Scarborough Pier Lighthouse is an active aid to navigation on Vincent Pier in

Scarborough, North Yorkshire Scarborough () is a seaside town in the Borough of Scarborough in North Yorkshire, England. Scarborough is located on the North Sea coastline. Historic counties of England, Historically in the North Riding of Yorkshire, the town lies between 10 ...

, owned and operated by Scarborough Borough Council. The lighthouse dates from 1806, but it had to be rebuilt following damage sustained in the German bombardment of 1914.

History

In 1732, an Act of Parliament was passed 'to Enlarge the Pier and Harbour of Scarborough, in the County of York'. Twenty years later, the work to extend the old pier, which dated from the 14th century, was undertaken by an engineer named William Vincent (whose name subsequently came to be linked to the new structure).

19th century

The earliest reference to a light being shown from Vincent Pier is from 1804, and by 1806 it is definitively described as having a lighthouse on it, designed and built by a surveyor named Nixon: a circular brick building with a flat roof, on top of which is a coal-fired

brazier A brazier () is a container used to burn charcoal or other solid fuel for cooking, heating or cultural rituals. It often takes the form of a metal box or bowl with feet. Its elevation helps circulate air, feeding oxygen to the fire. Braziers h ...

. It operated as a tide light (being lit only 'from half flood to half ebb'). Before long, the brazier was removed and the light was instead provided by six tallow candles, placed in a light-room within the tower, from which they were displayed through an oblong window. Initially a tin lining enhanced the flame; by 1818 a copper reflector had been installed. Substantial improvements were undertaken in 1843, when the tower was increased in height by to a total height of ; at the same time, new accommodation was provided alongside for the

harbour master A harbourmaster (or harbormaster, see spelling differences) is an official responsible for enforcing the regulations of a particular harbour or port, in order to ensure the safety of navigation, the security of the harbour and the correct operat ...

and keeper. The following year, a new lantern room was added and within it the latest form of

Bude-Light A Bude-Light was a very bright oil lamp (later, in its modified form, a gas lamp) invented by Sir Goldsworthy Gurney, patented by him on 8 June 1839 and named after Bude, Cornwall, where he lived. History Lighthouse experiments As first develop ...

was installed, fed by a connection to the town's gas works. It shone red to seaward and white towards the harbour and was visible for up to . At night the lamp was lit, and during the day a red flag was flown, as long as there was depth of water between the piers and within the harbour itself. (Later, a ball-shaped day mark replaced the use of the flag.) The Bude-Light, though very bright, was very costly in its gas consumption, and in 1845 it was replaced with a much smaller 4-inch five-

mantle A mantle is a piece of clothing, a type of cloak. Several other meanings are derived from that. Mantle may refer to: *Mantle (clothing), a cloak-like garment worn mainly by women as fashionable outerwear **Mantle (vesture), an Eastern Orthodox ve ...

gas burner, with a range of just . In 1850 an additional storey was added to the accommodation block.

20th century

Lighthouse damage Scarborough 1914 IWM Q 53462

By the time of the First World War, the lighthouse had been converted to electric power. On 16 December 1914, the

Imperial German Navy The Imperial German Navy or the Imperial Navy () was the navy of the German Empire, which existed between 1871 and 1919. It grew out of the small Prussian Navy (from 1867 the North German Federal Navy), which was mainly for coast defence. Wilhel ...

conducted a raid on Scarborough, Hartlepool and Whitby. Scarborough was hit by 520s shells and eighteen townspeople were killed. The last shot fired at the town hit the centre of the lighthouse; while the shell did not explode, it caused sufficient structural damage to leave the tower highly unstable. Three days later, the top half was demolished. No public funds were available for its rebuilding, and it was only insured for £500. After the war, the Scarborough Townsmen's Guild sought donations from the public to cover the cost of the repairs; they eventually raised £2,225 in this way, and on 22 December 1931 the rebuilt lighthouse was relit. The rebuilt tower was tall, topped with an octagonal lantern. Initially it showed a red light, but there were complaints that this was no longer distinguishable from the lights of the town, so its characteristic was changed to a white

isophase light A light characteristic is all of the properties that make a particular navigational light identifiable. Graphical and textual descriptions of navigational light sequences and colours are displayed on nautical charts and in Light Lists with the cha ...

. It was also provided with a

fog horn A foghorn or fog signal is a device that uses sound to warn vehicles of navigational hazards such as rocky coastlines, or boats of the presence of other vessels, in foggy conditions. The term is most often used in relation to marine transport. W ...

. The adjacent lodgings were vacated by the harbour master in 1937; since 1952 they have served as the headquarters of Scarborough Yacht Club.Scarborough Yacht Club: about the club
/ref> In 1940, responsibility for managing the light was transferred from the Harbour Commissioners to the Borough Council.

References

{{Authority control Lighthouses in North Yorkshire Lighthouses completed in 1806 Buildings and structures in Scarborough, North Yorkshire Grade II listed lighthouses Grade II listed buildings in North Yorkshire