Going back in time

I recently spent an evening searching the internet for old pictures of Lake Lenape and the surrounding area. Below are some of my findings. The pictures are from early to mid 1900's, a few where taken by a guy by the name of F.A. Austin. I put in as many details as I could for each picture, if anyone has further info about the pictures please post it in the comments.

Pictures of temp dam plate install

Brett Noll of HT Public Works provided pictures of the metal plate being installed in front of gate #1 on July 1, 2008. The blue material acts as a gasket between the metal plate and the dam gate.

HT Public works installs new rock bulkhead at The Cove

Public Works workers build a new bulkhead at the parking area of The Cove. The area was washed out by flood waters last year. The funding was provided by FEMA.

Lake Lenape Light Remains a Part of History

(From July 1999 Edition of Lighthouse Digest)

The Lake Lenape Lighthouse in Mays Landing, New Jersey was never a real lighthouse in the sense of the word, but it truly is a part of New Jersey's rich and interesting history as well as a popular landmark of the area.

It was back in 1939 when the Leiling family, who owned the Lenape Park, commissioned Herman Dehn Sr. to build a lighthouse on the lake. First Dehn had to create an island for the lighthouse to be built on. He did this by using bags of mixed concrete and 30-gallon size drums to form the island's foundation. In the winter time he piled dirt onto the ice which would sink to the bottom in the spring thaw.

Once the island was completed he built the 65-foot wooden tower with mostly simple hand tools and the help of some neighborhood children. The lighthouse with its five floors, connected with a semi-sprial staircase took four years to complete.

For many years the tower was known as the "singing tower" because of the hymns that were played from speakers that were installed atop the tower. When new owners, Ed & Winnie Young, took over the park in 1960's, local public officials said there were to many complaints from neighbors about the music and it had to stop. The children of the Youngs then took over the lighthouse, spending the nights there in the summer months.
Today, the lighthouse serves mainly as a storage building for beach and boating supplies, but is still a popular spot for those in love. Because of its romantic setting, many people have been married at the lighthouse.

The old lighthouse is an ongoing financial strain for the owners, who say they are constantly having to repair something at the lighthouse and have been for 15 years. But they haven't altered it and as Mr. Young once said, "We want to keep the nostalgia of the place and the lighthouse is a big part of that."

Lake Panorama

Ever wonder what it's like sitting in a kayak in the middle of the lake? Got board of taking pictures of the dam the other day and took this panorama. It was taken from the south side of Lake Lenape near the dam. You can move the picture by clicking on it.

Temporary Fix Applied To The Dam

Good news!! Yesterday 4/1/08 the Township placed a metal plate along with additional debris to slow the loss of water from the lake. This morning less then 24 hours later the lake level was up 2 inches. This proves, as mentioned in past posts, the low water level in the lake was caused from the water pouring out of the stuck gate, not from the lack of rain or Collings Lakes.

Click To Enlarge

Click to enlarge