St Catherine's Lighthouse is a lighthouse located at St Catherine's Point at the southern tip of the Isle of Wight. It is one of the oldest lighthouse locations in Great Britain.
The first lighthouse was established on St Catherine's Down in 1323 on the orders of the Pope, after a ship ran aground nearby and its cargo was either lost or plundered. Once part of St Catherine's Oratory, its octagonal stone tower can still be seen today on the hill to the west of Niton. It is known locally as the "Pepperpot".[2] Nearby there are the footings of a replacement lighthouse begun in 1785, but this was never completed because the hill is prone to dense fog.[3] It is sometimes called the "salt pot".[4]
History
The lighthouse c.1910
The new lighthouse, built by Trinity House in 1838, was constructed as a 40-metre (130ft) stone tower. When first built the light was oil-fuelled; its lamp, with four concentric wicks, was set within a large (first-order) fixed dioptric lens, built by Cookson & co. and surmounted by 250 mirrors (which were later replaced with prisms).[5] It was first lit on 1 March 1840;[6] however, the light was often obscured by fog, which led in due course to the height of the tower being reduced by 13-metre (43ft) in 1875. At the same time the lamp was replaced with a six-wick mineral-oil burner,[7] and a system of 'dioptric mirrors' (prisms) was installed to redirect light from the landward side of the lamp out to sea.[8]
In 1868 a Daboll trumpet fog signal was installed in a building on the cliff edge;[9] it used an Ericsson 4hp caloric engine to sound a reed attached to an acoustic horn, once every 20 seconds.[10] In October 1876, the reed was changed to a more powerful siren which sounded two blasts every four minutes.[10]
In the 1880s the decision was taken to convert the St Catherine's light to electric power. In 1888 a carbon arc lamp was installed, linked to a powerful set of De Méritensmagneto-electric machines, powered by three Robey non-condensing compound steam engines. (St Catherine's was the last English lighthouse to be provided with an arc lamp).[11] A new optic was also provided (a second-order 16-sided revolving dioptric lens array by Chance & co.)[12] which showed a five-second flash every thirty seconds. At the time of its inauguration St Catherine's was claimed to be 'the most powerful electric light in the world'.[13] The oil lamp was retained for use in emergencies, but in 1905 it was remarked that it had never had to be employed, as the electrical system had never failed in the seventeen years since its installation.[14]
As well as a new Engine House, more cottages were built, to accommodate the additional staff required to operate the generating plant.[15] A new fog signal house was also built in 1888; in it a pair of double-noted 5-inch sirens were installed, sounding through a pair of upright horns, which emerged through the roof and were angled out to sea.[16] Compressed air for the sirens was piped underground from the engine house, where the three engines were linked to an air compressor by way of a common drive shaft;[17] compressed air was also used to power the mechanism that turned the lens. The sirens sounded two blasts every minute: a higher note followed by a low note.[15]
View of the lighthouse, looking south-west out to the English Channel
From 1890 a narrow red sector was added to the light, to warn vessels from approaching too near to the shore west of St Catherine's Point.[18] In addition to the flashing light showing red in this direction, a subsidiary apparatus redirected a fixed beam of light upwards from the rear of the main lens and reflected it to shine red in the same direction.[8]
In 1901 a series of trials of different sirens and reeds attached to trumpets of different sizes and designs took place at St Catherine's (which had sufficient engine power to produce the required volume of compressed air). The tests were overseen by Lord Rayleigh, scientific adviser to Trinity House, whose distinctive and eponymous design of fog signal trumpet was installed at several different fog signal stations (though not at St Catherine's itself) in the wake of the trials.[17]
The 2nd Order Fresnel lens in 2019
In 1904 the 16-sided optic was removed from St Catherine's (and installed instead in South Foreland Lighthouse). A new, more powerful 4-sided optic, manufactured by Chance Brothers, was installed in its place.[19] The new apparatus, borne on a trough of mercury and driven by a large clockwork mechanism,[20] revolved much faster to give a much quicker flash, once every five seconds.[21] It was said at the time to be 'the most powerful flash-light in [the] country', at 15,000,000 candlepower (compared to the 3,000,000 candlepower formerly produced by the old lens).[20] The beam (albeit reflected on the clouds) could often be seen from Barfleur, 60 miles away.[22] As part of the 1904 upgrade, the red sector light was reconfigured to shine from a window lower down in the tower, 20ft (6.1m) below the lantern; it continued to use light redirected from the landward side of the main lamp, by way of a series of lenses and prisms.[23] The same arc lamps remained in use as formerly (one being kept on standby while the other was in operation), and in the engine room the Robey engines and De Méritens alternators were likewise retained.[14]
