Seaport Museum's 110-Year-Old Lightship To Be Restored To Its Glory Days
One of the South Street Seaport Museum’s most prized possessions is set to undergo a major restoration. The Museum announced on Monday that the city had contributed $4.5 million towards restoring the Lightship Ambrose, which is currently docked at Pier 16, as part of the Museum’s collection of five historic vessels.
Built in 1907, Lightship LV-87, as the ship is officially known, served as a floating lighthouse that guided ships from the Atlantic Ocean “into the broad mouth of lower New York Bay between Coney Island, New York, and Sandy Hook, New Jersey.” This could often be a treacherous stretch because of the sand bars and shoals in the area.
Ambrose was the first lightship to be fitted with a radio, to help boats navigate when visibility levels were poor. The lightship remained in service until the 1960s, after which it was donated to the Seaport Museum. . .