Technically in Nassau County, Stepping Stones Lighthouse is visible to Bronx residents from the south tip of City Island. The Victorian-era lighthouse is visible from the south end of City Island Avenue (officially known as Belden Point), especially from the seagull-frequented deck of Johnny’s Reef Restaurant. Stepping Stones was first constructed in 1877.
The lighthouse sits alongside Stepping Stones Reef in the middle of Long Island Sound. It was named by the Siwanoy Native Americans. According to their legends, the tribe used warriors, medicine, and magic to chase the devil out of present-day Westchester County, New York onto City Island (formerly Greater Minneford Island), surrounding him at Belden Point. The devil then picked up huge boulders lying there and tossed them into Long Island Sound, using them as stepping stones to make his escape. The natives named the rocks, “The Devil’s Stepping Stones.”
As with many lighthouses in New York harbor, the lighthouse keeper and his family lived in the structure, and rowed across the Sound between City Island and the lighthouse to bring children to school and pick up supplies. The lighthouse was automated in 1966, ending the need for a lighthouse keeper. It is currently under the care of the US Coast Guard.
Lighthouses of Southern New York Harbor
Kevin Walsh is the webmaster of the award-winning website Forgotten NY, and the author of the books Forgotten New York (HarperCollins, 2006) and also, with the Greater Astoria Historical Society, Forgotten Queens (Arcadia, 2013).