Nelson Head Light

Lighthouse in New South Wales, Australia

Lighthouse

32°42′37″S 152°09′41″E / 32.710344°S 152.16139°E / -32.710344; 152.16139TowerConstructed1872 (first)Automated1984

Height10 ft (3.0 m)

Shapeone-story building and no tower^[1]Markingsyellow (building)

OperatorMarine Rescue NSW

LightFirst lit1876 (current)Deactivated2003

Focal height128 ft (39 m)

CharacteristicOc WR

Nelson Head Light, also known as Nelson Head Inner Light, is an inactive, unusual lighthouse on Nelson Head, a headland northeast of the town of Nelson Bay, New South Wales, Australia, near Halifax Park, on the southern shore of Port Stephens. The light guided ships into the port. Unlike other lighthouses, the Nelson Head Light has no tower, but was shown through the window of the lantern room, and later mounted outside.

History

The station was established in 1872 as four kerosene lamps shown from a wooden tower.

The current cottage was built three years later, and the light was first shown from it in 1876. The light was installed in an octagonal lantern room attached to the house, and shown through a 3 metres (9.8 ft) window. The house was occupied by 14 successive resident keepers, and the Maritime Service Board, until 1985.

The light was electrified in 1946, and automated in 1984. Since 1986, the house has been preserved and maintained by the Nelson Head Lighthouse and Rescue Station Trust. In 1990, the Royal Volunteer Coastal Patrol was appointed as trustee. The house is now managed by Marine Rescue NSW, under the Royal Volunteer Coastal Patrol, and serves as a maritime museum.

In 1995 the light was replaced with a solar powered lantern which was attached outside the previous lantern room. In early 2003 the light was deemed unnecessary, and it was shut down.

Visiting

The house is accessible by road from Nelson Bay and is open daily to visitors.

References and notes

^ List of Lights, Pub. 111: The West Coasts of North and South America (Excluding Continental U.S.A. and Hawaii), Australia, Tasmania, New Zealand, and the Islands of the North and South Pacific Oceans (PDF). List of Lights. United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. 2009.

Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of Australia: Northern New South Wales". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved 29 August 2010.
"Nelson Head Inner Lighthouse Nelson Bay Tourist Information". nelsonbaygetaway.com.au. Archived from the original on 24 February 2021. Retrieved 2 September 2010.
Searle, Garry. "Nelson Head". Lighthouses of New South Wales. SeaSide Lights.
Plaque on the site, can be seen in "Grant and Tracey's Lighthouse Pages – Nelson Head". maizels.nu.

External links

Media related to Nelson Head Light at Wikimedia Commons
"List of Lighthouses of New South Wales". Lighthouses of Australia. Lighthouses of Australia Inc.
The museum Archived 2 January 2011 at the Wayback Machine
Nelson Head Lighthouse Archived 12 September 2009 at the Wayback Machine