Walney Lighthouse

Walney Lighthouse stands on Walney Island in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria. The current stone building dates from the early 19th century and is Grade II* listed. It is the southernmost man-made structure in Cumbria. The lighthouse replaced a smaller wooden one built in 1790 by the Lancaster Quay Commissioners. That first wooden tower was destroyed by fire in 1803. The lighthouse was designed by engineer E. Dawson and completed in 1804. Its optical system was renewed in 1846 with a clockwork-driven array of four Argand lamps and parabolic reflectors. In 1909 an acetylene gaslight system was installed, then replaced in 1953 by an electric light and rotation system. The reflectors were finally removed in 2003 when the lighthouse was automated. It was the last manned lighthouse in England and the last to use a catoptric apparatus. Visitors find the lighthouse and its attached cottages on Walney Island. The Grade II* listed building shows the early 19th-century design by E. Dawson. The cottages once housed lighthouse keepers and their families. The site overlooks the Irish Sea and the approaches to Barrow-in-Furness. Nearby stands the last manned lighthouse in England before automation in 2003.