Bean Rock Lighthouse facts for kids
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| Bean Rock in 2010 | |
 Bean Rock Lighthouse
Location in New Zealand
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| Location | Waitemata Harbour Auckland New Zealand |
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| Coordinates | 36°50′00″S 174°49′52″E / 36.833284°S 174.831127°E |
| Year first lit | 24 July 1871 |
| Automated | 1912 |
| Construction | timber legs, hexagonal wooden cottage |
| Markings / pattern | white |
The Bean Rock Lighthouse is a special lighthouse in Auckland, New Zealand. It stands at the end of a rocky reef in the Waitemata Harbour. This lighthouse is unique because it's the only wooden cottage-style lighthouse left in New Zealand. It's also one of the few like it still standing anywhere in the world! It's the oldest wooden lighthouse in New Zealand and the only one built right in the water. The Ports of Auckland company looks after it.
Contents
History of the Lighthouse
Building the Lighthouse
The Bean Rock Lighthouse was built around 1870. It cost about 3000 pounds to build back then. The light was first turned on for ships on July 24, 1871. It used a kerosene lamp that was as bright as 350 candles!
A man named James Balfour first suggested where to build the lighthouse. He started the early plans. Sadly, he drowned in an accident before he could finish the design. Another engineer, James Stewart, completed the plans for the lighthouse.
The lighthouse got its name from Royal Navy Lieutenant P.C.D. Bean. He was part of a ship called HMS Herald. This ship explored and mapped the Waitemata Harbour in the 1840s.
Lighthouse Keepers and Automation
For many years, lighthouse keepers and their families lived at Bean Rock. They were the people who made sure the light stayed on. But in 1912, the lighthouse became "automated." This means machines took over the work, and the keepers no longer needed to live there.
In 1936, an electric cable was laid from the city to the lighthouse. This allowed the light to run on electricity. Back then, the lighthouse had a special way of flashing its light. It also showed different colored lights to help ships find the right path in the channel.
Modern Updates
The lighthouse was repaired in 1985. Its old wooden legs were replaced with new ones set into concrete. In the mid-1990s, the lighthouse got another upgrade. It was changed to run on solar power, using energy from the sun. It also got an automatic foghorn to help ships in foggy weather.
The Bean Rock Lighthouse is very important to New Zealand's history. It has a special "Category 1" registration under the Historic Places Act. Because it's still a working lighthouse, you can't go inside or visit it.
Images for kids
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Model of the Bean Rock Lighthouse in Wynyard Quarter
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Aerial view of the lighthouse
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Bean Rock lighthouse with Mission Bay in the background
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Lighthouse keeper James Anderson in 1910
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