- Mull of Galloway
-
Coordinates: 54°38′06″N 4°51′23″W / 54.635083°N 4.856336°W
Mull of Galloway Scottish Gaelic: Maol nan Gall
Lighthouse on the Mull of Galloway
Mull of Galloway shown within Dumfries and GallowayOS grid reference NX158303 Council area Dumfries and Galloway Lieutenancy area Wigtownshire Country Scotland Sovereign state United Kingdom Post town STRANRAER Postcode district DG9 Dialling code 01776 Police Dumfries and Galloway Fire Dumfries and Galloway Ambulance Scottish EU Parliament Scotland UK Parliament Dumfries and Galloway Scottish Parliament Galloway and Upper Nithsdale List of places: UK • Scotland • The Mull of Galloway (Scottish Gaelic: Maol nan Gall, pronounced [mɯːlˠ̪ nəŋ kaulˠ̪]) (grid reference NX158303) is the southernmost point of Scotland. It is situated in Wigtownshire, Dumfries and Galloway.
A lighthouse is positioned at the point 54°38′06.30″N 04°51′22.81″W / 54.635083°N 4.8563361°W. Built in 1830 by engineer Robert Stevenson, the white-painted round tower is 26 metres (85 ft) high. The light is 99 metres (325 ft) above sea level and has a range of 28 nautical miles (52 km).[1]
During World War 2, a French member of the British Air Transport Auxiliary (ATA), Cladius Echallier, died by striking the Lighthouse in a Beaufighter, while making a low landfall from the Irish Sea. [2]
The Mull has one of the last remaining sections of natural coastal habitat on the Galloway coast and as such supports a wide variety of plant and animal species. It is now a nature reserve managed by the RSPB. Mull means rounded hill or mountain.
The lighthouse is now automatic, and an old outhouse has been converted into a visitor centre, run by the South Rhins Community Development Trust (a group of local people and businesses). In the summer, the lighthouse is open by the Trust every weekend between 10:00 am and 4:00 pm; an additional day, Monday, is added to these opening times during July and August. There is a minimal charge for entry. In 2004 a new café was built at the Mull of Galloway, called the "Gallie Craig". Its design incorporates into the landscape with a turf roof, giving views across to Ireland and South to the Isle of Man.
References
- ^ http://www.nlb.org.uk/ourlights/Mull%20of%20Galloway%20leaflet.pdf
- ^ The Forgotten Pilots, Lettice Curtis, Page 153
External links
Places in the Rhins of Galloway, Scotland North to SouthKirkcolm • Cairnryan • Leswalt • Stranraer • Castle Kennedy • Lochans • Portpatrick • Stoneykirk • Sandhead • Ardwell • Port Logan • Kirkmaiden • Drummore • Mull of Galloway • ClachanmoreCategories:- Places in the Rhins
- Headlands of Scotland
- Listed lighthouses in Scotland
- Wigtown
- Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Wigtown and Stewartry
- Royal Society for the Protection of Birds reserves in Scotland
- Dumfries and Galloway geography stubs
- Lighthouse stubs
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.