The arc lamp was decommissioned in the 1920s; by this time it was the last operational arc lamp in a lighthouse in the UK (it is now displayed as an exhibit in Southsea Castle.)[24] It was replaced by a 4kW filament lamp powered by mains electricity; an automatic lamp changer was provided, to engage a standby electric lamp in the event of a bulb failure (and a standby acetylene lamp in the event of a power failure). The 1904 optic was retained, with the addition of an electric winder to the clockwork rotation drive.[25]
By 1932 the fog horn house was being undermined by erosion; it was demolished and a second (smaller) tower was then built alongside the lighthouse to house a new more powerful 12-inch siren. On 1 June 1943 a bombing raid destroyed the engine house, killing the three duty keepers.[26] As part of the post-war repairs, a diaphone was installed in place of the siren. This was itself replaced by a 'supertyfon' air horn in 1962, when new engines and compressors were also installed; the fog signal was discontinued in 1987.[17]
Up until 2021 the 1904 revolving optic remained in use; the lighthouse had a range of 25 nautical miles (46km; 29mi) and was the third-most powerful of all the lights maintained by Trinity House.[27] In November 2020, however, the Isle of Wight Council granted Trinity House planning consent for "removal of existing lens, light pedestal, service stage railings and cleaning platform from lantern room; replacement platform, railings and stationary led light on pedestal".[28]
Present day
The lantern room after removal of the Fresnel lens, October 2021
In July 2021, Trinity House issued a Notice to Mariners reducing the light's nominal range from 25nm to 19nm.[29] As of October 2021, the second order Fresnel lens system has been removed and the lantern room is empty; according to Trinity House the lens has been 'placed into storage while we look into options'.[30] A temporary LED lamp has been installed externally, pending installation of new equipment inside the lantern.
A red sector light, shown from a window lower in the tower, marks Atherfield Ledge.[27]
A team of volunteers used to provide tours of the lighthouse year round; however in January 2020 Trinity House announced that St Catherine's lighthouse would have to 'close its doors to the visiting public as a tourist attraction' claiming that it was no longer economically viable to keep the visitor centre open.[31] Cottages around the lighthouse can be rented out as holiday accommodation.
A T-antenna is spun between the lighthouse and a mast for transmitting DGPS-signals on 307.5 kHz.
Longships Lighthouse is an active 19th-century lighthouse about 1.25 mi (2.0 km) off the coast of Land's End in Cornwall, England. It is the second lighthouse to be built on Carn Bras, the highest of the Longships islets which rises 39 feet (12 m) above high water level. In 1988 the lighthouse was automated, and the keepers withdrawn. It is now remotely monitored from the Trinity House Operations & Planning Centre in Harwich, Essex.
The Nab Tower is a tower originally planned for anti-submarine protection in the English Channel in World War I. It was sunk over the Nab rocks east of the Isle of Wight to replace a lightship after the war, and is a well-known landmark for sailors as it marks the deep-water eastern entry into the Solent.
Souter Lighthouse is a lighthouse located to the North of Whitburn, South Tyneside, England.. Souter Point was the first lighthouse in the world to be actually designed and built specifically to use alternating electric current, the most advanced lighthouse technology of its day. The light was generated by a carbon arc lamp: first lit on 11 January 1871, it was described at the time as 'without doubt one of the most powerful lights in the world'.
Pendeen Lighthouse, also known as Pendeen Watch is an active aid to navigation located 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) to the north of Pendeen in west Cornwall, England. It is located within the Aire Point to Carrick Du SSSI, the Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and the Penwith Heritage Coast. The South West Coast Path passes to the south.
The Lizard Lighthouse is a lighthouse at Lizard Point, Cornwall, England, built to guide vessels passing through the English Channel. It was often the welcoming beacon to persons returning to England, where on a clear night, the reflected light could be seen 100 mi (160 km) away.
South Foreland Lighthouses are a pair of Victorian lighthouses on the South Foreland in St. Margaret's Bay, Dover, Kent, England, used to warn ships approaching the nearby Goodwin Sands. There has been a pair of lighthouses at South Foreland since at least the 1630s. Even after the decommissioning of the Lower Lighthouse the pair continued to be used as leading marks, with Admiralty charts into the 20th century indicating that the 'Lighthouses in line lead south of the Goodwin Sands'.
