Sunken Rock Lighthouse marks a submerged rock just off Alexandria Bay, NY. The lighthouse was built by constructing a foundation on top of the sunken rock and converting it into an island.

The original structure was built in 1847, and refitted in 1855. The island's other building served as a boathouse and one-room keeper's dwelling. The lighthouse was converted to solar power in 1988, and is still active today. The light is owned by the St Lawrence Seaway Development Commission.

Sunken Rock Lighthouse is adjacent to Boldt Castle. The castle was conceived by George C. Boldt, the owner of the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York. He built it as a sign of his love for his wife, Louise. In January, 1904, before the castle was completed, Louise died. Heartbroken, Boldt left the castle, and never returned.

Keeper Horace Walts served Sisters Island and Sunken Rock. He received nine consecutive stars for outstanding service, and eventually a permanent gold star with a diamond embedded in the center.

In 1974, the narrows upstream of Sunken Rock Lighthouse claimed the 640-foot Roy A. Jodrey. The vessel struck Pullman shoal, capsized and sank. The ship remains at the bottom of the river, approximately 250 feet below the surface.

References (see links)

Seaway Trail Lighthouses (2nd Edition), Tinney, Burdete-Watkins, p. 43
Lighthouses of the Seaway Trail (video)
A Traveler's Guide to 100 Eastern Great Lakes Lighthouses, Penrose, p. 58

Sunken Rock and Boldt Castle
 

Dwelling and Boat House