General view from SW down path to lighthouse, showing riveted air receivers. Digital image of C 4260 CN.

Description General view from SW down path to lighthouse, showing riveted air receivers. Digital image of C 4260 CN.

Date 1993

Catalogue Number SC 787249

Category On-line Digital Images

Copy of C 4260 CN

Scope and Content St Abb's Head Lighthouse, Scottish Borders, from south-west This shows the path down to the lighthouse from the keepers' houses on the cliffs. A whitewashed stone wall protects the steps, and a handrail is provided for use in bad weather. The riveted red drums next to the path are used for storing air to be used in the foghorn beyond the lighthouse. A siren fog signal (driven by hot air) was built on St Abb's Head in 1876, the first of its kind in Scotland. This was replaced by an oil-driven signal in 1911, and by a diesel-powered one in December 1955. The fog warning was finally discontinued in 1987. St Abb's Head Lighthouse was built in 1862 to designs by engineers David (1815-86) and Thomas Stevenson (1818-87). The squat tower on its single-storeyed base is surmounted by a triangular-paned lantern with domed top, and stands in a dramatic cliff-top position overlooking the North Sea near Coldingham. The complex also includes a foghorn on a single-storeyed base, and a two-storeyed, M-gabled, four-bayed cottage which was used for keepers' accommodation. The light was automated in 1993, and the keepers' houses were adapted for use as holiday homes in 1999. Source: RCAHMS contribution to SCRAN.

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/collection/787249

File Format (TIF) Tagged Image File Format bitmap