History of Lighthouses Timeline

(c. 280 BC – Present)

Lighthouses have guided mariners safely along coastlines for thousands of years. From the ancient Pharos of Alexandria to today's fully automated LED beacons, the history of lighthouses reflects remarkable advances in architecture, optics, and engineering. More Less

Go to: Timeline | Event List | Key Facts | Directory

Ancient and Medieval

Themistocles establishes lighthouse at Piraeus

500 BCE - 401 BCE

In the 5th century BC, Themistocles established a lighthouse at the harbour of Piraeus connected to Athens. It consisted essentially of a small stone column with a fire beacon.

Image source: Piraeus

Themistocles establishes lighthouse at Piraeus

Pharos of Alexandria constructed by the Greeks

300 BCE - 201 BCE

The Pharos of Alexandria was built in the 3rd century BC by the Greeks. Written descriptions and drawings of it provide key information about early lighthouses, though the tower itself collapsed during an earthquake many centuries after its construction.

Image source: Lighthouse of Alexandria

Early Modern Construction

Edward the Black Prince builds tower at Cordouan

1350 - 1399

In the Late Middle Ages, Edward the Black Prince built a 40-foot (12 m) tower at Cordouan near the Gironde estuary, an early example of a purpose-built stone light tower.

Image source: Cordouan Lighthouse

Henri III commissions Louis de Foix for new Cordouan tower

1581

One hundred years after the Black Prince's tower, Henri III asked architect Louis de Foix to build a new lighthouse at Cordouan in 1581.

Cordouan Lighthouse completed after twenty-seven years

1611

Construction of Louis de Foix's new Cordouan Lighthouse took twenty-seven years and was finally completed in 1611, becoming one of the most celebrated lighthouses of its age.

Cordouan rebuilt higher with Argand lamp and parabolic mirror

1780 - 1790

Cordouan's upper level was rebuilt between 1780 and 1790, increasing its height from 49m to 60m and incorporating an Argand lamp and one of the first parabolic mirrors, turned by clockwork developed by a clockmaker in Dieppe.

British and Irish Lighthouses

Trinity House establishes Lowestoft Lighthouse

1609

With increasing numbers of ships lost along the Newcastle to London coal route, Trinity House established the Lowestoft Lighthouse in 1609, consisting of a pair of wooden towers with candle illuminants.

Image source: Lowestoft Lighthouse

First Eddystone Lighthouse built by Henry Winstanley

1696 - 1698

The modern era of lighthouse construction saw the first attempt on the Eddystone Rocks: an octagonal wooden structure anchored by 12 iron stanchions secured in the rock, built by Henry Winstanley from 1696 to 1698.

Image source: Eddystone Lighthouse

First Eddystone Lighthouse built by Henry Winstanley

Great Storm of 1703 destroys Winstanley's lighthouse

1703

Winstanley's Eddystone tower proved short-lived; the Great Storm of 1703 erased almost all trace of it, demonstrating the ferocity of the sea against early offshore lighthouses.

Rudyard's replacement Eddystone Lighthouse completed

1708 - 1709

A temporary light was first shone from the new Eddystone tower in 1708 and work was completed in 1709. This proved more durable, surviving until 1755 when it burnt to the ground.

Nore lightship becomes world's first floating light

1732

The Nore lightship was established as the world's first floating light in 1732, extending navigational aids to waters where fixed towers could not be built.

Image source: Lightship

John Smeaton rebuilds Eddystone Lighthouse

1756 - 1759

Civil engineer John Smeaton rebuilt the Eddystone Lighthouse from 1756 to 1759. His tower marked a major step forward in lighthouse design and remained in use until 1877.

Robert Stevenson appointed engineer to Northern Lighthouse Board

1797

Scottish engineer Robert Stevenson was a seminal figure in lighthouse design and construction. In 1797 he was appointed engineer to the newly formed Northern Lighthouse Board, the lighthouse authority for Scotland and the Isle of Man.

Image source: Robert Stevenson (civil engineer)

Dutch ship Vreede lost amid private toll abuses

1802

Abuse of private lighthouse licenses led foreign ships to fear seeking refuge on England's south coast. Most notably, the Dutch merchant ship Vreede was lost in 1802 with the loss of 380 lives.

Image source: Trinity House

Bell Rock Lighthouse constructed

1807 - 1810

Robert Stevenson's greatest achievement was the construction of the Bell Rock Lighthouse in 1810, one of the most impressive feats of engineering of the age and the oldest surviving sea-washed lighthouse in Britain.

Image source: Bell Rock Lighthouse

Stevenson dynasty shapes Scottish lighthouse engineering

1810 - 1910

Robert Stevenson established a great dynasty of engineers specializing in lighthouse construction; his descendants were responsible for most of the lighthouse construction in Scotland for a century.

Lighthouse Act 1836 reforms Trinity House powers

1836

The Lighthouse Act 1836 gave Trinity House powers to buy out the last private lighthouse owners and refurbish its estate. Trinity House spent over £1m buying back leases, including £444,000 for the Skerries Lighthouse.

Maplin Sands lighthouse construction begins

1838 - 1841

Construction of the screw-pile design began in 1838 at the mouth of the Thames as the Maplin Sands lighthouse, which was first lit in 1841.

