Corsewall Lighthouse is a lighthouse at Corsewall Point, Kirkcolm near Stranraer in the region of Dumfries and Galloway in Scotland. First lit in 1817, it overlooks the North Channel of the Irish Sea. The definition of the name Corsewall is the place or well of the Cross.
Location | Corsewall Point, Dumfries and Galloway, Kirkcolm, United Kingdom |
---|---|
OS grid | NW9807572614 |
Coordinates | 55°00′25″N 5°09′33″W / 55.007°N 5.15917°W |
Tower | |
Constructed | 1816 |
Built by | Robert Stevenson |
Construction | masonry (tower) |
Automated | 1994 |
Height | 34 m (112 ft) |
Shape | cylinder |
Markings | white (tower), black (lantern), ochre (trim) |
Power source | mains electricity |
Operator | Northern Lighthouse Board |
Heritage | category A listed building |
Light | |
First lit | 1817 |
Focal height | 34 m (112 ft) |
Range | 22 nmi (41 km; 25 mi) |
Characteristic | Fl(5) W 30s |
History
editIn 1814, a Kirkman Finley applied to the Trade of Clyde for a lighthouse on Corsill Point. Robert Stevenson, inspected in December of that year and soon the 30 ft tower and house were in the first stages of construction.
Corsewall Lighthouse was exhibited in 1817 but that year, the Principal Keeper at Corsewall was reported for incompetence after falling asleep on duty as the revolving apparatus of the light had stopped for a certain period. They suspended him and he was to never chiefly monitor a lighthouse again and was demoted as an assistant at Bell Rock.[1]
In November 1970, Concorde reportedly flew over the lighthouse on a trial flight and shattered panes of glass on the lighthouse. Later flights did not affect it.
Although the light is still operated by the Northern Lighthouse Board, since automation in 1994 the rest of Corsewall Lighthouse has been converted into the Corsewall Lighthouse Hotel.[2][3][4]
In 1892, a trio of engineers installing a new light hid a message in a bottle at the lighthouse, which was discovered in 2024.[5]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Northern Lighthouse Board history of the light Archived 2 October 2006 at the Wayback Machine, Retrieved on 24 June 2008
- ^ Corsewall Lighthouse Hotel, Retrieved on 24 June 2008
- ^ Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of Southwestern Scotland". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved 10 May 2016.
- ^ Corsewall Northern Lighthouse Board. Retrieved 10 May 2016
- ^ "Hidden message in a bottle found in lighthouse wall after 132 years". BBC. 9 November 2024.