Cape
Wrath
Lighthouse tower and dwelling houses are listed as buildings of Architectural and Historic Interest.
An
Act of Parliament created the Board in 1786 authorizing the construction
of four lighthouses in Scotland and the establishment of a Commission
for their administration. The Commissioners appointed at that time were
the Law Agents of the Crown, Sheriffs of Coastal Counties and the
Provosts and Lords Provost of Scottish Towns and Cities whose mercantile
interests were involved. Over the years the numbers of the Board varied
and further changes were brought about by the local government and
sheriffdom reorganisation. Today, all Scottish Sheriffs-Principal are
members of the Board along with the Lord Advocate, Solicitor General,
Lords Provost of Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen, Provost of Inverness,
The Chairman of Argyle & Butte District Council, a nominee from the
Isle of Man and a further five co-opted members who serve for a period
of three years and three of whom must have nautical experience. From the
original four lighthouses the number of lights administered throughout
Scotland, the adjacent seas and islands and the Isle of Man (which was
brought within the Board's jurisdiction in 1815), has increased to 191
of which 50 are permanently manned and 141 unmanned. In addition to
these lights the Board is responsible for the buoyage and marking by
means of beacons of navigational hazards within their area of
jurisdiction. Of the approximate number of 150 buoys along the Scottish
and Manx coasts, about half are lighted. None of the 31 beacons is
lighted. Manned lighthouses are divided into two main categories, Rock
or Relieving Stations and Mainland Stations. A Relieving Station is
virtually a Rock Station on the mainland so remote that it is unsuitable
for wives and children to reside there. At these Stations and Rocks, the
light keepers on duty live alone, their families being resident at a
shore station, usually in the nearest town or city. There are six light
keepers assigned to this type of station, three of whom are on duty at
the lighthouse at any one time. The light keepers serve a month on duty
and a month ashore and are relieved by attending boat, tender or
helicopter. Four light keepers are appointed to important Mainland
Stations where fog signals and radio beacons are established. Stations
without fog signals are manned by two or sometimes only one light
keeper. Furnished dwelling houses are provided for all mobile keepers
whose tour of duty at any one station averages around four years. Some
stations have local assistant light keepers who remain at a particular
station, are classed as non-mobile and do not have houses provided by
the Board. Each lighthouse is in the charge of a Principal Light keeper
who has under him up to three Assistants. Two Principal Light keepers
are attached to Rock and Relieving Lighthouses. Occasional Light keepers
are also employed on a part-time basis to do duty when required to allow
the regular keepers annual leave and their respite periods and to
substitute in cases of sick absence. For the relief of Rock Lighthouses,
delivery of stores (oil, paint, machinery spares etc) to rocks and
stations where road access is difficult the Board has three ships
(lighthouse tenders), and a helicopter on contract to carry out these
tasks. The three tenders, MV PHAROS (1712 tonnes), MV FINGAL (1342
tonnes), and MV POLE STAR (1328 tonnes), are based at Leith, Oban and
Stromness, respectively. They each carry a crew of about 30 officers and
men, with additional accommodation for officials and light keepers have
adequate hold and deck space for lighthouse stores and buoys. The
mention of buoys features of course another area of activity for the
tender whose responsibility it is to maintain the many buoys positioned
off the Scottish and Manx coasts. They are also required to undertake
the often-painstaking search and recovery of floating objects or
obstructions considered hazardous to navigation. Regular trips
to the oil fields are now encompassed in the ships programmes so that
the navaids carried by the oilrigs may be checked for compliance with
requirements. The
commodore ship of the fleet is the MV PHAROS and it is on board the
PHAROS that the Commissioners carry out their annual inspection of
selected lighthouses. The
relief of most of the Rock Lighthouses is now effected by helicopter and
the anxiety which many light keepers experienced on relief day as to
whether the sea would remain calm enough for a successful relief is now
happily only a rather unpleasant memory. The helicopter has of course
proved to be a valuable asset in many ways. Apart from the reliability,
speed and comfort in relief operations, it is utilized in conjunction
with the MVs FINGAL and POLE STAR, both of which have been fitted with
helidecks, to service many of the minor automatic lighthouses where
previously, accessibility was always something of a problem. The ability
to transport loads underslung also qualifies the helicopter as an
extremely useful workhorse. The Board does not own a helicopter but
prefer to have the exclusive use of an aircraft on contract. The present
contractors are North Scottish Helicopters Ltd and the helicopter is a
twin-engined MBB Bolkow 1050 which seats 5 including the pilot and is
ideally suited for lighthouse work. As one would imagine homes for the
stores and buoys previously mentioned are a necessity and those are
found at the Depots located in Granton,
Oban and Stromness. The latter two, as well as providing berthing and
fuelling facilities for the tenders see mtkh helicopter activity as they
fulfill the role of bases for the West and North airborne operations. Each
Depot has an Officer-in-Charge, an Assistant Officer-in-Charge and
varying numbers of staff to carry out the numerous duties involved in
the day to day functioning of their particular section of the
establishment. In
an organisation whose tendrils reach as far north as the northernmost
pcin~ in Shetland and as far south as the Calf of Man, it is essential
to have a nerve centre and this is found behind the Georgian edifice of
84 George Street, Edinburgh. Known, not unnaturally throughout the
Service as "Headquarters". There, under the General Manager, the staff
falls mainly into two sections, Administrative and Technical. In the
former the Secretary controls the functions of the Administration,
personnel and Accounting Departments, and in the latter those of the
Superintending, Civil, Mechanical, Electrical and Radio Departments are
under the direction of the Engineer-in-Chief. Also in the Headquarters
Building are located the Workshops which are well equipped to service
all lighthouse machinery, electrical, radar, and radio installations. The
Workshops are manned by Technicians and Artificers, many of who are out
on the district servicing and repairing equipment on the spot for
approximately six months of the year. The
Northern Lighthouse Board is one of the three Lighthouse Authorities in
the United Kingdom and Ireland and the costs of running the three
Services are met from a General Lighthouse Fund. This fund is
financed by the collection of Light Dues paid by British and
Foreign-Going ships calling at ports in the United Kingdom and Eire. The
fact that the fund is administered by the Department of Trade may give
rise to the popular belief that Lighthouse Authorities are public funded
and are therefore Government Departments. This, however, is not so, the
fund is self-financing and receives no grant whatsoever from the
Exchequer. The powers and duties of the three Lighthouse Authorities are
embodied in the Merchant Shipping Act of 1894, which is the standard
reference on the subject. In its early days the Northern Lighthouse
Board was fortunate to have employees whose ideals were of the highest
order, people who were dedicated to the service and safety of the
mariner. Today these ideals are a tradition that is imbued within every
member of the Service however small or great a part they play in
achieving the fulfillment of the Board's Motto: "In Salutem
Omnium" (For the Safety of All). Cape Wrath Lighthouse was converted to automatic status on 31 March 1998 and is now remotely monitored from the Northern Lighthouse Board’s offices in Edinburgh.
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