Signal Tower Museum

Signal Tower Museum

Established	Built 1813 Council Housing 1955-1974 Museum 1974-present
Location	Arbroath Signal Tower Museum, Ladyloan, Arbroath, DD11 1PU
Director	Angus Alive
Website

Signal Tower Museum at sunset. Photograph by David McIntosh

The Signal Tower is a museum in the coastal town of Arbroath, Angus, Scotland.

Working life

Originally built in 1813 as a base of operations for the famous Bell Rock Lighthouse, the Signal Tower housed the families of the keepers stationed on the 'rock', along with the vital shore staff who ran the lighthouse tender supplying the light. The name Signal Tower comes from the signalling apparatus installed atop of the tower building that was used to communicate between the shore staff (the Master Of The Tender) and the keepers of the lighthouse. An identical set of signalling apparatus is installed atop the lighthouse itself. Installed within the Signal Tower was a small observatory outfitted with a powerful telescope; it was through this telescope that the signalling apparatus on the lighthouse was monitored during the day. In an age before wireless communications, the ball system employed by the Bell Rock was seen as state of the art technology. At night, any fluctuation to the light would see the supply vessel set sail for the 'rock' to investigate.

The signalling apparatus worked with a ball hoisted up and down a pole. The Master of the Tender or one of his staff was responsible for keeping watch between 9am and 10am, during which period the lighthouse keepers would hoist the ball up to the top of the pole if all was well. During foggy weather, the watch was postponed to 1pm. If the ball did remain down, it usually signified a major emergency such as a chronic shortage of provisions or illness of one of the lighthouse keepers, in any case, the tender was launched and would sail for the lighthouse as soon as possible. In 1955, with the advent of helicopters and faster boats, staffing for the lighthouse was carried out from Leith, home of the Northern Lighthouse Board.

Fishing vessels from Arbroath would routinely carry newspapers, fresh rolls and other non-essential provisions to the keepers and would relay messages back to the shore station, either on behalf of the Master of the Tender or as a favour to the lighthouse keepers.

Council housing

After the NLB handed the building to the then Arbroath Town Council, it was used for around 15 years as council housing before being converted in the 1970s into a museum.

Museum

View of the Bell Rock Signal Tower shore station in Arbroath, looking out to sea.

After its brief and bizarre spell as council housing, the building was converted into a museum, focusing on Arbroath and the surrounding area. Arbroath, like Dundee was a major jute processor and was home to many world-renowned companies, including Shanks Lawnmowers, Giddings + Lewis-Fraser and Keith & Blackman. The museum holds a large number of items and documents relating to the lawnmower manufacturer Shanks, including a number of lawnmowers produced by the company, as well as a variety of documents, photographs and company insignia from Giddings + Lewis-Fraser and Keith & Blackman.

In addition to the manufacturing exhibits, the Signal Tower Museum also has a large number of exhibits relating to the Bell Rock Lighthouse, a scale model of the Inchcape Rock and the lighthouse upon it, and one of the light mechanisms previously fitted to the lighthouse. There is a wide range of exhibits relating to the fishing industry, with scale models of many fishing vessel types once found in the harbour at Arbroath, along with information on fishing and the fish processing industry in Arbroath.

In addition to the historical exhibits relating to Arbroath, there is also useful information for ramblers with information on the numerous nature trails around Arbroath.

References and further reading

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Signal Tower, Arbroath.

Coordinates: 56°33′16″N 2°35′11″W / 56.55444°N 2.58639°W / 56.55444; -2.58639

Museums and Art Galleries of Scotland
National Museums of Scotland	National Museum of Scotland National Museum of Costume National Museum of Flight National Museum of Rural Life National Museums Collection Centre National War Museum
National Galleries of Scotland	Dean Gallery Duff House Paxton House Royal Scottish Academy Building Scottish National Gallery Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art Scottish National Portrait Gallery
Art galleries and collections	Aberdeen Art Gallery Burrell Collection Dick Institute Dundee Contemporary Arts Fruitmarket Gallery Gallery of Modern Art Georgian House Gracefield Arts Centre Groam House Museum Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery Inverness Museum and Art Gallery Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum Kirkcaldy Museum and Art Gallery Meffan Institute McLellan Galleries McManus Galleries Meigle Sculptured Stone Museum Montrose Museum Perth Museum and Art Gallery Pier Arts Centre Stirling Smith Museum and Art Gallery Queen's Gallery Talbot Rice Gallery Tramway
History	Alloa Tower Broughty Castle Museum David Livingstone Centre Museum of Childhood Provand's Lordship St Mungo Museum of Religious Life and Art Surgeons' Hall Writers' Museum
Local history	Aberdeenshire Farming Museum Angus Folk Museum Biggar Museum Trust Campbeltown Heritage Centre Clydebank Museum Dumfries Museum Fife Folk Museum Gairloch Heritage Museum Gladstone's Land Glenesk Folk Museum Highland Folk Museum Highland Museum of Childhood Inveraray Jail John Knox House King's Museum Meffan Institute Montrose Museum Museum of Ayrshire Country Life and Costume Museum of Edinburgh Museum of the University of St Andrews New Lanark Newhaven Heritage Museum North Lanarkshire Heritage Centre Old Haa Museum People's Palace People's Story Museum Pier House Museum Provost Skene's House Scotland Street School Museum Shetland Museum Signal Tower Museum Skye Museum of Island Life St Andrews Museum Stewartry Museum Stonehaven Tolbooth The Tolbooth
Maritime	Aberdeen Maritime Museum Discovery Point HMS Unicorn HMY Britannia Museum of Scottish Lighthouses Scottish Fisheries Museum Scottish Maritime Museum Ship Space
Military and War	Black Watch Museum The Cameronians Museum John Paul Jones Cottage Museum Gordon Highlanders Museum Montrose Air Station Heritage Centre
Natural history	D'Arcy Thompson Zoology Museum Dick Institute George Waterston Memorial Centre and Museum Marischal Museum McManus Galleries
Religion	Blairs Museum Scalan St Mungo Museum of Religious Life and Art
Science and Industry	Barry Mill Mills Observatory Museum of the University of St Andrews Museum on the Mound New Lanark Prestongrange Industrial Heritage Museum Robert Smail's Printing Works Scotland’s Jute Museum @ Verdant Works Summerlee, Museum of Scottish Industrial Life
Sport	British Golf Museum Scottish Football Museum
Transport	Dundee Museum of Transport Glasgow Museum of Transport - (now the Riverside Museum) Grampian Transport Museum Myreton Motor Museum Scottish Industrial Railway Centre Scottish Railway Museum

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