Souter Point Lighthouse And Attached Buildings

Souter Point Lighthouse and the attached buildings were constructed in 1871 by Sir James N Douglas for Trinity House, London. The complex includes a lighthouse, engine house, boilerhouse, workshops, and houses, all arranged around a courtyard, with the lighthouse connected to the eastern range.

The lighthouse features a 75-foot tapered tower with square window openings and a window at the top on the south side to allow light for the entrance to the Wear. It has an overhanging walkway with iron railings surrounding a dome-topped lantern made of iron.

The engine house, boilerhouse, and workshops are located in the western one-storey range, which has a central door and three round-headed windows set in raised arches with keystones. There is also a garage door and a modern door inserted. The building has raised quoins and moulded kneelers that support the painted gable coping, along with two painted square end chimneys.

The south, east, and north ranges consist of two-storey houses, each containing two homes with projecting square porches that have five-panelled doors on the return. Each house front features three sash windows, with two additional windows in each west gable that connect to the one-storey block. The roof has overhanging eaves and is hipped, with two painted, corniced panelled chimneys on each ridge. A one-storey passage connects the lighthouse to the east range.

Historically, the lighthouse stands on Lizard Point, but it was named Souter Point to avoid confusion with the Cornish Lizard Lighthouse. It was the first lighthouse specifically built for electric illumination using carbon arc lamps, following experiments at Dungeness, and the original bi-focal lens is still in use.