Portland Bill Lighthouse
 Portland Bill Lighthouse | |
 | |
| Location | Portland Bill Isle of Portland Dorset England |
|---|---|
| OS grid | SY6773768376 |
| Coordinates | 50°30′51″N 2°27′23″W / 50.514155°N 2.456383°W |
| Tower | |
| Constructed | 1903-05 |
| Construction | sandstone tower |
| Automated | 1996 |
| Height | 41 metres (135 ft) |
| Shape | tapered cylindrical tower with balcony and lantern |
| Markings | white tower with a red horizontal band, white lantern |
| Operator | The Crown Estate[1] |
| Heritage | Grade II listed building  |
| Light | |
| First lit | 1906 |
| Focal height | 43 metres (141 ft) |
| Intensity | 635,000 candela |
| Range | 25 nautical miles (46 km; 29 mi) |
| Characteristic | Fl (4) W 20s. |
Portland Bill Lighthouse is a functioning lighthouse at Portland Bill, on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England. The lighthouse and its boundary walls are Grade II Listed.[2]
As Portland's largest and most recent lighthouse, the Trinity House operated Portland Bill Lighthouse is distinctively white and red striped, standing at a height of 41 metres (135 ft). The tower is approximately 114 feet. The lighthouse was completed by 1906 and first shone out on 11 January 1906.[3] Portland Bill Lighthouse guides passing vessels through these hazardous waters as well as acting as a waymark for ships navigating the English Channel.[4]
History
The two original lighthouses, now known as the Old Higher Lighthouse and Old Lower Lighthouse, operated as a pair at Portland Bill. They were constructed in 1716, both rebuilt in 1869, and decommissioned following the completion of the present lighthouse.[5] At the turn of the 20th-century, Trinity House put forward plans for the building of a new lighthouse at Bill Point, to replace both of the lighthouses. Trinity House acquired the required land at the Bill in 1903.[6][7]
In October 1903 the builders Wakeham Bros. of Plymouth began work on the foundations.[8] Chance & Co of Birmingham supplied and fitted the lantern.[9] The lighthouse was completed in 1905, at a cost of £13,000, and the lamp first lit on 11 January 1906.[5] On 18 March 1996 the lighthouse was demanned, with all monitoring and control transferred to the Trinity House Operations & Planning Centre in Harwich.[10]
Tourist attraction
As Portland's prime attraction, the Portland Bill Lighthouse is open for tours and has a visitor centre, housed in the former lighthouse keeper's quarters. The original centre closed in September 2013 due to lack of funding,[11] however a new renovated centre opened in 2015.[12] The tours operated at the lighthouse last approximately 45 minutes, and visitors are able to climb the 153 steps to the top of the lighthouse.[13]
Lamp and fog signal
Portland Bill Lighthouse uses a 1 Kw Mbi lamp and 4 Panel 1St Order Catadioptric Rotating Lens. The light flashes four times every 20 seconds and has an intensity of 635,000 candelas, with a range of 25 nautical miles. Also having a fog signal for times of bad weather, the signal uses a four-second blast every 30 seconds, with a range of 2 nautical miles.[4] The Type F diaphone was decommissioned in 1996, but restored in 2003 for the benefit of visitors.[14]
Gallery
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The lighthouse and the surrounding ex-quarried area. -
Lamps in Portland Bill Lighthouse -
Trinity House flag on Portland Bill Lighthouse, Dorset -
The foghorn of Portland Bill Lighthouse
See also
References
- ^ Portland Bill Lighthouse Trinity House. Retrieved April 25, 2016
- ^ Historic England. "Details from listed building database (1280498)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 19 January 2013.
- ^ "Portland Bill, Portland, Dorset". Geoffkirby.co.uk. Retrieved 24 November 2012.
- ^ a b "Portland Bill Lighthouse". Trinityhouse.co.uk. 18 March 1996. Retrieved 24 November 2012.
- ^ a b "Portland – Three Lighthouses Walk". dorsetlife.co.uk. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
- ^ "Portland Year Book". ancestry.com. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
- ^ Legg, Rodney (1999). Portland Encyclopaedia. Dorset Publishing Company. p. 85. ISBN 978-0948699566.
- ^ "Portland Year Book". ancestry.com. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
- ^ http://www.theoutdoorstore.co.uk/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/route3-portlandbill.pdf
- ^ "Portland Bill". trinityhouse.co.uk. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
- ^ "Tourism Information Centre shuts at Portland Bill lighthouse". Dorset Echo. Retrieved 14 June 2015.
- ^ http://www.trinityhouse.co.uk/lighthouses/lighthouse_list/portland_bill.html?tab=visitor
- ^ "Portland Bill Lighthouse Visitor Centre was just one of many places to visit in Portland Bill Lighthouse Visitor Centre". Resort-guide.co.uk. Retrieved 24 November 2012.
- ^ "Blast from the past (From Bournemouth Echo)". Bournemouthecho.co.uk. 27 August 2003. Retrieved 24 November 2012.
External links
