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Lighthouses of New South Wales

State Indexes > NSW > Tacking Point Lighthouse

The Tacking Point Lighthouse

In 1879 a fixed catadioptric light of less than 1000 candelas was erected on Tacking Point.

The Tacking Point Lighthouse [Photograph: Cyril Curtain]
The Tacking Point Lighthouse
 Photograph: Cyril Curtain

Operation

LOCATION: Latitude 31° 28.7 S. Longitude 152° 56.2 E. (map)
OPERATOR: Australian Maritime Safety Authority
EXHIBITED: 1879
CONSTRUCTION: Cement-rendered Bricks
CHARACTER: Group Flashing 4 every 20 seconds
LIGHT SOURCE: 12 Volt 75 Watt Quartz Halogen Lamp, FA 251 Beacon
POWER SOURCE: Mains Electricity, battery backup
INTENSITY: 12,800 cd
ELEVATION: 34 metres
RANGE: 16 nautical miles
HEIGHT: 8 metres
AUTOMATED: 1919
DEMANNED: 1920
DEACTIVATED: No
CUSTODIAN: Dept Infrastructure, Planning & Natural Resources

Tacking Point Lighthouse and it's headland. [Photograph: Ian Clifford]
Tacking Point Lighthouse and its headland.
 Photograph: Ian Clifford

The staircase at Tacking Point. [Photograph: Ian Clifford]
The staircase at Tacking Point
Photograph: Ian Clifford

History

In the early to mid 19th Century the main contact for the coastal towns of the north coast of New South Wales was sea transport. There were no roads and the railways were only just beginning.

There were few lights and in the Tacking Point area more than 20 wrecks occurred, the first being the schooner Black Joe in 1823, and the steamer Sumatra in the same year.

In 1879 a fixed catadioptric light of less than 1000 candelas was erected on Tacking Point.

The structure is built of cement-rendered bricks and because of the elevation only needed to be 8 metres high.

The apparatus was converted from wick oil light in 1919 to automatic acetylene operation. The light was then converted to mains electricity in 1974.

As a result of automation the keepers were withdrawn after 40 years of service.

The foundations of the keeper's cottage can still be seen.

The Tacking Point Lighthouse. [Photograph: Ian Clifford]
The Tacking Point Lighthouse
Photograph: Ian Clifford

The view from the Tacking Point Lighthouse lantern room. [Photograph: Ian Clifford]
The view from the Tacking Point Lighthouse lantern room
Photograph: Ian Clifford

Keepers

We need your help in compiling a list of keepers for this lighthouse. If you have any information then send it to Web Keeper.

Please include this lighthouse's name, the keepers full name and what years they were keepers. Also include the same information for any other lights they were on.

 

Access

NEAREST TOWN: Port Macquarie
DISTANCE: 8 km (Port Macquarie)
: 399 km (Sydney)
ACCESS: Reserve is accessible to the public
TOURS: No
ACCOMMODATION: No

The apparatus and lantern room of the Tacking Point Lighthouse. [Photograph: Ian Clifford]
The apparatus and lantern room of the Tacking Point Lighthouse
Photograph: Ian Clifford

The Surrounding Area

The Tacking Point Lighthouse. [Photograph: Brian Lord]
The Tacking Point Lighthouse
Photograph: Brian Lord


Aerial view of the Tacking Point Lighthouse
Photograph: Winsome Bonham

Features

Northern Rivers of New South Wales Trip Bulletin Mar 00
Lighthouses From the Air: Part 7 Bulletin Mar 02
Annette Flotwell's East Coast Lighthouse Trip: Part 3 Bulletin Sep 03


The Tacking Point Lighthouse
Photograph: Annette Flotwell

Letters

Looking for Joseph William Mortley Bulletin Sep 01

Other Tacking Point Sites

The Tacking Point Lighthouse Grant Maizels
Rocky outcrops at Tacking Point Cartoscope

Special Thanks to:

  • Annette Flotwell for Photograph
  • Brian Lord for Photographs
  • Cyril Curtain for Photographs
  • Ian Clifford for Photographs
  • Winsome Bonham for Photograph

Sources:

  • Averil Legg
  • Dept of Transport
  • From Dusk Till Dawn by Gordon Reid
  • Mary Shelley Clark and Jack Clark
  • Sydney AFLOAT
  • W. Lippingwell, Coastal Lighthouses of NSW, 1938
Page last updated:
Page created:		 14/11/03
29/02/00

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Malcolm S Macdonald t/as Lighthouse Computer Training & Development (1997-2001)
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