Pendeen Lighthouse
Encyclopedia
Pendeen
Pendeen is a village on the Penwith peninsula in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It is north-northeast of St Just and west of Penzance.The village has a community centre, a shop, a post office, a primary school, and a few small businesses. Community activities include an art club, silver marching band...
in west Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. Designed by the Trinity House
Trinity House
The Corporation of Trinity House of Deptford Strond is the official General Lighthouse Authority for England, Wales and other British territorial waters...
Engineer Sir Thomas Matthews
Thomas Matthews (engineer)
Sir Thomas Matthews was an English civil engineer, who was a notable builder of lighthouses. He was the brother of Sir William Matthews, also a prominent civil engineer...
, the 17 m tower, buildings and surrounding wall was constructed by Arthur Carkeek of Redruth
Redruth
Redruth is a town and civil parish traditionally in the Penwith Hundred in Cornwall, United Kingdom. It has a population of 12,352. Redruth lies approximately at the junction of the A393 and A3047 roads, on the route of the old London to Land's End trunk road , and is approximately west of...
. The five-wick Argand lamp
Argand lamp
The Argand lamp is home lighting oil lamp producing a light output of 6 to 10 candlepower which was invented and patented in 1780 by Aimé Argand...
provided by Messrs. Chance, of Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, was commissioned on 26 September 1900 and replaced in 1926 by an electric one. The original Argand oil lamp was on display at the Trinity House National Lighthouse Museum
Trinity House National Lighthouse Museum
Trinity House National Lighthouse Museum was a museum in Penzance, Cornwall, UK which housed the national collection of Trinity House. In February 2005 Trinity House announced the museum's closure and relocation of the collection. The site of the former museum now forms part of Cornwall Council's...
, Penzance
Penzance
Penzance is a town, civil parish, and port in Cornwall, England, in the United Kingdom. It is the most westerly major town in Cornwall and is approximately 75 miles west of Plymouth and 300 miles west-southwest of London...
until 2005 when the museum closed. Pendeen Lighthouse was automated in 1995 with the keepers leaving the station on 3 May.
Apart from the tower itself, with its machinery built into the base, there is an 'E' shaped building split into a terrace of four cottages. Three of the cottages were originally used to house the three resident keepers, their wives and families, with the fourth used as an office area and sleeping accommodation for the supernumerary keepers. They are now let as holiday cottages.
Behind the cottages there were three kitchen gardens (which soon fell into disuse as nothing would grow in such an exposed position) and, on the seaward side of the complex, a fog horn and its accompanying machinery. Water was originally collected off the flat roof of the accommodation block and stored in an underground tank. So, apart from food and paraffin, the lighthouse keepers were virtually self-sufficient.