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Lighthouse in England

After being decommissioned by Trinity House (the national lighthouse authority) in 1988, Souter Lighthouse was acquired by the National Trust, who now manage it as a visitor attraction with holiday lets.

The lighthouse was a much needed aid to navigation due to the number of wrecks on the dangerous reefs of Whitburn Steel which lay directly under the water in the surrounding area. In one year alone – 1860 – there were 20 shipwrecks. This contributed to making this coastline the most dangerous in the country, with an average of around 44 shipwrecks per every mile of coastline.

The lighthouse and associated buildings were designed for Trinity House by their Chief Engineer, James Douglass; its construction was supervised by on site engineer Henry Norris. Alongside the lighthouse tower a number of other buildings were laid out around a quadrangle, including the engine room and boiler house, and five dwellings; all were built of rubble masonry, rendered with Portland cement. and was awarded to the local firm of James Todd, after complaints that local builders had not had the opportunity to reply to tender as it had not been advertised locally. The foundation stone was ceremonially laid by Admiral Collinson's sister on 9 June 1869. Building works were completed in 1870, and the lighthouse entered service in January the following year. by Michael Faraday at the Royal Institution). An initial installation at Dungeness Lighthouse in 1862 had proved problematic, however, with frequent failures of the lamps and machinery; so Trinity House carried out an extensive testing and selection process over five years (including comparisons with oil lights and examination of equipment in Britain and France) before finalising its plans for a complete purpose built electric installation at Souter. Its 800,000 candle power light could be seen for up to 26 miles. In addition to the main light a red/white sector light shone from a window in the tower below the lantern, to highlight hazards to the south in Sunderland Bay (namely Hendon Rock and the White Stones); it was powered using light diverted (through a set of mirrors and lenses) from the landward side of the main arc lamp. Electricity for the light was provided by two of Holmes' own magneto electric generators for which he took out a series of patents during those years. In normal operation only one generator was used, but in conditions of poor visibility both were connected to the lamp to provide a brighter light. The generators were driven by one of a pair of J. Whitworth & co. 5 nhp 'Allen' condensing steam engines. (Prior to being installed at Souter, the engines and generators were exhibited by Trinity House at the Paris Exposition of 1867.) The engines were worked alternately: one week on, one week off. Located in the engine house, they also drove an air pump to feed the pressure tank of a foghorn.

Holmes also designed a reed fog signal for the new lighthouse, sounded from a separate foghorn house (east of the tower) through a pair of vertical trumpets (angled north east and south east, facing out to sea). It sounded one blast every 45 seconds. A more powerful siren fog signal replaced the reeds in February 1879; it sounded one blast every minute. It required an additional and more powerful engine, which was installed in the engine room to drive the compressor for the new signal. The 1914 optic remains in situ in the tower; it weighs 4.5 tonnes and floats on 1.5 tonnes of mercury. it is now on display at the Science Museum, London. The fog signal was improved in 1919 when a more powerful siren was installed, sounded through a pair of Rayleigh trumpets. (These replaced the twin Holmes trumpets formerly employed; the foghorn house was remodelled at the seaward corners to accommodate them). Hornsby oil engines were installed to drive the compressors for the new siren. The 4,500W bulbs used for the main light were the largest in the Trinity House service. Should the electricity supply fail, a diesel generator would be engaged (and in the event that it too were to fail, an additional emergency battery lamp would be engaged). The mechanism which turned the lenses continued to be driven by clockwork at this time, until 1983 when it was replaced by a pair of electric motors. The fog signal was upgraded in 1953: a Stone Chance diaphone signal was installed and a pair of exponential horns replaced the Rayleigh Trumpets on top of the foghorn building. but continued to serve as a radio navigation beacon up until 1999 when it was finally closed.

As Souter was never automated, it remains much in its original operational state except for updates during its lifespan to its lantern and electrical apparatus. The lighthouse is said to be haunted, and has even featured on British TV's Most Haunted ghost hunting programme.