Barns Ness Lighthouse

Barns Ness Lighthouse
©2022 Gazetteer for Scotland

Barns Ness Lighthouse

Located on the southern shore of the Firth of Forth, 2½ miles (4 km) east of Dunbar, the Barns Ness Lighthouse is a 37m (121-foot) white tower, which was completed in 1901 by engineering brothers David A. (1854 - 1938) and Charles Alexander Stevenson (1855 - 1950). Taking 2½ years to construct, using stone brought from Craigree and Barnton quarries in NW Edinburgh. Operated by two resident keepers until 1966, when semi-automatic operation and the conversion from paraffin to mains-electric illumination reduced the staff requirements to only one. A backup generator started automatically if the mains power fails and the generator had a battery backup. The light had a range of 10 miles (16 km). It was fully automated in 1986 but became redundant on 27th October 2005, following a review of requirements by the Northern Lighthouse Board, and was sold to a private buyer the following year.


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