Friday, March 5, 2010
Lighthouses of Jervis Bay
Point Perpendicular Lighthouse -
The lighthouse at Point Perpendicular was built as a replacement for Cape St. George Lighthouse in 1898, some 30 + years after Cape St George Lighthouse was erroneously built. Point Perpendicular was built on a flat concrete base with concrete blocks placed inside and out to make up the tower. This is possibly the first of it’s kind constructed in NSW. In 1899, the light was visible for 33 kilometers due to vaporised kerosene. In 1964, the lighthouse went electric and the present light was placed in 1993 and is solar powered. Today, the light flashes 3 times in 20 seconds. It is 93 meters above sea level and has a range of 26 nautical miles. The lighthouse is 21.4 meters tall. Point Perpendicular lighthouse is located at Latitude 35° 5' 37" S, Longitude 150° 48' 19" E , which is within the Beecroft Weapons Range operated by the Department of Defence. This is on Beecroft Peninsula on the Jervis Bay Military Reserve. There is a 10 kilometer drive on a dirt road from the entrance of the BWR gate. Access to Point Perpendicular lighthouse is restricted 110 days a year for gunnery practice. However, access into the lighthouse and surrounding buildings is not available to the public. There is a 200 meter walk to the lighthouse from the parking area.
The window above the main door is interesting as it displays the Waratah, the state flower of New South Wales, and the construction date of the tower.William Parker was the chief lighthouse keeper and his assistants were William Simpson and Arthur Bailey. John Hampson was the last keeper and left in 1993.
Unlike at Cape St. George, the keepers of Point Perpendicular lighthouse had a good life.
Crookhaven Heads -The first light at Crookhaven Heads was built on the beach 200 metres to the west of the current lighthouse. In 1872, apparatus was a red light brass lantern made from a ship's masthead light supported on two poles and was placed by boatmen at the Shoalhaven river entrance. The original lighthouse was constructed of timber in 1882 as part of the Shoalhaven Signal Station. In 1904, the new brick lighthouse to the south of the mouth of the Shoalhaven River was commissioned and the old wooden lighthouse was immediately demolished. The new structure incorporated the lantern from the former lighthouse on Cape St. George.
It was at this time that the name of the station was changed to Crookhaven Heads.
Crookhaven Heads is located at Latitude 34°54' S. Longitude 150°48' E. The light shone a fixed red, 6 nautical miles and was 22 meters above sea level. The lighthouse stood 7 meters in height. The lighthouse is still accessible by walking 250 meters from the Crookhaven lighthouse parking area. The lighthouse is run down and is no longer in use.
The Cape St. George Lighthouse -
“Due to the number of shipwrecks occurring near Cape St George, it was decided that a lighthouse was vital for the safe navigation of coastal shipping. However, egotism, laziness, and insufficient research and consultation were to have dire consequences.
Two wrongs don’t make a light. In 1857, the colonial architect Alexander Dawson and an assistant surveyor E.F. Millington, investigated Cape St George for sites suitable for a lighthouse. Unfortunately, Dawson’s choice of sites were largely based on ease of construction, rather than the efficient function of lighthouses.
Without the input of any maritime expertise, the chairman of the Pilot Board authorised the first of Dawson’s site options. Almost immediately, the project was plunged into controversy. Despite glaring deficiencies in the planning stage, and disagreement by a majority of the board, the lighthouse was commissioned on 1st October, 1860.
Thirty-eight years and many arguments later, a replacement lighthouse shone its beam from the northern side of Jervis bay, at Point Perpendicular.
Even unlit, the (Cape St George) lighthouse caused navigational problems especially on moonlit nights when the golden sandstone tower glowed in the dark. Near the turn of the century explosive charges were used to reduce the tower and parts of the keeper’s quarters to rubble.” Excerpt taken from sign posted at the lighthouse ruins site.
