Tacking Point Lighthouse is

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

's thirteenth oldest lighthouse. It was built on a rocky headland about 8 kilometres south of

Port Macquarie Port Macquarie is a coastal town in the local government area of Port Macquarie-Hastings. It is located on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, Australia, about north of Sydney, and south of Brisbane. The town is located on the Tasman Sea co ...

in 1879 by Shepherd and Joseph William Mortley, to a design by the

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

Colonial Architect,

James Barnet James Johnstone Barnet, (1827 in Almericlose, Arbroath, Scotland – 16 December 1904 in Forest Lodge, Sydney, New South Wales) was the Colonial Architect for Colonial New South Wales, serving from 1862 to 1890. Early life Born the son of a ...

. It is operated by the

Australian Maritime Safety Authority Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) is an Australian statutory authority responsible for the regulation and safety oversight of Australia's shipping fleet and management of Australia's international maritime obligations. The authority ...

and is classified by the

National Trust of Australia The National Trust of Australia, officially the Australian Council of National Trusts (ACNT), is the Australian national peak body for community-based, non-government non-profit organisations committed to promoting and conserving Australia's Ind ...

(NSW). Tacking Point was named by explorer

Matthew Flinders Captain Matthew Flinders (16 March 1774 – 19 July 1814) was a British navigator and cartographer who led the first inshore circumnavigation of mainland Australia, then called New Holland. He is also credited as being the first person to u ...

in 1802 during his 1802–1803

circumnavigation Circumnavigation is the complete navigation around an entire island, continent, or astronomical object, astronomical body (e.g. a planet or natural satellite, moon). This article focuses on the circumnavigation of Earth. The first recorded circ ...

of Australia. Its nearest lighthouses are

Smoky Cape Lighthouse Smoky Cape Lighthouse is a heritage-listed active lighthouse located on Smoky Cape, a headland in Arakoon east of the town of South West Rocks, Kempsey Shire, New South Wales, Australia, and within the Hat Head National Park. It directs b ...

South West Rocks South West Rocks is a town located on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, Australia, near the mouth of the Macleay River. It is approximately from Kempsey, New South Wales, Kempsey. Jerseyville, New South Wales, Jerseyville is located nea ...

, to the north, and

Crowdy Head Light Crowdy Head Light is an active lighthouse located at Crowdy Head, a headland between Forster and Port Macquarie, New South Wales, Australia. It is registered with the Register of the National Estate. History The first station in the ar ...

, to the south.

History

In the mid-nineteenth century, there were few lights in the Tacking Point area and over 20 ships were wrecked. The first occurred in December 1823 when the

schooner A schooner () is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: fore-and-aft rigged on all of two or more masts and, in the case of a two-masted schooner, the foremast generally being shorter than the mainmast. A common variant, the topsail schoon ...

''Black Jack'' was wrecked on the Port Macquarie bar. Consequently, in 1879, a fixed

catadioptric A catadioptric optical system is one where refraction and reflection are combined in an optical system, usually via lenses (dioptrics) and curved mirrors (catoptrics). Catadioptric combinations are used in focusing systems such as searchlights, he ...

light of less than 1000

candelas The candela ( or ; symbol: cd) is the unit of luminous intensity in the International System of Units (SI). It measures luminous power per unit solid angle emitted by a light source in a particular direction. Luminous intensity is analogous to ...

was erected on Tacking Point. It was the fourth of five small navigational lighthouses built to a design by James Barnet.Port Macquarie-Hastings Council: Tacking Point Lighthouse
/ref> The other four lighthouses were

Fingal Head Light Fingal Head Light is an active lighthouse located at Fingal Head, New South Wales, Australia, a headland about south of Point Danger, which marks the Queensland border. History The station was first established on 19 February 1872, a wo ...

, Richmond River Light and Clarence River Light (now demolished).Letter by Editor Steve Merson, ''Bulletin of the Lighthouses of Australia, Inc'', No. 8, December 2003
/ref> Only two of these lighthouses, Tacking Point and Crowdy Head still have a storeroom attached. The lighthouse was built of cement-rendered bricks and only needed to be 8 metres high due to the elevation of the site. In 1919, the light was converted from wick oil light to automatic acetylene operation, and was de-manned in 1920. The light was converted to mains electricity in 1974. The foundations of the keeper's cottage are still visible. Management of the lighthouse is shared by three government authorities: the

New South Wales Department of Lands The New South Wales Land and Property Information (NSW LPI), a division of the Department of Finance, Services and Innovation in the government of New South Wales, was the division responsible for land titles, property information, valuation, sur ...

owns the lighthouse;

Transport for NSW Transport for NSW, sometimes abbreviated to TfNSW, and pronounced as Transport for New South Wales, is an agency of the New South Wales Government established on 1 November 2011, and is the leading transport and roads agency in New South Wales, ...

operates the light; and the

Port Macquarie-Hastings Council Port Macquarie-Hastings Council is a local government area in the Mid North Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. The area is located adjacent to the Hastings River, the Pacific Highway, the Oxley Highway and the North Coast railway lin ...

manages the site. Vandalism has been a problem in the early 2000s. Resolving the issue has been complicated by the split management.

Tourism

The Lighthouse headland marks the end of the circa 9 km Coastal Walk from Town Beach to Lighthouse Beach being built by the Port Macquarie-Hastings Council. The lighthouse is also a popular site for

whale watching Whale watching is the practice of observing whales and dolphins ( cetaceans) in their natural habitat. Whale watching is mostly a recreational activity (cf. birdwatching), but it can also serve scientific and/or educational purposes.Hoyt, E. 2 ...

."Tacking Point Lighthouse vandalised again", ''Lighthouses of Australia, Inc. Bulletin'', 8 (4) July/August 2005
/ref> The area is used for

surfing Surfing is a surface water sport in which an individual, a surfer (or two in tandem surfing), uses a board to ride on the forward section, or face, of a moving wave of water, which usually carries the surfer towards the shore. Waves suitabl ...

and there is a surf life-saving club at the neighbouring Lighthouse Beach.

Notes

References

* * {{Authority control Lighthouses completed in 1879 Lighthouses in New South Wales 1879 establishments in Australia James Barnet buildings

History

Tourism

See also

Notes

References