What’s the difference between a lighthouse and a lightship?
A light house is a structure with a tower to house a light used as an aid to navigation. Before electricity, and even for some time after, lighthouses required a crew to operate the light, and thus, a lighthouse included living quarters. Today all lighthouses are automated. A light ship is a floating light house, used to mark a shoal or bar where it was impractical to build a conventional lighthouse. Light ships required large crews and were expensive to maintain. In New York, Frying Pan, at Pier 63 Maritime, and Ambrose at the South Street Seaport, are light ships. None are in service today and only about 15 former lightships remain afloat, having all been replaced with automated lights on towers.
