The lighthouse was originally erected by
public subscription and was formally dedicated on April 15, 1913, the one-year anniversary of the sinking, with an address given by Episcopal bishop
David H. Greer. It stood above the
East River on the roof of the old
Seamen's Church Institute of New York and New Jersey at the corner of
South Street and Coenties Slip. From 1913 to 1967, a
time ball at the top of the lighthouse would be raised to the top of the rod and dropped down the pole to signal twelve noon to ships in
New York Harbor; the time ball mechanism was activated by a telegraphic signal transmitted from the
Naval Observatory in
Washington, D.C. In July 1968, the Seamen's Church Institute moved to 15
State Street. That year, the
Titanic Memorial Lighthouse was donated by the Kaiser-Nelson Steel & Salvage Corporation to the
South Street Seaport Museum. It was erected at the entrance to the museum complex, on the corner of
Fulton and
Pearl streets, in May 1976, with funds provided by the
Exxon Corporation. In 2019, plans for a restoration were laid by the Friends of Titanic Lighthouse Restoration, whose members include descendants of
Titanic victims and survivors. In 2022, they talked about a potential
Titanic museum on Pier 16. In April 2023, the Seaport Museum announced that it had hired architects Jan Hird Pokorny Associates to handle a restoration to be completed in 2024. == Other memorials ==