Point Atkinson Lighthouse

Last updated

Point Atkinson Lighthouse in 2022 Point Atkinson Lighthouse in 2022.jpg
Point Atkinson Lighthouse in 2022
Point Atkinson Lighthouse
Lighthouse Lighthouse Park.JPG
The lighthouse is located to alert ships entering Burrard Inlet.
Point Atkinson Lighthouse
Location Strait of Georgia
Burrard Inlet
West Vancouver
British Columbia
Canada
Coordinates 49°19′49″N123°15′53″W / 49.3304°N 123.2646°W / 49.3304; -123.2646
Tower
Constructed1875 (first); 1912 (current)
Constructionconcrete tower
Automated1996  OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
Height18 metres (59 ft)
Shapeoctagonal truncated six ribbed tower with balcony and lantern
Markingswhite tower, red balcony and lantern
OperatorWest Vancouver Lighthouse Park [1]
Heritage national Historic Sites of Canada, recognized federal heritage building of Canada  OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
Light
First lit1912  OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
Focal height33 metres (108 ft)
Range15 nmi (28 km; 17 mi)  OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
Characteristic Fl (2) W 5s.
Built1912
ArchitectWilliam Anderson
Governing bodyDistrict of West Vancouver
Website District of West Vancouver: Lighthouse Park
DesignatedMay 18, 1974
Reference no.12768

Point Atkinson Lighthouse is a lighthouse erected on Point Atkinson, a headland in southwestern British Columbia named by Captain George Vancouver in 1792, when he was exploring the Pacific Northwest in the ship Discovery . The first wooden lighthouse went into service in 1875 and was replaced by a reinforced concrete structure in 1914.

Contents

History

The first lighthouse at the site was a wooden structure with an attached keeper's house, built by Arthur Finney of Nanaimo in 1874. It did not go into service until the following year because initially the wrong light was sent from England. The beacon was lit for the first time 17 March 1875. [2]

The light was 95 ft (29 m) above the sea and was visible for 14 mi (23 km). When the visibility was poor, ship captains would sound their foghorn three times, prompting the lightkeeper to pump a horn by hand until the vessel signalled that it was safe to desist. [3]

In 1889, Canadian Pacific Steamships demanded that a fog alarm be added. This was located in a separate building to the west of the lighthouse. It had a rotating drum which was driven by steam to make an audible sound. In 1902, this was replaced by a diaphone fog alarm in which a slotted piston moved inside a similarly slotted cylinder. [3]

Point Atkinson Lighthouse in May 2022 Point Atkinson Lighthouse in May of 2022.jpg
Point Atkinson Lighthouse in May 2022

The present lighthouse was built in 1914 on granite boulders jutting out into Burrard Inlet in West Vancouver, Canada. The concrete structure was considered at the time innovative in lighthouse design. It is now automated and still in use. [4]

The Point Atkinson Lighthouse may be reached by hiking the Valley Trail in Lighthouse Park. [5]

Lighthouse Park as seen from Altamont in the east Lighthouse Park.JPG
Lighthouse Park as seen from Altamont in the east

Keepers

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Split Rock Lighthouse</span> Lighthouse

Split Rock Lighthouse is a lighthouse located southwest of Silver Bay, Minnesota, US on the North Shore of Lake Superior. The structure was designed by lighthouse engineer Ralph Russell Tinkham and was completed in 1910 by the United States Lighthouse Service for $75,000, including the buildings and the land. It is considered one of the most picturesque lighthouses in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Rodd Hill National Historic Site</span> Fort near Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

Fort Rodd Hill National Historic Site is a 19th-century coastal artillery fort on the Colwood side of Esquimalt Harbour,. The site is adjacent to Fisgard Lighthouse National Historic Site, the first lighthouse on the west coast of Canada. Both the fort and lighthouse are managed and presented to the public by Parks Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fisgard Lighthouse National Historic Site</span> Lighthouse

Fisgard Lighthouse National Historic Site, on Fisgard Island at the mouth of Esquimalt Harbour in Colwood, British Columbia, is the site of Fisgard Lighthouse, the first lighthouse on the west coast of Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alpena Light</span> Lighthouse in Michigan, United States

