Dennis Head Old Beacon

Dennis Head Old Beacon

Dennis Head Old Beacon is a ruined lighthouse on the island of North Ronaldsay, Orkney, Scotland. It featured on the 2006 BBC television series Restoration Village finishing in third place. The beacon and keepers' houses are protected as category A listed buildings.^[1]

The 70-foot (21 m) tower was completed in 1789 under the supervision of Thomas Smith assisted by his stepson Robert Stevenson. It was to be the first of many island lighthouses for Smith (he had previously worked on the lights at Kinnaird Head and Mull of Kintyre). Its lighting system, although advanced for its time, consisting of a cluster of oil-burning lamps and reflectors was not very effective, often being mistaken for the mast-head of another ship by mariners and was removed in 1809. A new lighthouse was built in 1854.

References

1. ^ "North Ronaldsay, Dennis Head Beacon, Including Remains Of Keepers' Houses: Listed Building Report". Historic Scotland. http://hsewsf.sedsh.gov.uk/hslive/portal.hsstart?P_HBNUM=5891. Retrieved 2011 october 29. 

External links

• "Third Place in Restoration Village - BBC website". http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/programmes/restoration/2006/scotland_dennis_head_old_beacon_01.shtml. Retrieved 2011 October 29. 
• "Beacon places North Ronaldsay in the national spotlight - Orkney Today". http://www.orkneytoday.co.uk/news_item.asp?newsItem=321. ^{[dead link]}
• "Race to save an Orkney landmark - Scotsman". 4 August 2006. http://heritage.scotsman.com/places.cfm?id=1132192006. Retrieved 2011 October 29. 
• "The Old Beacon - North Ronaldsay". http://hodgers.com/northronaldsay/2006/08/the_old_beacon.shtml. Retrieved 2011 October 29. 

Coordinates: 59°23′7″N 2°22′7″W / 59.38528°N 2.36861°W / 59.38528; -2.36861