The Navesink Light Station, also known as Twin Lights, stands almost 200 feet above sea level on one of the highest points on the Atlantic coast, where lighthouses have guided mariners safely into New York Harbor since 1828. The present lighthouse was built in 1862 and became famous as the first lighthouse in the United States to be fitted, in 1841, with revolutionary Fresnel lenses that created an intense, bright light visible at great distance. In 1898, a large bivalve Fresnel lens was installed in the south tower, and for many years it was the most powerful light in the United States. Its range was 22 miles, though sailors reported seeing its flash against the night sky from as far as 70 miles away. Advances in navigation technology made many lighthouses obsolete, and in 1949 the Twin Lights were turned off. The lighthouse remained as a daytime beacon until it was removed from the official light lists in 1951. The federal government first turned the property over to the Borough of Highlands, and in 1962 it was given to the State of New Jersey and designated a State Historic Site. The Navesink Light Station is listed on both the State and National Registers of Historic Places and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 2006.