Cape St. George Lighthouse is located at Latitude 35° 09' S, Longitude 150° 39' E in Jervis Bay. As each Australian state or territory borders water, the Australian Capital Territory has claimed Jervis Bay as it’s watery border because of the Naval Base located here. It was recommended that a lighthouse be built in this area in 1856 because of the many shipwrecks. During the years 1864 until 1893, there were 23 vessels wrecked at Wreck Bay! The sandstone lighthouse was completed in 1860. It flashed once every 15 seconds. Dawson and Millington did not consult the Pilots Board, which was the controlling authority at the time.
The issue with the location was that the light was not visible when approaching the bay from the North, and it was barely visible when approaching from the South. It turns out, the lighthouse was built two and a half miles North of the agreed upon site. It is believed this was due to the location of the quarry where the sandstones were from. Once the new light was up and running at Point Perpendicular, the board deemed it was confusing having two lighthouses so close together as it was a hazard to mariners during the day. Cape St. George was abandoned in 1889 and was unceremoniously destroyed between 1917 and 1922 when it was used as target practice by the Australian Navy. To this day, the custodian to the lighthouse is the Parks and Wildlife Service NSW.
In addition to the numerous ship wrecks in the area, the lighthouse keepers and their families also suffered tragedies. The following was taken from another sign at the site.
“Woe, disaster and misery
It was not only at sea that accidents had deadly consequences. The people who lived at Cape St George Light station were eerily prone to tragic events.
In 1867 Isabella Jan Lee, the daughter of the principal light keeper from 1863-1873, died of typhus fever. In 1882, another resident, 13 year old George Gibson, died from pleurisy.
Typhoid struck again in 1885 killing Florence Bailey, the 11 year old daughter of the third assistant light keeper. Her father, Edward Bailey, supplemented his income by fishing for sharks on the rocks below the lighthouse. In 1895, he was washed from the rocks. Entangled in his lines in heavy seas, he drowned and was taken by sharks as his sons watched in horror.
Francis Henry Hammer, the son of Mary Hammer (a single woman who lived at the lighthouse) had a habit of pushing large rocks over the cliff edge to amuse himself. He either toppled over or lost his footing when part of the cliff collapsed. He was only nine or ten years old.
William Markham, the assistant light keeper from about 1878-1883, was kicked in the head by a horse and died before he reached Nowra Hospital.
One of the most disturbing tragedies involved two teenage girls. In 1887, Kate Gibson (the principal light keeper’s daughter), tripped while skylarking with a loaded firearm. The gun discharged, striking her friend Harriet Parker (the assistant light keeper’s daughter) in the back of the skull, killing her instantly. Harriet Parker’s grave site can be found in the Green Patch Camping Area.”
Edward Bailey’s son Arthur, took over as head light keeper after his father’s death and raised his brothers and sisters. His brother, Edward became the Head Lighthouse keeper at Point Perpendicular when it opened in 1899.
Work is being done to stabilise the ruins from any more deterioration. Self guided tours can be taken around the ruins. The lighthouse is located within the Cape Jervis Military Reserve. A gravel road can be taken the last 10 km and a car park is available 150 meters from the ruins.
This is a sad story for a lighthouse, but there is a photo of the lighthouse back in the 1870’s and although it is a black and white photo, you can almost see the sandstone color in your mind. All in all it is a tragic story, but the ruins are still amazing - I may have a third favorite lighthouse in NSW!! And from the ruins, I got a photo across the bay of point Perpendicular lighthouse. This is when I realized that you can see one from the other!
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About Me
- Laura
- Denver, Colorado, United States
- I'm originally from Colorado, but I've been living in Australia for three years. Before that, I lived all over the U.S.: Washington State, Maine, California, Oregon, Nebraska, North Carolina, Arizona, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and more... No, I'm not a military brat or a military wife; I was a traveling nurse for 5 years so I moved to a new city every 3 months. During my travels, I became intrigued with lighthouses and started making plans to photograph as many as I could in whichever state I was living (including the two in Nebraska!) My blog is about my trips to various lighthouses, as well as other interesting trips. I hope you enjoy reading, and leave a comment or two!