The Alpena Light, also known as the Thunder Bay River Lighthouse or Alpena Breakwater Light, is a lighthouse on Lake Huron near Alpena, Michigan. Standing on the north breakwater of Alpena Harbor, the light marks the entrance to the Thunder Bay River from Thunder Bay. The current lighthouse, built in 1914, replaced earlier wooden structures which had been in use since 1877 and 1888. The current light is a weather-protected structure on a steel frame. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2006, and the state inventory list the same year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lynde Point Light</span> Lighthouse in Connecticut, United States

The Lynde Point Light or Lynde Point Lighthouse, also known as Saybrook Inner Lighthouse, is a lighthouse in Connecticut, United States, on the west side of the mouth of the Connecticut River on the Long Island Sound, Old Saybrook, Connecticut. The first light was a 35 feet (11 m) wooden tower constructed by Abisha Woodward for $2,200 and it was completed in 1803. A new lighthouse was eventually needed and a total of $7,500 was appropriated on July 7, 1838. Jonathan Scranton, Volney Pierce, and John Wilcox were contracted to build the new 65-foot (20 m) octagonal brownstone tower. It was constructed in 1838 and lit in 1839. The lighthouse was renovated in 1867 and had its keeper's house from 1833 replaced in 1858 with a Gothic Revival gambrel-roofed wood-frame house. In 1966, the house was torn down and replaced by a duplex house. The original ten lamps were replaced in 1852 with a fourth-order Fresnel lens, and with a fifth-order Fresnel lens in 1890. Lynde Point Lighthouse used whale oil until 1879 when it switched to kerosene. It was electrified in 1955 and fully automated by the United States Coast Guard in 1978. In 1990, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places and is significant for its "superior stone work in the tapering brownstone walls".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rockland Harbor Breakwater Light</span> Lighthouse in Maine, US

Rockland Harbor Breakwater Light is a historic lighthouse complex at the end of the Rockland Breakwater in the harbor of Rockland, Maine. Replacing a light station at Jameson Point, the light was established in 1902, about two years after completion of the breakwater. Now automated, it continues to serve as an active aid to navigation. The light was added to the National Register of Historic Places as Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse on March 20, 1981.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Au Sable Light</span> Lighthouse in Michigan, United States

Au Sable Light is an active lighthouse in the Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore west of Grand Marais, Michigan off H-58. Until 1910, this aid to navigation was called "Big Sable Light".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Point Sur Lighthouse</span> Lighthouse in California, United States

Point Sur Lighthouse is a lightstation at Point Sur 24.6 miles (39.6 km) south of Monterey, California at the peak of the 361-foot (110 m) rock at the head of the point. It was established in 1889 and is part of Point Sur State Historic Park. The light house is 40 feet (12 m) tall and 270 feet (82 m) above sea level. As of 2016, and for the foreseeable future the light is still in operation as an essential aid to navigation. Point Sur is the only complete turn-of-the-20th-century lightstation open to the public in California. Three-hour walking tours guided by volunteers are available on Wednesdays and weekends throughout the year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Warrior Rock Light</span> Lighthouse

Warrior Rock Light is a lighthouse on Sauvie Island in the U.S. state of Oregon, which helps guide river traffic on the Columbia River around the Portland, Oregon area. It once contained the Pacific Northwest's oldest fog bell. It is Oregon's smallest lighthouse, and the only lighthouse, or one of only two lighthouses, still operating in Oregon which are not on the Pacific Ocean, depending on whether the Umpqua River Lighthouse is considered to be on the coast or on the Umpqua River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rock of Ages Light</span> Lighthouse in Michigan, United States

The Rock of Ages Light is a U.S. Coast Guard lighthouse on a small rock outcropping approximately 2.25 miles (3.62 km) west of Washington Island and 3.5 miles (5.6 km) west of Isle Royale, in Eagle Harbor Township, Keweenaw County, Michigan. It is an active aid to navigation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wood Islands Lighthouse</span> Lighthouse

