Gallery
Lizard Lighthouse Position 49░ 57'.58 N 05░ 12'.07 W
Lizard Lighthouse is a
landfall and coastal mark giving a guide to vessels in passage
along the English Channel and warning of the hazardous waters
off Lizard Point.
Many stories are told of the
activities of wreckers around our coasts, most of which are
grossly exaggerated, but small communities occasionally and
sometimes officially benefited from the spoils of shipwrecks,
and petitions for lighthouses were, in certain cases, rejected
on the strength of local opinion; this was particularly true
in the South West of England.
The distinctive twin
towers of the Lizard Lighthouse mark the most southerly point
of mainland Britain. The coastline is particularly hazardous,
and from early times the need for a beacon was obvious. Sir
John Killigrew, a philanthropic Cornishman, applied for a
patent. Apparently, because it was thought that a light on
Lizard Point would guide enemy vessels and pirates to a safe
landing, the patent was granted with the proviso that the
light should be extinguished at the approach of the enemy.
Killigrew agreed to erect the lighthouse at his own expense,
for a rent of "twenty nobles by the year", for a term of
thirty years. Although he was willing to build the tower, he
was too poor to bear the cost of maintenance, and intended to
fund the project by collecting from ships that passed the
point any voluntary contributions that the owners might offer
him. In spite of the difficulty of recruiting local labour,
the tower was finished by Christmas 1619, and proved a great
benefit to mariners. However, the shipowners offered nothing
for its upkeep, and the mounting costs of maintenance were
bankrupting Killigrew. Thus, in the face of more opposition
from Trinity House, James I set a fee of one halfpenny a ton
on all vessels passing the light. This caused such an uproar
from the shipowners that the patent was withdrawn, the light
extinguished and the tower demolished.
Applications
were made in ensuing years, but it was not until 1748 that
Trinity House supported an attempt by Thomas Fonnereau to
erect a lighthouse. The building was completed in 1751, and
consisted of two towers, with a cottage built between them, in
which an overlooker lay on a sort of couch, with a window on
either side commanding a view of the lanterns. When the
bellows-blowers relaxed their efforts and the fires dimmed, he
would remind them of their duties by a blast from a cow horn.
Trinity House assumed responsibility in 1771. Structural
alterations were made in 1812 which left the station much as
it is today. The Lizard Lighthouse was automated in
1998.
Specifications
Established |
1619 |
Height Of Tower |
19 Metres |
Height Of Light Above Mean High
Water |
70 Metres |
Automated |
Scheduled For 1998 |
Electrified |
1924 |
Lamp |
400 Watt Mbi |
Optic |
1 Kw Metal Halide |
Character |
One White Flash Every 3
Seconds |
Intensity |
800,000 Candelas |
Range Of Light |
26 Sea Miles |
Fog Signal Character |
1 Blasts Every 30
Seconds | |
| |