Jersey Shore Magazine

j e r s e y s h o r e • S P R I N G 2 0 2 2 39 This sometimes overlooked site includes Sandy Hook Lighthouse, the oldest continuously operating light- house in the United States, a visitor center, an old life-saving station, and also the remains of a cannon battery intended to protect New York harbor from invaders. In 1849, one of the Sandy Hook - Gateway National Recreation Area first U.S. Life-saving Service stations was built on Sandy Hook; it has since been moved (see Twin Lights) and replaced by a larger Life-saving Station. During the Civil War, Sandy Hook was used as a proving ground and later as a Nike missile defense installation. Guided tours show visi- tors a Nike mis- sile, the missile firing platforms, and a radar station with 1960s-era com- puters. A Civil War-era, twenty- inch Rodman gun is also in the park. This was an experimental gun that was the larg- est type produced by either side of that war. Sandy Hook Lighthouse. Mount Mitchill Scenic Overlook Atlantic Highlands is a borough that includes Mount Mitchill. Rising 266 feet above sea level, it is the highest point on the eastern seaboard south of Maine's Cadillac Mountain at Acadia National Park. Its original inhabitants were the Lenni Lenape, who lived in and along its cliffs and creeks. During the Revolutionary War, loyalists to the British Crown clashed in repeated raids with the patriots of the new America here. An overlook on the north cliff offers broad views of the Manhattan skyline, from the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge to Coney Island. Near the summit is a memorial to those from the area who died in the 9/11 attacks. It features an immense eagle with outstretched wings and talons clutching a steel beam from the World Trade Center. Below is the Atlantic Highlands municipal harbor, with high-speed ferry service to New York City. The 9/11 Memorial at Mount Mitchill Scenic Overlook is a tribute to 147 men and women born, raised, or residing at the time in Monmouth County who lost their lives in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Twin Lights Of Navesink This unique lighthouse is a National Historic Landmark. It includes a museum of historic flags, patriotic artifacts, and a Fresnel lens. The top of the light offers broad vistas overlooking the Navesink River and Sandy Hook that are high enough to see the curvature of the earth. With its high promontory in the Navesink Highlands, this site was used by the New Jersey militia in 1746 to install a whale-oil beacon to warn New York City of approaching French warships. In 1828, the first set of Twin Lights was completed, continued on page 40 and in 1841, the first Fresnel lenses were installed, revolutionizing harbor safety. Adjacent to the lighthouse is one of the original 1849 life-saving stations that had been moved from its earlier location on Sandy Hook. In 1893, for the first time, the Pledge of Allegiance was recited at an official patriotic event by its author, Francis Bellamy, here. It was also from this location that one of the earliest wire- less transmissions was used for com- mercial purposes. In 1899, Guglielmo Marconi transmitted news dispatches from offshore establishing the viabil- ity of wireless communication. The U.S. Army also used this site to unveil its "Mystery Ray" technology that later became known as "radar." Twin Lights of Navesink. Gordon Hesse Andrew F. Kazmierski Paul Scharff

• Cover