The Navesink Light Station originally consisted of two octagonal stone towers 320 feet apart. The 1828 north tower stood on this site, and its replacement was completed in 1862. An 1861 illustration shows the first north tower and the foundation of the new lighthouse being laid. The original towers were home to the first Fresnel lenses in America, installed in 1841. Two smaller structures on the property were the New York Sandy Hook Telegraph Company building, dating to 1854, and the Merchants Exchange semaphore tower, dating to 1829.