Offer Wadham Lighthouse

Lighthouse in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada

Lighthouse

49°35′36.3″N 53°45′46.7″W / 49.593417°N 53.762972°W / 49.593417; -53.762972TowerConstructed1858 (first)Constructionbrick and limestone encased in concrete tower (first)
steel skeletal tower (current)Automated1990sHeight12 metres (39 ft) (first)
6 metres (20 ft) (current)Shapeoctagonal tower lantern removed (first)
square towerMarkingsunpainted tower (first)Power sourcesolar power

OperatorCanadian Coast Guard ^[1]LightFirst lit1990s (current)Deactivated1990s (first)Focal height30.5 metres (100 ft)Range6 nautical miles (11 km; 6.9 mi)CharacteristicFl W 3s.

The Offer Wadham Lighthouse is an active lighthouse in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, was lit for the first time on October 4, 1858. It was built after many petitions were sent to the government arguing for a light on the island to help guide mariners. This arose especially after the "Spring of the Wadhams" in 1852, when more than 40 sealing vessels were crushed and abandoned in the ice near Offer Wadham Island and several crew members escaped by climbing over cliffs to find shelter.^[2]

Keepers

The first lighthouse keeper was Thomas Hennessey and his assistant was Edward Reddy. Charles Prowse was appointed keeper in November 1862 until 1901 and his assistants were William Hennessey, William Murphy, Peter Woods, and Robert Wellon. Other lighthouse keepers on the island were:^[3]

Thomas Hennessey 1857–1863
Charles Prowse 1863–1899
Elias Abbott 1899–1904
Stephen Abbot 1905–1908
William Pomeroy 1909–1916
James Ford Mouland 1916–1936
Arch Way, Walter Hicks at least 1941–at least 194)

Description

The lighthouse is described in the Newfoundland Almanac as a steady, fixed, white 4th-order dioptric burning on a circular brick tower at an arc of 360 degrees with a 2-wick concentric lamp. It was 100 feet (30 m) above sea level and could be seen at about 15 nautical miles (28 km; 17 mi).^[4]

References

^ Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of Canada: Southwestern Newfoundland". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved January 1, 2016.
^ Encyclopedia of Newfoundland and Labrador
^ Roland Abbott, A Brief History of the Offer Wadham Island: the Million Dollar Rock, 1994
^ The Newfoundland Almanac, 1860, 1865, and 1887