Gardiners Point Island

USA / New York / Springs /
 Upload a photo

The parcel was first acquired by the US government in 1851 as a lighthouse reservation, and the Gardiners Point Light was first lit in 1855. Back then this island was the northwestern point of Gardiners Island until it was overwashed during a March 1888 Nor'easter and became its own island.

In 1898 it was transferred to the US Army for coast defense. Two batteries--the four-gun Battery Smith and an unnamed battery that was built for two Rodman guns--were built on the island in 1898. It was named Fort Tyler after Brigadier General Daniel Tyler, U.S. Volunteers, who served with distinction during the U.S. Civil War, and who died 30 Nov 1882. The fort was abandoned in 1921 due to severe erosion and conveyed to the State of New York on 29 August 1924. It was briefly a state park between 1927 and 1930, became a federal wildlife refuge in 1938, and was used for target practice by the the US Army in 1936 and the US Navy through WWII. The island is now part of the Long Island National Wildlife Refuge complex.

www.fortwiki.com/Fort_Tyler_(1)
www.northamericanforts.com/East/nylong.html#long
Nearby cities:
Coordinates:   41°8'28"N   72°8'46"W
This article was last modified 11 years ago