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,- 1.: Southold Town Preservation Award
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Presented To
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Cliff Benfield
For The Restoration of The Horton Point Lighthouse
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Ldninark Preservation Commission
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Ni., —A, 20th Day of May
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1993 3outh
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The Horton Point Lighthouse
Seafarers traversing Long Island Sound for well over a century have been guided past
Dead Man's Cove by the Horton Point Lighthouse, which was commissioned by George Washing-
ton. Its 10 second sequence has been flashing continuously at this location since 1856, first from a
lighthouse tower built at that time, and then in 1933 from a metal tower erected on the property
when the original lighthouse was decommissioned by the U.S. Coast Guard. With the decommis-
sioning the Southold Park District converted the grounds to a park and 'stabilized the lighthouse
tower, preventing further deterioration.
In 1990 Cliff Benfield was appointed Lighthouse Committee Chairman by the Southold
Historical Society, which maintains the lighthouse under agreement with the park district. His
task was to oversee the Nautical Museum in the lighthouse keeper's building attached to the light-
house tower. Cliff Benfield converted this museum to a major national attraction with a greatly
expanded collection. He then went two steps further, first restoring the lighthouse tower to its
original condition, and then getting the light returned to the tower by the U.S. Coast Guard. Mr.
Benfield "lit the way" in this remarkable example of returning a landmark to its original use. On
June 9, 1990, in conjunction with Southold To 350th Anniversary, the light in the tower was
recommissioned, assuring that Horton Point Lighthouse will continue to be part of the chain of
East Coast Lighthouses and part of the living history of the North Fork.
This Preservation Award is presented to Cliff Benfield in recognition of his efforts on be-
half of the people of Southold. The Horton Point Lighthouse has once again assumed its rightful
place as the jewel in the crown of Southold Town's seven lighthouses.
For the Landmark Commission
/ Chairman
May 20, 1993.