Maryport Lighthouse
Lighthouse
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Maryport Lighthouse is a small lighthouse located in Maryport, Cumbria, England, formerly run by England's general lighthouse authority, Trinity House. It is a Grade II listed building.[1]
 | |
| Location | Maryport, Maryport, United Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 54°43′04″N 3°30′38″W |
| Maryport Old Lighthouse | |
| |
| Constructed | 1846 |
| Foundation | 1-storey stone octagonal prism basement |
| Construction | cast iron (tower) |
| Height | 11 m (36 ft) |
| Shape | two-stage octagonal tower with lantern |
| Markings | Unpainted (foundation), white (tower), black (lantern) |
| Heritage | Grade II listed building |
| Deactivated | 1996 |
| Maryport New Lighthouse | |
 The new light at the end of the pier extension | |
| Constructed | 1996 |
| Construction | aluminium (tower) |
| Height | 4.7 m (15 ft), 6 m (20 ft) |
| Shape | square |
| Markings | White (tower), black (foundation) |
| Power source | mains electricity |
| Operator | Trinity House (–2010), Maryport Harbour Authority (2010–) |
| First lit | 1996 |
| Focal height | 10 m (33 ft) |
| Intensity | 120 candela |
| Range | 6 nmi (11 km; 6.9 mi) |
| Characteristic | Fl W 1.5s |
18th century
Maryport is said to have possessed a small lighthouse in 1796; five years later Robert Stevenson described it in a report as an oil lamp with two reflectors.[2]
19th century
The Maryport Harbour and Improvement Act 1833 (3 & 4 Will. 4. c. cxiii) granted permission for a dock to be built at Maryport together with a new pier and lighthouse. Construction was overseen by a new board of trustees and the pier, complete with its lighthouse, was in place by 1846.[3] Both remain in situ and the light is said to be the UK's oldest cast iron lighthouse (though it no longer serves as a navigation light).[4] It is 36 feet (11 m) high and consists of an octagonal metal plinth, column and lantern on top of a rusticated stone base.[1] It was originally gas-lit.[5]
Subsequently, the harbour continued to expand. In 1852, following a storm, the south pier (on which the lighthouse stands) was extended,[6] and a new light was provided at the end of the pier extension (described as a lantern on a post, lit by three gas jets) with a range of 6 nautical miles (11 km; 6.9 mi). The lighthouse thereafter served as a tidal light, being lit at night only for as long as there was 8 ft (2.4 m) of water within the harbour; (during the day it exhibited a red spherical day mark to signify the same).[5] In 1858 the harbour trustees commissioned James Chance to manufacture a small (fourth-order) fixed optic for the lighthouse,[7] which gave the tidal light a range of 12 nautical miles (22 km; 14 mi).[8] The previous year, following completion of the Elizabeth Dock, additional (minor) lights had been installed on the north tongue and south jetty, within the harbour, coloured green and red respectively.[5]
20th century
By 1946 the light was powered by acetylene. The painter L. S. Lowry used Maryport and the lighthouse in several of his paintings.[9] Trinity House took charge of it in 1961.
In 1996 Trinity House provided a new aluminium tower (54.7178°N 3.5107°W) for the end of the pier extension, lit by mains electricity.[2] At 4.7 metres tall and with a light intensity of only 120 candelas, the new tower was one of Trinity House's smaller beacons; it displays a flashing white light visible 6 nmi (6.9 mi) out to sea.[10][11]
21st century
In 2010 Trinity House transferred responsibility for the new light to the Maryport Harbour Authority.[12] The old lighthouse was restored and repainted in 2017 as part of a government-funded initiative for the refurbishment of seaside towns.[13] Maryport Lighthouse was recognised during the 370th Council Meeting of the Round Table of Britain and Ireland.