Image source: Screw-pile lighthouse

Wyre Light becomes first screw-pile lighthouse lit

1840

Though its construction began later than the Maplin Sands lighthouse, the Wyre Light in Fleetwood, Lancashire, was the first to be lit, in 1840.

Image source: Wyre Light

Smalls Lighthouse collects record dues

1852

Even after the Lighthouse Act 1836 reforms, owners still collected large dues, the largest being for the Smalls Lighthouse, which collected £23,000 in 1852.

Image source: Smalls Lighthouse

Lighthouses in the Americas

Boston Light built at Boston Harbor

1716

The first lighthouse in today's United States was Boston Light, built in 1716 at Boston Harbor, marking the start of American lighthouse history.

Image source: Boston Light

Sandy Hook Lighthouse built in New Jersey

1764

Due to fire hazards with wooden structures, masonry towers were increasingly built. The oldest standing masonry tower is Sandy Hook Lighthouse, built in 1764 in New Jersey.

Image source: Sandy Hook Light

San Juan de Ulúa fortress lighthouse built at Veracruz

1790

The San Juan de Ulúa fortress Veracruz lighthouse (1790) was the first modern lighthouse in the American Spanish Empire, serving one of Spain's most important colonial ports.

Image source: San Juan de Ulúa

United States Lighthouse Board established

Mar 3, 1851

On March 3, 1851, the U.S. Congress acted to reform American lighthouse administration, creating the body that would oversee and modernize the nation's aids to navigation.

Image source: United States Lighthouse Board

Illumination Technology

William Hutchinson develops catoptric optical system

1763

William Hutchinson developed the first practical optical system in 1763, known as a catoptric system, which used mirrors to concentrate and project lighthouse light more effectively.

Image source: Catoptrics

Aimé Argand invents the Argand lamp

1782

The Argand lamp, invented in 1782 by Swiss scientist Aimé Argand, revolutionized lighthouse illumination with its steady, smokeless flame, replacing candles, coal, and wood fires.

Image source: Argand lamp

French test lighthouse illumination methods

1783 - 1788

Until the late 18th century, candle, coal, or wood fires were used as lighthouse illuminants. The French conducted a series of tests between 1783 and 1788 with varying results, seeking better lighting methods.

Image source: Lighthouse

Boulton begins producing Argand lamps

1784

The Argand lamp was first produced by Matthew Boulton, in partnership with Argand, in 1784, and became the standard for lighthouses for over a century.

Smeaton's Eddystone light switches from candles

1810

Smeaton's Eddystone lighthouse used 24 candles as its illuminant until 1810, illustrating how long traditional candle lighting persisted before newer technologies took hold.

First Fresnel lens installed at Cordouan

1823

After the marquis de Condorcet proposed grinding such a lens from a single thin piece of glass, Augustin-Jean Fresnel developed his 'dioptric' lens system. The first Fresnel lens was used in 1823 in the Cordouan Lighthouse at the mouth of the Gironde estuary; its light could be seen from more than 20 miles (32 km) out.

Image source: Fresnel lens

Dungeness tower becomes first electrically illuminated lighthouse

1862

The first electrically illuminated lighthouse was the tower at Dungeness, Kent, in 1862, pioneering electric lighting for maritime navigation.

Image source: Dungeness Lighthouse

Wigham's gas burner boosts Baily Lighthouse power

1865

Given a grant by the Dublin Ballast Board in 1865, Wigham fitted his new gas 'crocus' burner at the Baily Lighthouse in Howth Head, giving an output four times more powerful than equivalent oil lights.

Image source: Baily Lighthouse

Improved composite gas burner at Baily Lighthouse

1868

An improved 'composite' design was installed in the Baily light in 1868, judged 13 times more powerful than the most brilliant light then known by scientist John Tyndall, advisor to Trinity House.

Wicklow Head fitted with intermittent flashing mechanism

1870

In 1870, the light at Wicklow Head was fitted with Wigham's patent intermittent flashing mechanism, which timed the gas supply by means of clockwork, enabling distinctive flashing characteristics.

Image source: Wicklow Head

South Foreland Lighthouse first successful electric light in a tower

1875

South Foreland Lighthouse became the first tower to successfully use an electric light in 1875, advancing the adoption of electric illumination in lighthouses.

Image source: South Foreland Lighthouses

Arthur Kitson invents vaporized oil burner

1901

The vaporized oil burner was invented in 1901 by Arthur Kitson and later improved by David Hood at Trinity House, greatly increasing lighthouse brightness.

Gustaf Dalén becomes chief engineer at Gas Accumulator Company

1906

In 1906, Dalén became chief engineer at the Gas Accumulator Company, where his innovations would further transform automatic lighthouse operation.

Image source: Gustaf Dalén

Key Facts

The Pharos of Alexandria, built around 280 BC in Egypt, was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World and stood approximately 100 meters tall.
Augustin-Jean Fresnel invented the Fresnel lens in 1822, dramatically increasing the range and efficiency of lighthouse beams.
The Eddystone Lighthouse in England, first lit in 1698, pioneered offshore lighthouse construction and inspired modern designs worldwide.
In 1716, Boston Light became the first lighthouse established in North America, and it remains the last staffed lighthouse in the United States.
By the late 20th century, most lighthouses were automated, replacing keepers with electric lights, sensors, and remote monitoring systems.

Source

This History of Lighthouses timeline was generated with the help of AI, using information found on the internet.

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