Burry Port Lighthouse

Burry Port harbour was built between 1830 and 1836 to replace the harbour at Pembrey, located 400 yards to the west.[2] Burry Port was once the main coal exporting port for the nearby valleys, but the dock now houses the only marina in Carmarthenshire, and the harbour was dredged especially for this purpose.[2]

Burry Port Lighthouse
Porth Tywyn
Burry Port Lighthouse
LocationBurry Port
Carmarthenshire
Wales
United Kingdom
Coordinates51.6775°N 4.2512°W / 51.6775; -4.2512
Year first constructed1842
Year first litrelit 1996
Constructionbrick tower
Tower shapebroad cylindrical tower with balcony and lantern
Markings / patternwhite tower, black gallery, red lantern
Tower height6 metres (20 ft)
Focal height7 metres (23 ft)
Range15 nautical miles (28 km; 17 mi)
CharacteristicFl W 5s.
Admiralty numberA5356
NGA number5748
ARLHS numberWAL-035
Managing agentCarmarthenshire County Council[1]
HeritageGrade II listed building 

History

Burry Port Lighthouse is a harbour light with a reflector, and is situated on the west breakwater of the outer harbour.[2][3] It was built in 1842 and was erected with the permission of Trinity House and maintained at the joint expense of the proprietors of Burry Port Harbour and the Commissioners of the Burry Navigation.[3] The light consists of a 24 ft white painted, stone, circular tower with a black gallery and red lantern.[2] As this was a harbour light, the annual cost of its upkeep, which cost £32 in 1844, was not met by a direct charge to shipping. However, in 1845 the superintendent of Burry Port Harbour reported that buoyage dues not exceeding 1d a ton had been regularly charged since the passing of an Act for the ‘Improvement of the Navigation of the Rivers Bury, Loughor and Lliedi’ on 2 July 1813.[3]

The lighthouse in 2009

In 1995-6, Llanelli Borough Training, with the support of the Burry Port Yacht Club, restored the lighthouse and Trinity House donated a new light.[2] The restored lighthouse is operated by Carmarthenshire County Council and was formally opened on 9 February 1996 by Councillor David T. James, the Mayor of Llanelli.[2] The current white flashing light is visible for fifteen miles and is now an important landmark for the Burry Port Yacht Club and the Burry Port Marina.[2] The lighthouse is accessed via the breakwater.[2] The neighbouring small port of Pembrey Old Harbour also had a lighthouse to guide ships into port.[3] Prior to its construction, the tall chimneys of Court Farm, Pembrey were used as a navigation aid.

See also

References
  1. Burry Port The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved 1 June 2016
  2. Denton, A., & Leach, N., Lighthouses of Wales, Landmark Publishing Ltd., 2008, ISBN 978-1-84306-459-6
  3. Hague, D. B., Lighthouses of Wales, Their Architecture and Archaeology, edited by Hughes, S., Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales, 1994, ISBN 1-871184-08-8
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