Explore a selection of the city's released records in chronological order. Compare buildings, surviving details, and the source material behind each date. This automatically assembled study is a starting point for your own exploration.
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3
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Before you begin
A remote or manually navigated catalogue study. The order follows recorded dates, not a pedestrian route; nearby regional places may be far apart. No walking duration is estimated.
Check each place's actual location and visitor rules. A catalogue pin does not grant entry or confirm present access. Use the atlas record and linked sources to plan a visit.
Your sequence
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01
Chapter 1 · Building
Elm Tree Beacon Light
Elm Tree Beacon Light
Recorded year (source inventory): 1856
Listen to this chapterDevice narration · the transcript is below
Elm Tree Beacon Light served as the front range with New Dorp Light as the rear to mark Swash Channel. The channel is now marked by Staten Island Light and West Bank Light. The year is the source inventory’s recorded inception date. Construction start, opening and later alterations may have separate dates in the linked article.
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An observation to make
Choose one visible architectural detail. Compare it with another place in this study, then follow a source to check what its date describes.
Catalogue text may include Wikipedia summaries under CC BY-SA 4.0. See each atlas record and its linked article for contributors, context, and additional terms.
Catalogue location only. Confirm current access and the observation point before travelling.
The year is the source inventory’s recorded inception date. Construction start, opening and later alterations may have separate dates in the linked article.
A remote or manually navigated catalogue study. The order follows recorded dates, not a pedestrian route; nearby regional places may be far apart. No walking duration is estimated.
Check each place's actual location and visitor rules. A catalogue pin does not grant entry or confirm present access. Use the atlas record and linked sources to plan a visit.
Automatically assembled catalogue study. Where text is drawn from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 applies to that text. Wikipedia article and contributor links are included with each applicable stop. Passages may be excerpted or abridged and include additional editorial date context. Other sources and original observation prompts retain their own terms.
1. Elm Tree Beacon Light
Elm Tree Beacon Light · Recorded year (source inventory): 1856
Elm Tree Beacon Light served as the front range with New Dorp Light as the rear to mark Swash Channel. The channel is now marked by Staten Island Light and West Bank Light. The year is the source inventory’s recorded inception date. Construction start, opening and later alterations may have separate dates in the linked article.
Observe: Choose one visible architectural detail. Compare it with another place in this study, then follow a source to check what its date describes.
Access: Catalogue location only. Confirm current access and the observation point before travelling.
Record context: The year is the source inventory’s recorded inception date. Construction start, opening and later alterations may have separate dates in the linked article.
New Dorp Light · Recorded year (source inventory): 1856
The New Dorp Lighthouse is a decommissioned lighthouse located in the New Dorp section of Staten Island, New York City. Funds for the lighthouse were approved by United States Congress on August 31, 1852 and the structure was completed in 1856. The lighthouse, built to serve as a rear range light to mark Swash Channel (a shipping channel in Lower New York Bay), was built by Richard Carlow, who also built the similar Chapel Hill and Point Comfort Range Lights in New Jersey around the same time. Ships sailing through Swash Channel were instructed to bring the New Dorp range light “in one” and steer towards the lights until the Chapel Hill Light came into view, which would then mark the channel past West Bank. The original beacon was a second-order range lens showing a fixed red light that shined 192 feet (59 m) above sea level. In 1891 the light was changed to fixed white. The year is the source inventory’s recorded inception date. Construction start, opening and later alterations may have separate dates in the linked article.
Observe: Choose one visible architectural detail. Compare it with another place in this study, then follow a source to check what its date describes.
Access: Catalogue location only. Confirm current access and the observation point before travelling.
Record context: The year is the source inventory’s recorded inception date. Construction start, opening and later alterations may have separate dates in the linked article.
William S. Pendleton House · Recorded year (source inventory): 1860
One Pendleton Place, also known as the William S. Pendleton House, is a historic home located in the New Brighton neighborhood of Staten Island, New York. It was built in 1860, and is a three-story, picturesque Italianate villa style frame dwelling with a multi-gabled roof. It features asymmetrical massing, a four-story conical-roofed entry tower, and multiple porches including a wrap-around verandah. It was designated a New York City Landmark in 2006, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2014. The year is the source inventory’s recorded inception date. Construction start, opening and later alterations may have separate dates in the linked article.
Observe: Choose one visible architectural detail. Compare it with another place in this study, then follow a source to check what its date describes.
Access: Catalogue location only. Confirm current access and the observation point before travelling.
Record context: The year is the source inventory’s recorded inception date. Construction start, opening and later alterations may have separate dates in the linked article.