Pharos Lighthouse (Fleetwood)

Pharos Lighthouse

The Pharos Lighthouse, Fleetwood
Location Fleetwood
Lancashire
England
Coordinates 53°55′36″N 3°00′27″W / 53.926530°N 3.007511°W / 53.926530; -3.007511Coordinates: 53°55′36″N 3°00′27″W / 53.926530°N 3.007511°W / 53.926530; -3.007511
Year first constructed 1840
Construction sandstone tower
Tower shape tapered cylindrical tower with balcony, lantern and dome
Markings / pattern unpainted tower, white balcony rail
Height 27 metres (89 ft)
Focal height 28 metres (92 ft)
Range 12 nautical miles (22 km)
Characteristic Fl G 4s. visible only on the range line
Admiralty number A4892.1
NGA number 5156
ARLHS number ENG-043
Managing agent Port of Fleetwood
Heritage Grade II listed building
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Listed Building – Grade II
Official name Upper Lighthouse or Pharos
Designated 31 March 1978
Reference no. 1072397

The Pharos Lighthouse (also known as the Upper Lighthouse) is a 93-foot (28 m) tall sandstone lighthouse situated in Fleetwood, Lancashire, England. The lighthouse was designed in 1839 by Decimus Burton and Capt H.M. Denham.[1] Burton has been commissioned three years previously by Sir Peter Hesketh Fleetwood as the architect of the new town of Fleetwood. Construction was completed in 1840.[2] Unusually for a functioning British lighthouse, it stands in the middle of a residential street (Pharos Street). Though officially named the 'Upper Lighthouse', it has been known as the 'Pharos' since its construction, after the celebrated ancient lighthouse Pharos of Alexandria.

The lighthouse was designed and constructed in conjunction with the much shorter (34 feet (10 m)) Lower Lighthouse (also known as Beach Lighthouse) which stands on Fleetwood sea front. The lighthouses are designed to be used as a pair to guide shipping through the treacherous sandbanks of the Wyre estuary. The light from the Pharos should be kept immediately above the light from the Lower for safe passage down the channel. Both lighthouses were first illuminated on 1 December 1840. The lamp is approximately 104 feet (32 m) above sea level,[1] giving a range of about 12 nautical miles (22 km).

For many years, the lighthouse was painted a striking cream and red colour, but in the late 1970s, the original sandstone was again exposed. The Fleetwood terminal loop of the Blackpool tramway runs past the foot of the lighthouse. The lighthouse is managed by the Port of Fleetwood. The interior is closed to the general public.

See also

References

Footnotes
  1. 1 2 Hartwell & Pevsner (2009), p. 296
  2. ↑ Historic England. "Upper Lighthouse or Pharos (1072397)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 2 July 2011.
Bibliography


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