Nelson Head Light

Nelson Head Light

Nelson Head Light, 2008
Location	Nelson Bay, New South Wales, Australia
Coordinates	32°42′37.24″S 152°9′41″E / 32.7103444°S 152.16139°E / -32.7103444; 152.16139Coordinates: 32°42′37.24″S 152°9′41″E / 32.7103444°S 152.16139°E / -32.7103444; 152.16139
Year first constructed	1872
Year first lit	1876
Automated	1984
Deactivated	2003
Tower shape	one-story building
Markings / pattern	yellow
Height	10 feet (3.0 m)
Focal height	128 feet (39 m)
Characteristic	occulting white and red sectored
Admiralty number	K2771
NGA number	111-6056 (currently unlisted)[1]
ARLHS number	AUS-116

Nelson Head Light, also known as Nelson Head Inner Light, is an inactive unusual lighthouse located on Nelson Head, a headland northeast of the town of Nelson Bay, New South Wales, Australia, near Halifax Park, on the southern shore of Port Stephens. The light served guiding ships into the port. Unlike other lighthouses the Nelson Head Light has no tower. Instead, the light was shown through the window of the lantern room, and later mounted outside.

History

The station was established in 1872, four kerosene lamps shown from a wooden tower.

Nelson Head Light, 1902

The current cottage was built three years later and the light was first shown from the house in 1876. The light was installed in an octagonal lantern room attached to the house and shown through a 3 metres (9.8 ft) window. The house was occupied by 14 resident keepers and the Maritime Service Board until 1985.

In 1946 the light was electrified and in 1984 it was automated. Since 1986 the Nelson Head Lighthouse and Rescue Station Trust has supported the preservation of the house. In 1990 the Royal Volunteer Coastal Patrol was appointed as trustee, and the house is now managed by Marine Rescue NSW under the Royal Volunteer Coastal Patrol was unified. The house currently serves as a maritime museum.

In 1995 the light was replaced with a solar powered lantern which was attached outside the previous lantern room. In early 2003 it was deemed unnecessary and the light was shut down.

Visiting

The house is accessible by road from Nelson Bay. It is open daily for visits.

See also

• List of lighthouses and lightvessels in Australia

References and notes

1. ^ (PDF) List of Lights, Pub. 111, The West Coasts of North and South America (Excluding Continental U.S.A. and Hawaii), Australia, Tasmania, New Zealand, and the Islands of the North and South Pacific Oceans. List of Lights. United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. 2009. http://msi.nga.mil/MSISiteContent/StaticFiles/NAV_PUBS/NIMA_LOL/Pub111/Pub111bk.pdf. 

• Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of Australia: New South Wales". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. http://www.unc.edu/~rowlett/lighthouse/nsw.htm. Retrieved 2010-08-29. 
• "Nelson Head Inner Lighthouse Nelson Bay Tourist Information". nelsonbaygetaway.com.au. http://www.nelsonbaygetaway.com.au/tourism/nelson-head-lighthouse.html. Retrieved 2 September 2010. 
• Searle, Garry. "Nelson Head". Lighthouses of New South Wales. SeaSide Lights. http://www.seasidelights.com.au/au/NSW/nelsonhead.asp?fState=NSW. 
• Plaque on the site, can be seen in "Grant and Tracey's Lighthouse Pages - Nelson Head". maizels.nu. http://www.maizels.nu/lights/nsw/nelson_head/. 

External links

• "List of Lighthouses of New South Wales". Lighthouses of Australia. Lighthouses of Australia Inc. http://www.lighthouse.net.au/lights/NSW/Index%20NSW.asp. 
• The museum
• Nelson Head Lighthouse