Seaton Carew lighthouse
| Coordinates | 54°40′01″N 1°11′21″W / 54.6669°N 1.1891°WCoordinates: 54°40′01″N 1°11′21″W / 54.6669°N 1.1891°W |
|---|---|
| Year first constructed | 1838 |
| Year first lit | 1838 |
| Automated | No |
| Deactivated | 1892 |
| Construction | High light: ashlar sandstone |
| Tower shape | High light: Tuscan column |
| Height | 70 feet (21 m) in both cases |
| Characteristic | High light: fixed white Low light: fixed red |
| ARLHS number | High light: ENG-332 |
| England number | |
| Heritage | High light: Grade II listed building |
Under increasing commercial pressure from the docks at West Hartlepool the Tees Navigation Company decided to improve access to the river Tees by providing a pair of leading lighthouses (navigation light towers) on the coast at Seaton Carew. These were not the first lighthouses in Seaton Carew as there is evidence of an earlier lighthouse in the 15th century.[1]
Seaton Carew Low Light
The Low Light was on what is now Coronation Drive on the sea front at the junction with Lawson Road.[2] The Low Light was a 70 feet (21 m) tall hexagonal tower with the base at a height of 34 feet (10 m) above mean high tide[3] and exhibited a fixed red light.[2][4]
Seaton Carew High Light
The High Light and cottages were 1,189 yards (1,087 m) inland to the west at the end of Windermere Road in what is now the Longhill Industrial Estate in Hartlepool north of Tees Bay Retail Park.[2] The High Light was a 70 feet (21 m) tall Tuscan column of ashlar sandstone built in 1838[5] with the base at a height of 89 feet (27 m) above mean high tide.[3] The High Light contained a newel helical stair lit by slit windows within the masonry.[5] The High Light also known as the Longhill Lighthouse,[6] exhibited a fixed white light.[2][4]
Deactivation and relocation
In 1884 a new lighthouse was built on the breakwater at the newly constructed South Gare[7] on the south bank at the mouth of the river Tees. Both light systems were used until 1892 when use of the light towers at Seaton Carew and Hartlepool was discontinued by the Tees Conservancy Commissioners.[8] The low light was probably demolished a decade later in 1902 to make way for a coastal tramway and road from Hartlepool.[9]
By 1985 although the High Light tower was disused and dilapidated and had lost its gallery, it was given grade II listed building status.[5] In 1995 the tower now known as Seaton Tower, was moved by the Teesside Development Corporation to the recently regenerated Hartlepool Marina at Jackson's Landing to become a focal point, and in 1997 it was dedicated as a memorial to those who have lost their lives at sea.[10]
References
- ↑ "Access to Archives". The National Archives. 2009. Retrieved 28 July 2010.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 "Seaton Carew Lighthouse". Lighthouse Compendium. Retrieved 9 December 2011.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Bartholomew Gazetteer entry for Seaton Carew". Vision of Britain. Retrieved 21 September 2009.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Vine (S.S.)" (PDF). Portcities Southampton. Retrieved 13 September 2009.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 "Seaton High Light in Grounds of Vulcan Materials United Kingdom Limited". British Listed Buildings. Retrieved 29 July 2010.
- ↑ "Place:Hartlepool Registration District, 1891 Census Street Index J-L". Your Archives. 2010. Retrieved 21 April 2011.
- ↑ "South Gare Lighthouse Hydrogen Fuel Cell Beams Brightly". New England Lighthouse Treasures. 2007. Retrieved 27 December 2009.
- ↑ "The London Gazette, 19 July 1892" (PDF). london-gazette.co.uk. Retrieved 15 January 2012.
- ↑ Gould, Peter. "West Hartlepool Corporation Transport: 1912–1967". Local Transport Histories. Retrieved 7 September 2013.
- ↑ "Memorial: Harbour Light 1914–18". North East War Memorials Project. 2006. Retrieved 15 January 2012.
External links
- Seaton Carew Low Light historic images: Flickr, Hartlepool History Then and Now, Mycetes.
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