Old Burnett Heads Light
Encyclopedia
The Old Burnett Heads Light is an inactive lighthouse
which used to be located on the south side of the Burnett River
entrance, in Burnett Heads, Queensland
, Australia
. It was relocated to the Burnett Heads Lighthouse Holiday Park. It is one of only two lighthouse surviving to be constructed of timber frame clad
with weatherboards
, the other being the original Cleveland Point Light
.
were upgraded. A higher tower with a better apparatus was constructed for Comboyuro Point and an improved apparatus was constructed for Cowan Cowan Point. The old apparatus from Comboyuro Point was installed at Cleveland Point Light
. The apparatus from Cowan Cowan Point was installed at the old tower from Comboyuro Point, and the tower was installed at the entrance to Burnett River. The date of this installation is given as either 1873 or 1874. Until 1932 it was occupied by a lighthouse keeper
. In 1932 the light was converted to acetylene gas (carbide lamp
), automated and demanned.
The lighthouse operated until 1971, when it was replaced by the New Burnett Heads Light
. It was then relocated about 1 kilometre (0.621372736649807 mi) inland into Burnett River and restored. The concrete base and the steps of the lighthouse are still present next to the new tower. The original fifth order Fresnel lens
is still mounted in the tower.
. The Burnett Heads Lighthouse Holiday Park is open, but the tower is closed to the public.
Lighthouse
A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses or, in older times, from a fire, and used as an aid to navigation for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways....
which used to be located on the south side of the Burnett River
Burnett River
The Burnett River is a river in central Queensland, Australia that empties into the Pacific Ocean near the city of Bundaberg. The Burnett River region is largely given over to growing sugar cane....
entrance, in Burnett Heads, Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. It was relocated to the Burnett Heads Lighthouse Holiday Park. It is one of only two lighthouse surviving to be constructed of timber frame clad
Cladding (construction)
Cladding is the application of one material over another to provide a skin or layer intended to control the infiltration of weather elements, or for aesthetic purposes....
with weatherboards
Weatherboarding
Weatherboarding is the cladding or ‘siding’ of a house consisting of long thin timber boards that overlap one another, either vertically or horizontally on the outside of the wall. They are usually of rectangular section with parallel sides...
, the other being the original Cleveland Point Light
Cleveland Point Light
Cleveland Point Light, also known as Point Cleveland Light, is a lighthouse located on the north-eastern tip of Cleveland Point, overlooking Moreton Bay, at Cleveland, a suburb approximately east-south-east of Brisbane, Australia. The original lighthouse was established in 1864-1865 as a wooden...
.
History
In the early 1870s Comboyuro Point Light and Cowan Cowan Point Light, two of the lighthouses on Moreton IslandMoreton Island
Moreton Island is a large sand island on the eastern side of Moreton Bay, on the coast of south-east Queensland, Australia. Moreton Island lies 58 kilometres northeast of the Queensland capital, Brisbane. The island is 95% National Park and a popular destination for four wheel driving, camping,...
were upgraded. A higher tower with a better apparatus was constructed for Comboyuro Point and an improved apparatus was constructed for Cowan Cowan Point. The old apparatus from Comboyuro Point was installed at Cleveland Point Light
Cleveland Point Light
Cleveland Point Light, also known as Point Cleveland Light, is a lighthouse located on the north-eastern tip of Cleveland Point, overlooking Moreton Bay, at Cleveland, a suburb approximately east-south-east of Brisbane, Australia. The original lighthouse was established in 1864-1865 as a wooden...
. The apparatus from Cowan Cowan Point was installed at the old tower from Comboyuro Point, and the tower was installed at the entrance to Burnett River. The date of this installation is given as either 1873 or 1874. Until 1932 it was occupied by a lighthouse keeper
Lighthouse keeper
A lighthouse keeper is the person responsible for tending and caring for a lighthouse, particularly the light and lens in the days when oil lamps and clockwork mechanisms were used. Keepers were needed to trim the wicks, replenish fuel, wind clockworks and perform maintenance tasks such as cleaning...
. In 1932 the light was converted to acetylene gas (carbide lamp
Carbide lamp
Carbide lamps, properly known as acetylene gas lamps, are simple lamps that produce and burn acetylene which is created by the reaction of calcium carbide with water....
), automated and demanned.
The lighthouse operated until 1971, when it was replaced by the New Burnett Heads Light
New Burnett Heads Light
The New Burnett Heads Light, also known as South Head Light, is an active lighthouse standing on the south side of the Burnett River entrance, in Burnett Heads, Queensland, Australia...
. It was then relocated about 1 kilometre (0.621372736649807 mi) inland into Burnett River and restored. The concrete base and the steps of the lighthouse are still present next to the new tower. The original fifth order Fresnel lens
Fresnel lens
A Fresnel lens is a type of lens originally developed by French physicist Augustin-Jean Fresnel for lighthouses.The design allows the construction of lenses of large aperture and short focal length without the mass and volume of material that would be required by a lens of conventional design...
is still mounted in the tower.
Site operation and visiting
The site and the lighthouse are managed by the Bundaberg Regional CouncilBundaberg Regional Council
The Bundaberg Region is a Local Government Area located in the Wide Bay-Burnett region of Queensland, Australia, about north of Brisbane, the state capital. It is centred on the city of Bundaberg, and also contains a significant rural area surrounding the city...
. The Burnett Heads Lighthouse Holiday Park is open, but the tower is closed to the public.