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Photograph of Jeffrey's Hook Light
Photograph by Billie Grace Ward, CC BY 2.0. Via Wikimedia Commons.

Jeffrey's Hook Lighthouse

Built in 1921. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. 15 historic topographic surveys show this location, the earliest from 1891.

From the record

“The Little Red Lighthouse, officially Jeffrey's Hook Light, is a small lighthouse located in Fort Washington Park along the Hudson River in Manhattan, New York City, under the George Washington Bridge. It was made notable by the 1942 children's book The Little Red Lighthouse and The Great Gray Bridge, written by Hildegarde Swift and illustrated by Lynd Ward.”

Wikipedia article Little Red Lighthouse, CC BY-SA 4.0.

One of 601 National Register listings published here for New York County · listed in 1979 · category: Structure · built in 1921.

Sources: the Wikipedia article · the case file at the National Archives · the National Register database, National Park Service

The listing

  • What is counted as historic. The nomination lists 1 structure as contributing to the listing.
  • Address. Fort Washington Park, New York
  • When was it listed? May 1979
  • Category. structure
  • Also known as. Hudson River Lighthouses TR
  • Borough. Manhattan
  • When was it built? 1921
  • National Register reference number. 79003130 - the number the National Park Service assigned this property when it was listed, and the key its nomination file is catalogued under at the National Archives.

Then and now

1891 to 1995

The ground this property stands on, surveyed 104 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet covering Jeffrey's Hook Lighthouse, surveyed 1995
Topographic sheet covering Jeffrey's Hook Lighthouse, surveyed 1891

Fires near this property

2,029 since 2002

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 2,029 fires within 5 miles of Jeffrey's Hook Lighthouse between 2002 and 2020, burning about 592 acres in total. 107 started naturally. 109 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Missing data/not specified/undetermined1402
Smoking138
Recreation and ceremony126
Arson/incendiarism109
Natural107
Debris and open burning55
Equipment and vehicle use50
Misuse of fire by a minor27
Railroad operations and maintenance6
Power generation/transmission/distribution5
Other causes4

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
9 September 2015Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreFire Department of New YorkNA
9 September 2010Debris and open burningunder an acreFire Department of New Yorknot named
9 September 2010Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreFire Department of New Yorknot named
9 September 2010Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreFire Department of New Yorknot named
9 September 2005Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreFire Department of New Yorknot named
9 September 2005Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreFire Department of New Yorknot named
9 September 2005Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreFire Department of New Yorknot named
9 September 2004Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreFire Department of New Yorknot named

Every fire recorded in New York County

Mines and quarries near this property

10 of 16 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 16 workings within 5 miles of Jeffrey's Hook Lighthouse: 8 occurrences, 7 past producers, 1 plant. 1 still produces. What was taken out: Stone, Crushed/Broken, Garnet, Palladium, Platinum, Titanium. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
(Facility) Laurel Hill RefineryCopper, Gold, Nickel, Silver, Tellurium, Selenium, Palladium, PlatinumPlant
102nd St & 4th Ave Garnet DepositGarnet, GemstoneOccurrence
155th St & 10th Ave Garnet DepositGarnet, ZirconiumOccurrence
159th St & 11th Ave Beryl DepositBerylliumOccurrence
176/178 Sts & 11th Ave DepositTitanium, Garnet, GemstoneOccurrence
200th St & 10th Ave Kyanite DepositKyaniteOccurrence
85th/86th Sts, 9th/10th Aves Dep.IronOccurrence
Heisenbuttles QuarryStone, DimensionPast Producer1897, 1908
National Gypsum/ Bronx MillGypsum-AnhydritePast Producer
Star Sand and Gravel Inc. PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer

