Souter Lighthouse facts for kids

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Souter Lighthouse
Location	Whitburn, Tyne and Wear
Fog signal	One blast every 30s

Souter Lighthouse is a famous lighthouse in South Tyneside, England. It's located north of Whitburn. When it was working, people often called it Souter Point Lighthouse.

This lighthouse was super special! It was the very first lighthouse in the world built specifically to use alternating electric current. This was the newest and best technology for lighthouses back then. Its powerful light came from a carbon arc lamp. When it first shone on January 11, 1871, people said it was one of the strongest lights anywhere!

After it stopped being used by Trinity House (the main lighthouse group) in 1988, the National Trust took over Souter Lighthouse. Now, it's a fun place to visit, and you can even stay in some of the old lighthouse keepers' homes.

Where is Souter Lighthouse?
History of the Lighthouse
Souter Lighthouse Today
Images for kids
See also

Where is Souter Lighthouse?

The lighthouse is actually on Lizard Point. But it's called Souter Lighthouse because Souter Point is about a mile south. That was the first idea for where to build it. However, Lizard Point was chosen instead because its cliffs are higher. This meant the light could be seen much better from there. The name Souter Lighthouse was kept so people wouldn't mix it up with the Lizard Lighthouse in Cornwall.

Souter Lighthouse is about three miles south of the River Tyne's mouth. About four miles north of the Tyne's mouth is another old lighthouse, St Mary's Lighthouse. It's also no longer working but is open for visitors. You can even see St Mary's Lighthouse from the top of Souter Lighthouse!

History of the Lighthouse

This lighthouse was really needed! The waters nearby, especially the Whitburn Steel reefs, were very dangerous for ships. In just one year, 1860, there were 20 shipwrecks! This part of the coast was known as the most dangerous in the country. On average, about 44 ships crashed for every mile of coastline.

Building the Lighthouse

Souter Lighthouse around 1900.

The famous engineer James Nicholas Douglass designed the lighthouse and its buildings for Trinity House. Another engineer, Henry Norris, watched over the building work. Around the lighthouse tower, other buildings were made, like the engine room, boiler house, and five homes for the keepers. All these buildings were made from stone and covered with Portland cement.

In March 1869, a local company, James Todd, won the contract to build the lighthouse and cottages for £8,000. The first stone was officially laid on June 9, 1869. The building work finished in 1870, and the lighthouse started working in January 1871.

Early Electric Power

The original arc lamp from 1871-1914, now on display.

Electric lights for lighthouses were first tested by Professor Frederick Hale Holmes. He did experiments in the late 1850s. An early electric lighthouse in Dungeness had problems. So, Trinity House spent five years testing different lights before choosing to build Souter with electric power.

One of the original electric generators from Souter Lighthouse.

The main light at Souter used a carbon arc lamp. This lamp was inside a special lens system that spun around. It made one very bright flash every thirty seconds. This light was incredibly strong, about 800,000 candle power, and could be seen up to 26 miles away! James Timmins Chance designed and built these special lenses in 1870.

There was also a smaller red and white light that shone from a window lower down the tower. This light warned ships about dangers in Sunderland Bay. It used light from the main lamp, directed by mirrors and lenses.

The electricity for the light came from two special generators made by Holmes. Usually, only one generator was used. But if the weather was bad, both were connected to make the light even brighter. These generators were powered by large steam engines. These engines also pumped air for the foghorn.

In December 1891, the lighthouse tower was painted with a wide red band. This made it easier to see during the day.

The Foghorn

Holmes also designed a reed fog signal for the lighthouse. It sounded from a separate building through two tall trumpets facing the sea. It made one blast every 45 seconds. The air for the foghorn was pumped from the engine room through underground pipes.

In February 1879, a stronger siren fog signal replaced the old reeds. This new siren sounded one blast every minute. A more powerful engine was added to the engine room to run the compressor for this new siren.

Changes in the 20th Century

The current lenses, installed in 1914.

Switching to Oil

In 1914, the electric light at Souter was changed to use new incandescent oil lamps. These used paraffin vapor. At the same time, Chance Brothers installed a much larger, double-height lens system. This new lens had two lamps, one above the other. A new, taller top part (lantern) was also added to hold the bigger lens. Red covers were put around the lamps, making the light flash red once every 5 seconds. This 1914 lens system is still in the tower today. It weighs 4.5 tonnes and floats on 1.5 tonnes of mercury!

The smaller red and white light continued to shine from its window lower down. The old electric generators were removed from the engine room. One of them is now on display at the Science Museum, London.

The fog signal was made even better in 1919. A more powerful siren was installed, sounding a 4-second blast every minute. New oil engines were put in to power the compressors for this siren.

Back to Electricity

In 1952, the lighthouse was changed back to electric power. This time, it used bright incandescent lamps powered by electricity from the main power grid. The bulbs for the main light were the biggest used by Trinity House. If the power went out, a diesel generator would start. If that also failed, an emergency battery lamp would turn on. The mechanism that turned the lenses was still run by clockwork until 1983, when electric motors took over.

The foghorn building, facing the sea.

The fog signal was also updated in 1953. A new diaphone signal was installed, and new horn shapes were put on top of the foghorn building. The engine room got two new air compressors, one electric and one diesel-powered. This diaphone made a five-second blast every 30 seconds in bad weather. It was used until 1988, when the lighthouse stopped working.

No Longer in Service

Souter Lighthouse was officially stopped by Trinity House in 1988. However, it kept working as a radio navigation beacon until 1999, when it was finally closed down completely.

Souter Lighthouse Today

Souter Lighthouse was never made fully automatic. This means it still looks and feels much like it did when it was working. Only its light and electrical parts were updated over the years.

Today, the National Trust owns Souter Lighthouse. It's open for everyone to visit! You can explore the engine room, climb the light tower, and see where the lighthouse keepers lived. There's also an outdoor play area and indoor activities for younger visitors. Two of the old lighthouse keepers' cottages are now holiday homes you can rent from the National Trust. The lamps, lenses, and foghorn still work and are sometimes turned on for special events!

Some people say the lighthouse is haunted! It even appeared on a British TV show about ghost hunting called Most Haunted.