leonardo
• Navesink Twin Lights, Highlands
• Sandy Hook Lighthouse, Sandy Hook

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Middlesex County, New Jersey
• List of the oldest buildings in New Jersey
• Geography of New York-New Jersey Harbor Estuary
• Raritan Bayshore

References

1. "National Register Information System – (#08000467)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
2. "New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places – Middlesex County" (PDF). New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection - Historic Preservation Office. July 15, 2022. p. 15.
3. Koski-Karell, Daniel; Perunko, Jennifer (December 2007). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Great Beds Light Station". National Park Service. With accompanying 6 photos