Every working recorded in New York County

Storms near this property

44 since 1996

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names New York, the town this property stands in, in 44 storm reports between 1996 and 2024: 16 flash flood, 16 thunderstorm wind, 6 hail, 4 flood. The reports record 7 injuries. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
April 2002Thunderstorm WindNew York2 hurtno account filed
June 2000Thunderstorm WindNew York2 hurtno account filed
July 2019Thunderstorm WindNew York1 hurt, $6,000A tree limb fell on a car on West 46th Street at 8th Avenue. One person was taken to the hospital with injuries.
May 2024LightningNew York1 hurtOne person injured when a building on Pine Street near Water Street in Lower Manhattan was struck by lightning.
July 2006LightningNew York1 hurtno account filed
November 2020Thunderstorm WindNew York$5,000Downed scaffolding at 18th Street and Seventh Avenue. Time estimated by radar.
July 2014Thunderstorm WindNew York$4,000Multiple trees were down. Debris from a construction site also fell at the same location.
May 2013Thunderstorm WindNew York$4,000Windows were blown out at the Rector Place and Gateway Plaza. Numerous trees were knocked over. There was damage to the revolving door at The Solaire in River Terrace.
June 2021Thunderstorm WindNew York$3,000The NYPD reports wires down in Lower Manhattan.
May 2013Thunderstorm WindNew York$3,000Numerous trees were reported down along South End Avenue, especially between Albany and Liberty Streets. Eight trees fell into Merchant's River House, damaging the outdoor seating area.
June 2021Thunderstorm WindNew York$1,000Tree down at the intersection of 9th Avenue and 45th Street.
September 2021Flash FloodNew York-Flooding was reported at the 28th Street subway station on 7th Avenue in Greenwich Village.
September 2021Flash FloodNew York-Flooding was reported on the eastbound ramp from the center tube of the Lincoln Tunnel to 36th Street in Greenwich Village. All lanes were closed.
November 2021HailNew York-Hail of 1.25 inches in diameter was measured in Greenwich Village.
November 2021HailNew York-Hail of 3/4 inch diameter was measured.
July 2020Flash FloodNew York-Barclay Street was closed due to flooding between West Street and Greenwich Street in Tribeca.
June 2019HailNew York-Hail size of 0.75 inches was reported in Rose Hill section of Manhattan.
August 2019Thunderstorm WindNew York-A thunderstorm wind gust of 58 mph was reported at Battery Park.
August 2018Flash FloodNew York-Flooding reported on FDR Drive with water up to car bottoms.
June 2017Thunderstorm WindNew York-A large tree branch was reported down, blocking two west bound lanes at 360 West 34th Street.
May 2017Flash FloodNew York-West Side Highway was closed between 20th and 30th Streets in Chelsea due to flooding.
May 2017Flash FloodNew York-A vehicle was stuck in a flooded roadway on West 24th Street and West Side Highway in Chelsea.
July 2012HailNew York-Quarter size hail was reported covering the ground at West Broadway and Spring Street.
August 2011FloodNew York-The FDR Drive was closed in both directions at Houston St. due to flooding.
August 2011FloodNew York-The north tube of the Holland Tunnel in Manhattan was closed due to flooding at the New Jersey-bound entrance. Two cars also became stuck in flood waters on 10th Ave. in the West Village.
July 2009Flash FloodNew York-Southbound FDR Drive was closed due to flooding at 14th St.
July 2009Flash FloodNew York-Exit 5 (Houston St.) on the FDR Drive southbound was closed due to flooding.
July 2009Flash FloodNew York-Six inches of standing water accumulated at the intersection of W. 46th St. and Broadway.
August 2008Flash FloodNew York-The torrential rainfall caused a sewer to collapse producing a 6 ft deep sinkhole outside of FDNY ladder company 24 on W. 31st Street in Manhattan.
July 2007Flash FloodNew York-Flooding on West Side Highway.
July 2003HailNew York-A trained spotter reported penny size hail in Lower Manhattan.
June 2002Thunderstorm WindNew York-Television media reported that strong winds knocked over a 50 foot tree in Washington Heights.
April 2007FloodNew York-no account filed
July 2006Flash FloodNew York-no account filed
July 2006Thunderstorm WindNew York-no account filed
July 2006Flash FloodNew York-no account filed
August 2003Flash FloodNew York-no account filed
June 2001FloodNew York-no account filed
September 1998Thunderstorm WindNew York-no account filed
May 1998HailNew York-no account filed
May 1997Thunderstorm WindNew York-no account filed
May 1997Thunderstorm WindNew York-no account filed
July 1996Flash FloodNew York-no account filed
October 1996Flash FloodNew York-no account filed

Every storm recorded in New York County

Maps showing this location

15 surveys

United States Geological Survey topographic sheets whose coverage includes this point. Matched by taking the coordinate the National Park Service records for this property, then testing that coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet.

Listed places nearby

6 within 8 miles

Other National Register properties close enough to walk or drive between, ordered by distance from this one. Both positions come from the same geocoding pass that matched these properties to their map sheets.

Photograph PropertyDistance Listed
Holyrood Protestant Episcopal Church0.5 miles2020
Hudson View Gardens0.5 miles2016
181st Street Subway Station (IND)0.5 miles2005
Fort Washington Presbyterian Church0.5 miles2010
Fort Washington Avenue Armory0.6 miles1995
Dominican Historic District0.7 miles2025

Sources for this property

National Archives recordThe nomination case file for reference 79003130 in Record Group 79.
Wikipedia articleCommunity-written account of this property, licensed CC BY-SA.
New York CountyAll 601 listed properties in this county.

Provenance

  • Listing record. National Park Service National Register of Historic Places, listed-properties dataset, current to 2026-05-22.
  • Map join. Address geocoded through the United States Census geocoder, then tested against the published boundary of every sheet in the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection.
  • How this page is made. Listing fields come from federal records; map-sheet coverage is a labelled coordinate-to-boundary calculation, not a source-field claim.
  • Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
  • Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
  • Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.