Vintage Postcards Reveal Early Maritime Life on New Jersey’s Sandy Hook

A rare collection of 24 vintage postcards donated to the National Park Service in November 1975 provides a detailed look at early 20th-century coastal life, ship tracking, and maritime operations along the Sandy Hook peninsula in New Jersey, according to historical records from the Gateway National Recreation Area.

The postcards, catalogued as series number 272 at the Sandy Hook museum, entered the archives following a donation by Emily Tepia, executor of the estate of Paul Koeptchem. According to National Park Service historical records, Koeptchem lived in Highland Beach from 1907 until 1962. The collection preserves visual and oral documentation of how maritime stations and coastal communities functioned before modern navigation technology and large-scale development reshaped the area.

Early Ship Tracking and Marine Observations

While reviewing a postcard depicting the Twin Lights of Navesink, retired Lieutenant Colonel John Joseph Patrick Mulhern detailed how marine observers tracked commercial vessels heading toward New York Harbor before electronic systems existed. In oral history interviews conducted by National Park Service historians Tom Hoffman and Elaine Harmon, Mulhern explained that observers stationed along the coast used manual methods to log vessel movements.

According to Mulhern’s account in the National Park Service transcript, marine observers working for commercial telecommunications companies kept 3×5 cards featuring manually prepared silhouettes of all known vessels entering and leaving New York Harbor. Observers identified ships by specific features, including the number of smokestacks, masts, and overall vessel shape, allowing them to report ship movements as vessels passed specific checkpoints.

Mulhern also recounted participating in early radio experiments on the peninsula. In 1919, he and Earl Lucas—son of Twin Lights keeper Earl Lucas—obtained amateur radio licenses together. Lucas strung an antenna between the north and south towers of the lighthouse, launching a career in radio engineering that eventually led to his position as chief engineer at radio station WPAT, according to the oral history. Mulhern also identified the anchors of an early Marconi wireless tower situated just north of the north lighthouse, noting that the anchors remained visible in the ground decades later.

Operations of the Navesink Lighthouses

The historical records also shed light on how the Twin Lights operated during the early 1900s. Although the facility featured two distinct towers, Mulhern stated that only the south tower normally functioned as a navigation light.

The lighthouses, as long as I can remember there was only one operational light and that was the one at the south end of this structure.

National Park Service transcript / John Joseph Patrick Mulhern

The south light utilized a revolving double convex lens powered by a heavy mechanical weight that slowly dropped and required manual winding at least once daily. While observers on land perceived the light as steady, sailors approximately 15 miles offshore observed a fast-flashing light as the heavy glass lens rotated. The north tower housed a fixed light that served as a backup during maintenance of the primary system. Federal officials later placed notes on nautical charts designating the light as privately maintained to protect shipowners from filing claims against state authorities if a vessel ran aground, particularly as newer navigation technologies emerged.