The Dutch dubbed Sandy Hook peninsula ‘Sant Hoek’ since the area was first settled by Dutch settlers. Photo courtesy of NJ Advance Media

Sandy Hook is a six-mile peninsula that extends into the New York Harbor — and every inch is rich with history. From the historic lighthouse to Fort Hancock to the Sandy Hook Proving Grounds, this sprawling piece of land is a delight for both history lovers and beach lovers.

The Lighthouse:

The New York Harbor was important for ships to navigate through to the colony of New York in the 1700s. The Dutch dubbed the peninsula “Sant Hoek” since the area was first settled by Dutch settlers. Sandy Hook was originally serene with cedar trees, sandy hills and holly forests throughout the land. Ships often sailed nearby, and it was recognized that a lighthouse needed to be built for the safety of those vessels. It wasn’t until 1761, when a series of shipwrecks happened in a short time span, that arrangements had to be made for the lighthouse to be built.

Sandy Hook Lighthouse is currently closed to tours due to COVID, but the exterior can still be viewed. Photo courtesy of NJ Advance Media

The Sandy Hook Light was built by the Colony of New York and first lit in 1764 — all funded by a lottery. To pay for its maintenance and operation, a tonnage tax of 3 pence per ton was introduced by the Colony of New York on ships sailing into the harbor.

Early in the American Revolutionary War, with British fleets arriving, plans had been devised to dismantle the internal workings of the lighthouse. The British eventually took control of Sandy Hook in 1776. The British, realizing the importance of the lighthouse for their fleet, repaired it three months later. Patriotic attacks on the lighthouse would occur, but cannonball fire was unsuccessful, therefore leaving Sandy Hook and the lighthouse occupied by the British for the remainder of the Revolutionary War.

Now, the lighthouse at Sandy Hook is the oldest standing (and operating) lighthouse in the United States.

Remnants of the proving grounds can still be seen today in Sandy Hook. Photo by Kathleen Butler

Fort Hancock and Sandy Hook Proving Grounds:

Four acres of Sandy Hook had already been purchased from Richard Hartshorne’s family in 1762 for the lighthouse. In 1806, the remaining northern portion was transferred from the Hartshorne family to the federal government.

Fort Gates was constructed in 1813 during the War of 1812. It was a wooden fort and was short-lived. Permanent structures would follow but not for some time. A few years before the Civil War began, the U.S. Army started building the Fort at Sandy Hook in 1859. Unfortunately, the fortification was never completed, and much of the original structure was dismantled.

The large stone Fort at Sandy Hook, begun before the Civil War, was never completed. Photo courtesy of National Park Service

In 1874, the U.S. Ordnance Department needed a temporary complex to test experimental weapons and established proving grounds at Sandy Hook. The proving grounds would later become permanent.

The Endicott Era was created in 1890 after findings that the coast was vulnerable to enemy attacks. The U.S. Army changed the name from Fortifications of Sandy Hook to Fort Hancock in 1895, named after a Civil War hero Gen. Winfield Scott Hancock. Buildings were being constructed at Fort Hancock from 1898 to 1910.

Elite officers lived in the houses with front porches (now known as Officer’s Row) while personnel lived in the large barracks.

Sandy Hook hosted the first concrete gun batteries in the early 1890s because New York’s port was crucial during this time. Many batteries had been constructed at Sandy Hook from the Endicott, World War I and World War II eras.

The National Park Service offers tours of select barracks such as Mortar Battery. Photo by Kathleen Butler

Today, many of the batteries, houses, barracks and some remnants from the proving grounds remain and can be viewed. It’s important to note that many have fences surrounding them, but there are a few that can be toured thanks to the National Park Service (NPS), like Mortar Battery. Be sure to check the website for more information.

There is a charge at the gate for beach parking. However, Fort Hancock is free.

Kathleen Butler writes about little-known local history so that others can venture out and explore these gems. She also has a YouTube channel, Rustic Ventures, as well as two published books: Abandoned Ruins on Public Lands in New Jersey and Abandoned Ruins of Eastern Pennsylvania.

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