Year first constructed 1791 Construction masonry tower Opened 1790 Phone +44 1692 650442 | Automated 1929 Height 26 m Range 25,928 m | |
 | ||
Location Happisburgh
Norfolk
England Tower shape cylindrical tower with balcony and lantern Markings / pattern tower with red and white bands, white lantern, red lantern roof Address Lighthouse Ln, Happisburgh, Norwich NR12 0QA, UK Similar Cromer Lighthouse, Winterton Lighthouse, Gorleston (Range Rear) Lig, Gunfleet Lighthouse, Old Hunstanton Lighthouse Profiles | ||
Happisburgh lighthouse taken with a phantom 4 quad copter in hd
Happisburgh Lighthouse in Happisburgh on the North Norfolk coast is the only independently operated lighthouse in Great Britain. It is also the oldest working lighthouse in East Anglia.
Contents
Happisburgh lighthouse and beach view from a phantom quadcopter
History
The building was constructed in 1790 as one of a pair of candle-powered lights ("High Lighthouse" and "Low Lighthouse"). It was electrified in 1947. The tower is 85 ft (25.9 m) tall, putting the lantern at 134 ft (40.8 m) above sea level. The other lighthouse - the "low light" was 20 ft (6.1 m) lower. It was decommissioned and demolished in 1883 before it could be lost due to coastal erosion, its lantern being reused at Southwold lighthouse. Together they formed a pair of range lights that marked a safe passage around the southern end of the offshore Haisborough Sands 8 miles (12.9 km) to the safe waters of 'The Would'.
The lighthouse is painted white with three red bands and has a light characteristic of Fl(3)30s (3 white flashes, repeated every 30 seconds) at a height of 135 ft (41.1 m) with a range of 14 miles (22.5 km).
Independence
In 1987 Happisburgh was one of five lighthouses declared redundant by Trinity House and deactivation was planned for June 1988. Villagers organised a petition to oppose the closure, and as a result the date was postponed.
Under the Merchant Shipping Act of 1894, Trinity House may dispose of a working lighthouse only to an established Lighthouse Authority. On 25 April 1990 the Happisburgh Lighthouse Act received the Royal Assent establishing the Happisburgh Lighthouse Trust as a Local Light Authority, and Happisburgh became the only independently run operational lighthouse in Great Britain.