Name and Location

Horton Point Light, also known as The Southold Lighthouse, marks the western entrance to Gardiners Bay on Long Island Sound. It is located at District Park, 3575 Lighthouse Road, Southold (North Fork), Suffolk County, New York 11971, USA.

Construction and History

The Horton Point Light was established in 1857 and first lit on October 25 of that year. Automation occurred in 1933, when the original Fresnel lens was deactivated. The lighthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984 (NRHP Ref# 84002991).

Architecture and Materials

The architectural style of the Horton Point Light is typical of mid-19th-century U.S. Lighthouse Board designs. The tower is constructed from rubble-filled stone faced with cut granite, has a brick interior lining, and features an iron staircase. The tower stands at 64 ft (≈19.5 m) tall, with a focal plane height of 83 ft (≈25.3 m) above mean high water.

Light and Navigation

The current light pattern is two white flashes every 12 seconds (Fl (2) W 12s), with a nominal range of 13 nautical miles. The lighthouse is marked on NOAA Chart 12357, and a radar reflector has been installed to improve targets in fog conditions.

Accessibility and Visiting

The Horton Point Light is managed by the Southold Town Park District and is open to visitors seasonally, typically from May through October on weekends and select weekdays. Visitors can access the site via parking at Horton Point Park off Lighthouse Road, with paved paths leading from the lot to the lighthouse plaza. The tower climb requires stairs, but wheelchair-accessible paths are available to the museum.

Notable Views and Landscape

The surrounding landscape features well-wooded parkland with native oaks and beach grass atop a 60-ft bluff. Panoramic views of Long Island Sound, Gardiners Bay, Fishers Island, and the distant Connecticut shore can be enjoyed from this vantage point. The site is also home to migratory birds, seals in season, and occasional whale spouts offshore.

Anecdotes and Folklore

During Prohibition, rumors circulated about a drop-off point for rum-runners on the wooded shore below Horton Point. Former keepers' logs record extreme Nor'easter storms in the 1860s and early weather observations.

Technical and Operational Details

No dedicated AIS transmitter is installed at the lighthouse, with modern aids relying on charted position and radar. The original Fourth-order Fresnel lens has been removed, replaced by a modern aerobeacon.

Further Information

For further reading, refer to "Lighthouses of the United States" by the United States Coast Guard (available online), as well as Smith's "The Lighthouses of New York Harbor and Long Island Sound" (1991).