Construction brick tower Admiralty number A3968 Opened 1862 Focal height 52 m Year first constructed 1862 | Characteristic Fl W 5s. Height 37 m Range 46,300 m Automated 1998 | |
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Location Butt of LewisLewisOuter HebridesScotland Tower shape tapered cylindrical tower with balcony and lantern Markings / pattern brick unpainted tower, black lantern, ochre trim Address Lewis and Harris HS2 0XH, UK Similar Dun Carloway, Tiumpan Head Lighthouse, Barra Head Lighthouse, Eilean Glas Lighthouse, Lews Castle | ||
Butt of lewis lighthouse in a gale
Butt of Lewis Lighthouse, designed by David Stevenson, was built at Butt of Lewis to aid shipping in the 1860s. Unusual for a lighthouse in Scotland, it is constructed of red brick, and is unpainted. The station was automated in 1998, one of the last to have been converted. A modern differential GPS base station has now been sited on a nearby hill to further aid navigation. This hill was also the site for a Lloyd's Signal Station from the 1890s.
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The road to the lighthouse passes a sheltered cove called Port Stoth. Agricultural lazy beds are also visible along the coast. The Butt of Lewis features some of the oldest rocks in Europe, having been formed in the Precambrian period up to 3000 million years ago. Following the coast southwest from the lighthouse there is a natural arch called the "Eye of the Butt" (Scottish Gaelic: Sùil an Rubha). It can be best viewed from the Habost machair.