Low Head Lighthouse, Tasmania, Australia
S 41° 03.350 E 146° 47.355
55G E 482290 N 5455023
Low Head Lighthouse is ~7km north of George Town on a peninsular mouth of the Tamar River on the north coast of Tasmania. As this is the third lighthouse constructed in the history of Australia it has a significant entry in Wikipedia.
Waymark Code: WMP333
Location: Tasmania, Australia
Date Posted: 06/21/2015
Views: 16
While the early settlers (and convict overseers) tried to use everyday warning devices such as flags and fires it took a shipwreck of the "Hebe" to put into motion plans for the construction of a permanent light station, being lit in 1833. (Just behind the lighthouse built on the River Derwent in 1832)
"John Lee Archer, the Colonial Architect, designed the original light house in 1822. Archer also designed the Pilots' stone houses at Low Head as well as many other memorable Tasmanian structures including Ross Bridge (Ross), Parliament House (Hobart) and ordinance stores in Salamanca Place (Hobart).
"The lighthouse was the only structure of its type in Tasmania, with the light keeper's residence surrounding the base of the tower itself.
"It was powered by 25 whale oil lanterns, but in the late 1830s a revolving system of polished reflectors and oil lamps of a more modern design was installed.
"This original lighthouse was demolished, and the structure standing today was completed in 1888.
"Eventually the lighting mechanism was replaced with a kerosene-based operation which boosted the light capacity by over 40 times (from 2,000 candlepower to 90,000 candlepower and in 1941 it was again updated to four times it previous brightness (90,000 to 350,000 candlepower.
"The red band was added some years later to make it more visible during the day." (sign on-site)
Photos courtesy of Phil: 2y'sTassies
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