Longstone Lighthouse is an active 19th century lighthouse on Longstone Rock in the outer group of the Farne Islands off the Northumberland Coast, England. Completed in 1826, it was originally called the Outer Farne Lighthouse, and complemented the earlier Inner Farne Lighthouse. The lighthouse is best known for the 1838 wreck of the Forfarshire and the role of Grace Darling, the lighthouse keeper's daughter, in rescuing survivors.
Start Point lighthouse was built in 1836 to protect shipping off Start Point, Devon, England. Open to the public in summer months, it is owned and operated by Trinity House. It has been designated by English Heritage as a grade II listed building.
Bull Point Lighthouse is a lighthouse on Bull Point, about one mile (1.6 km) north of the village of Mortehoe, on the northern coast of Devon, England. The lighthouse provides a visual aid to the villages of Mortehoe, Woolacombe and Ilfracombe, and warns of the inhospitable and rocky coast that lines the area.
Hurst Point Lighthouse is located at Hurst Point in the English county of Hampshire, and guides vessels through the western approaches to the Solent.
Hartland Point Lighthouse is a Grade II listed building at Hartland Point, Devon, England. The point marks the western limit of the Bristol Channel with the Atlantic Ocean continuing to the west. Trinity House, the lighthouse authority for England and Wales, have a lighthouse on the tip of the peninsula.
The Needles Lighthouse is an active 19th century lighthouse on the outermost of the chalk rocks at The Needles on the Isle of Wight in the United Kingdom, near sea level. Designed by James Walker, for Trinity House at a cost of £20,000, it was completed in 1859 from granite blocks. It stands 33.25 metres (109.1 ft) high and is a circular tower with straight sides. It replaced an earlier light tower on top of a cliff overhanging Scratchell's Bay, which was first lit on 29 September 1786.
The Europa Point Lighthouse, also referred to as the Trinity Lighthouse at Europa Point and the Victoria Tower or La Farola in Llanito, is a lighthouse at Europa Point, on the southeastern tip of the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar, on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula, at the entrance to the Mediterranean Sea.
Whitby Lighthouse is a lighthouse operated by Trinity House. It is on Ling Hill, on the coast to the southeast of Whitby, beyond Saltwick Bay. To distinguish it from the two lighthouses in Whitby itself it is sometimes known as Whitby High lighthouse
The Anvil Point Lighthouse is a fully-automated lighthouse located at Durlston Country Park near Swanage in Dorset, England. It is owned by Trinity House and currently operated as two holiday cottages.
Flamborough Head Lighthouse is an active lighthouse located at Flamborough, East Riding of Yorkshire. England. Flamborough Head Lighthouse acts as a waypoint for passing deep sea vessels and coastal traffic, and marks Flamborough Head for vessels heading towards Scarborough and Bridlington.
Dungeness Lighthouse on the Dungeness Headland started operation on 20 November 1961. Its construction was prompted by the building of Dungeness nuclear power station, which obscured the light of its predecessor which, though decommissioned, remains standing. The new lighthouse is constructed of precast concrete rings; its pattern of black and white bands is impregnated into the concrete. It remains in use today, monitored and controlled from the Trinity House Operations and Planning Centre at Harwich, Essex.
Casquets Lighthouse is an active lighthouse located on the rocky Les Casquets, Alderney, Channel Islands.
Lynmouth Foreland Lighthouse is located on Foreland Point; it was originally simply named 'The Foreland Lighthouse'. First lit on 28 September 1900, the lighthouse was built to assist vessels passing through the Bristol Channel, and is a round brick tower painted white. The light is 67 metres (220 ft) above the high tide, and flashes 4 times every 15 seconds; the optic was manufactured by Chance Brothers & Co. and is very similar to that installed in Pendeen Lighthouse the same year. It was rotated by clockwork until 1975. Initially, the light was said to have the power of 56,750 candles; later the intensity of the light was rated at around 190,000 candlepower.
The isle of Lundy has three lighthouses: a pair of active lights built in 1897 and an older lighthouse dating from 1797.
↑ Schiffer, Michael Bryan (2008). Power Struggles: Scientific Authority and the Creation of Practical Electricity before Edison. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press. p.278.
↑ Chance, James Frederick (2018). A History of the Firm of Chance Brothers & Co. Sheffield: Society of Glass Manufacturers. p.178.
↑ "Saint Catherine's Point Lighthouse". The Engineer. LXV: 479–480. 15 June 1888.
1 2 "Improvements in English Lighthouses". The Engineer. XCIX: 362–363. 14 April 1905.
1 2 Woodman, Richard; Wilson, Jane (2002). The Lighthouses of Trinity House. Bradford-on-Avon, Wilts.: Thomas Reed. pp.96–97.
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