Senator Offers Support for Lighthouse Designation

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., is joining the list of officials urging the National Park Service to designate the a National Historic Landmark.

In a statement on Thursday, the senator said the designation would enhance tourism and economic activity in the surrounding area.

The lighthouse is the oldest one in New York State and one of the first seacoast lighthouses authorized by Congress. If designated, it would be the eighth national landmark in the county.

The Montauk Historical Society, led by a proposal put forth by Eleanor Ehrhardt of the Montauk Point Lighthouse Committee after the Coast Guard transferred ownership of the site, has  been working to secure national landmark status for the lighthouse.

In a letter to Paul Loether, the chief of the National Register of Historic Places and National Historic Landmarks Program, Gillibrand said, “I urge you to consider the favorable findings of the National Park Service commissioned study regarding the merits for designation of this site."

Gillibrand also said, in the letter, "National Historic Landmark designation would provide greatly needed resources for the preservation of this site, which has played such an important and prominent role in our nation’s history."

Earlier this month, U.S. Rep Tim Bishop, R-Southampton, .

The Montauk Historical Society, led by a proposal put forth by Eleanor Ehrhardt of the Montauk Point Lighthouse Committee after the Coast Guard transferred ownership of the site, has  been working to secure national landmark status for the lighthouse.

East Hampton Town Supervisor Bill Wilkinson, who has served on the lighthouse board and is rather passionate about the structure, is in full support.