Telford Light, Dundee

Telford Beacon is a former harbour light located on Dundee Waterfront, constructed around 1834. It was built by James Leslie, working under the direction of Thomas Telford, originally serving as the leading light for the wharf situated between the King William IV dock and the tidal harbour.

The structure is a cylindrical sandstone tower with an ashlar shaft built in long, narrow courses. Architectural details include a stepped base course, a dog-toothed band course, and a cornice. The sandstone tower is topped by a castellated parapet and a cast iron lantern, formerly capped with a dome. The light is now out of use, and the lantern glass has been removed.

Telford Beacon's construction occurred as part of a wider development of four large docks and associated shipbuilding facilities in Dundee, commencing with improvements to the harbour designed by Thomas Telford in 1815. Consultations with James Leslie led to the construction of the King William IV dock and its tidal harbour in 1825, followed by the adjacent Earl Grey Dock in 1834, and then the Camperdown and Victoria Docks in 1865 and 1875 respectively.

The beacon is depicted as a fixed red harbour light on the Ordnance Survey First Edition map (surveyed 1860-62, published 1865) and Second Edition map (surveyed 1901, published 1903), originally positioned on the west side of the entrance to the King William IV dock. The lantern was replaced in the 1880s.

The light remained operational until the King William IV dock was infilled in the 1960s, during the construction of the Tay Road Bridge and associated roadways. Although the dock was filled, the beacon remained in place, albeit inactive.

In 2011, Telford Beacon was relocated a short distance east along the shoreline, to a new site overlooking the River Tay, as part of the Dundee Waterfront regeneration project (under listed building consent: 10/00322/LBC). The entire structure was lifted and transported upright to its new location.