Highlands, located in
Monmouth County, is home to the initial first-order Fresnel lens in a lighthouse in the United States, and the first major sea coast lighthouse to use electricity. The Twin Lights Lighthouse overlooks Shrewsbury River, Sandy Hook, Raritan Bay, New York skyline and the
Atlantic Ocean. It was used as the primary lighthouse for New York Harbor and was known as the best and brightest light in North America.
Twin Lights Lighthouse was built in 1828 by architect Joseph Lederle who designed the new structure, at a cost of $74,000, with two non-identical towers linked by keepers' quarters and storage rooms. With this unique design it made this lighthouse easy to distinguish from other nearby lighthouses. At night, one of the beacons would flash while the other was fixed.
Visitors can enjoy a variety of Twin Lights exhibits, including the Marconi Wireless Telegraph Exhibit, in galleries that were once quarters for the keepers of the light. The huge Fresnel lens that once burned in the tower is on display in the Electric Generator Station.
Other exhibits showcase the United States Lifesaving Service in the Spermacetti Cove L.S.S life boat station, a building that was relocated here from Sandy Hook in 1954. Here is the Museum's fascinating boat collection, which includes the submarine-like Francis Lifecar.