PHOTO GALLERY
BUILT HERITAGE
BUILT HERITAGE
LIGHTHOUSE
Created by Gail Hussey-Weir
December 2020; updated October 2022
Created by Gail Hussey-Weir
December 2020; updated October 2022
Subject: Bell Island Lighthouse
Location: Eastern end of Bell Island at point of land called "Eastern Head."
Construction material: Wood
Date of Construction: 1st built in 1940; rebuilt in 1966; rebuilt in new location in 2004
Dates of operation: 1940 to present
Date of Destruction: Still in operation
History: In 1896, it was noted that Bell Island was in need of a lighthouse, no doubt because of the large ore carriers that were entering Conception Bay since iron mining had begun in 1895. It was not until September 1940 that the first lighthouse was constructed. That lighthouse was powered by storage batteries that each lasted about a year. A duplex lightkeepers' residence was built next to it at that time. In the 1950s, a power line was built to the lighthouse.
Apparently the original lighthouse (cone-shaped, pictured below) blew over the cliff about 1966(?) and was replaced that year by a combined lighthouse and fog alarm building. It was a one-storey, flat-roofed, rectangular structure with a square tower on one corner. A new lightkeeper's detached residence was built at the same time. The station was reduced to a one-person operation in 1980, at which time the old duplex residence was removed.
By 2004, erosion was becoming a problem with the point of land on which the lighthouse was located, so it and the residence were moved a few hundred meters west of the old location. The lighthouse is still manned, but the residence was no longer being used. In 2014, Tourism Bell Island obtained Federal and Provincial funding to refurbish the house to become a seasonal tourist information centre and restaurant.
Sources: Addison Bown, "Newspaper History of Bell Island"; website "lighthousefriends.com" accessed Oct. 2, 2022; website "www.releases.gov.nl.ca/releases/2014/ibrd/0627n07.aspx" accessed 2/6/2019; other sources sited below with images.
Location: Eastern end of Bell Island at point of land called "Eastern Head."
Construction material: Wood
Date of Construction: 1st built in 1940; rebuilt in 1966; rebuilt in new location in 2004
Dates of operation: 1940 to present
Date of Destruction: Still in operation
History: In 1896, it was noted that Bell Island was in need of a lighthouse, no doubt because of the large ore carriers that were entering Conception Bay since iron mining had begun in 1895. It was not until September 1940 that the first lighthouse was constructed. That lighthouse was powered by storage batteries that each lasted about a year. A duplex lightkeepers' residence was built next to it at that time. In the 1950s, a power line was built to the lighthouse.
Apparently the original lighthouse (cone-shaped, pictured below) blew over the cliff about 1966(?) and was replaced that year by a combined lighthouse and fog alarm building. It was a one-storey, flat-roofed, rectangular structure with a square tower on one corner. A new lightkeeper's detached residence was built at the same time. The station was reduced to a one-person operation in 1980, at which time the old duplex residence was removed.
By 2004, erosion was becoming a problem with the point of land on which the lighthouse was located, so it and the residence were moved a few hundred meters west of the old location. The lighthouse is still manned, but the residence was no longer being used. In 2014, Tourism Bell Island obtained Federal and Provincial funding to refurbish the house to become a seasonal tourist information centre and restaurant.
Sources: Addison Bown, "Newspaper History of Bell Island"; website "lighthousefriends.com" accessed Oct. 2, 2022; website "www.releases.gov.nl.ca/releases/2014/ibrd/0627n07.aspx" accessed 2/6/2019; other sources sited below with images.
The page below with images and history of Bell Island's first lighthouse is from the Submarine Miner, V. 2, No. 1, January 1955.
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The photo on the right shows the first version of the lighthouse under construction in 1940. Photo courtesy of Colin Hann. |
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Some of the Lighthouse Keepers who have served Bell Island, L-R: John Flynn, 1940-68; Tom Brazil, 1962-86; and Bill Clarke, 1978-2001. Photos of the portraits courtesy of Mike Phelan.
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Fred O'Brien, Sr. served as a Lighthouse Keeper for about 16 years from the 1960s to the 80s. Photo courtesy of Glenda O'Brien.
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The photo below is of a painting by Patricia Brazil McIsaac, painted c.2011 (from an earlier photo). It shows the 1966 lighthouse on the right and the 1966 dwelling on the left. The duplex in the middle was part of the original 1940 construction and was removed in 1980.
The image below is of a painting by Joe Dwyer of the 1966-2004 lighthouse location, looking from east to southwest. His narrative regarding the lighthouse reads: The first Bell Island Lighthouse, located on the most easterly part of the Island at Eastern Head, began operation September 1, 1940. During peak production at the now defunct Wabana Ore Mines, its beacon guided approximately 225 ore carriers yearly into Conception Bay. The erection of the present (written in 2001) structure was in 1966. Focal HT above HW is 172.9 feet., light source 500 watt, flash 1 second, eclipse 5 seconds, fog horn blast 3 seconds, silence 27 seconds. The first Keeper was John Flynn. The Keeper from 1983 to 2001 was Bill Clarke. Researched and written by Joe Dwyer.
Below is a 2001 image of another painting by Joe Dwyer, this time showing the single keeper's residence, the duplex keepers' residence and the lighthouse, looking towards the northeast. Baccalieu Island is barely visible on the horizon behind the light.
By 2004, erosion was becoming a problem with the point of land on which the lighthouse was located, so it and the residence were moved a few hundred meters west of the old location. The lighthouse is still manned, but the residence was no longer being used. In 2014, Tourism Bell Island obtained Federal and Provincial funding to refurbish the residence to become a seasonal tourist information centre and restaurant, which is now called "The Keeper's Cafe." The photo of the lighthouse below was taken by Gail Hussey-Weir in October 2020. The deck of the Keeper's Cafe is on the right.
The photo of the former Keeper's Residence below, now refurbished as the Keeper's Cafe, was taken by Harvey Weir in July 2014.
