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Description
The first lighthouse built in New York State, Montauk Point was authorized by the Second Congress in 1792, under President George Washington. Construction began on June 7, 1796 and was completed on November 5, 1796 by John McComb Jr., who built the lights at Cape Henry, VA, and Eaton's Neck, NY. During World War II, a Fire Control Station Tower was added next to the light, as part of the Eastern Coastal Defense Shield. In the 1960's, a continuation of erosion to the bluffs around the lighthouse threatened Montauk Point. However, a woman named Giorgina Reid used her patented coastal bluff stabilization technique to stabilize the bluffs, effectively saving the lighthouse. Montauk Point Light is the fourth oldest active lighthouse in the United States.