The Wood Islands Lighthouse is a historic lighthouse built by Donald MacMillan situated on the southeastern shore of Prince Edward Island, located in the community of Wood Islands. The lighthouse is a well-preserved three storey tower with an adjoining 1+12-storey keeper's residence. The white shingled tower is topped by a red iron lantern, which is enclosed by a white railing on the observation deck. The red roof of the dwelling provides a striking contrast to the white shingled exterior of the dwelling.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seguin Light</span> Lighthouse in Maine, United States

Seguin Light is a lighthouse on Seguin Island, in the Gulf of Maine south of the mouth of the Kennebec River, Maine. Established in 1795, it is the second-oldest of Maine's coastal lighthouses, and the only lighthouse in the state housing a first-order Fresnel lens. With its light at 180 feet (55 m) above mean sea-level, the present tower, built in 1857, is its highest of the state's lighthouses. Automated in 1985, the buildings of the light station are now operated as a museum property by a non-profit organization, and are seasonally open to the public via scheduled ferry from Popham Beach in Phippsburg. The light was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as Seguin Island Light Station in 1977.

The history of lighthouses in Canada dates to 1734.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">South Fox Island Light</span> Lighthouse in Michigan, United States

The South Fox Island Light was a light station located on South Fox Island in the north end of Lake Michigan. There are two towers standing at the site: the first is the original brick keeper's house and tower, while the second is a skeletal tower moved to this site from Sapelo Island, Georgia in 1934. Neither is operational. The station was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Triple Island Lightstation</span> Lighthouse

Triple Island Lighthouse is a large, manned light station on Triple Island. Built in 1920 after four years of construction, the concrete station features a 21.9 metres (72 ft) tower attached to a rectangular concrete structure that houses the keepers' quarters and machinery. A Triple Island helipad occupies much of the remainder of the islet. Canadian Coast Guard personnel man the station on a 28-day rotation. The station was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1974.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Point Abino Light Tower</span> Lighthouse on Lake Erie, Ontario, Canada

The Point Abino Light Tower is a lighthouse on the rocky north shore of Lake Erie at the southern tip of Point Abino peninsula west of Crystal Beach, Ontario, Canada. The Greek Revival white square tower with red accents is attached to the fog alarm building, and a lighthouse keeper's residence is located on the shore to the north.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gannet Rock Lighthouse</span> Lighthouse

The Gannet Rock Lighthouse is a Canadian lighthouse located on a rocky islet 8 miles (13 km) south of Grand Manan in the Bay of Fundy. It was first lit in 1831 and was staffed until 1996. It was solarized in 2002 and remains operational in 2023. It was declared "surplus to requirements" by the Canadian Coast Guard in 2010 and is no longer being maintained.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Long Eddy Point Lighthouse</span> Lighthouse

The Long Eddy Point Lighthouse is a Canadian lighthouse on Grand Manan Island in the Bay of Fundy. The navigation station was first established in 1874 as a fog alarm only and operated as such until 1966, when the present structure was built incorporating a lighthouse. The building has been designated a heritage lighthouse under Canada's Heritage Lighthouse Protection Act.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amphitrite Point Lighthouse</span> Lighthouse in British Columbia, Canada

Amphitrite Point Lighthouse is an active lighthouse in Ucluelet on the west coast of Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada, named after Amphitrite, the sea goddess and wife of Poseidon in Greek mythology. It is also known for one of the sample pictures in Windows 7.

The Cape Croker Lighthouse is a lighthouse located on the south-east corner of Neyaashiinigmiing 27 native reserve in Ontario, Canada. It is a part of the Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation.

References

  1. Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of Canada: Southern British Columbia". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill . Retrieved December 27, 2015.
  2. "Point Atkinson". BC Geographical Names .
  3. 1 2 3 Point Atkinson Lighthouse Lighthouse Friends
  4. "Point Atkinson Lighthouse National Historic Site of Canada". HistoricPlaces. Parks Canada. Retrieved 4 March 2015.
  5. Point Atkinson Lighthouse - Maintaining the Light Archived 2013-10-18 at the Wayback Machine West Vancouver Museum and Archives