Portland, Dorset - Old Lighthouse & new - Dennis postcard c.1970s

Postcard
• Picture / Image:  Old and New Lighthouses, Portland Bill, Portland, Dorset
• Publisher:  Dennis (W 0604)
• Postally used:  yes
• Stamp:  3p ultramarine Machin
• Postmark(s):  Weymouth 7 Aug 1972 wavy line
• Sent to:  Upper Bank Works, Pentrechwyth, Swansea
• Notes / condition:  small pinhole and slight corner wear

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Text from the free encyclopedia WIKIPEDIA may appear below to give a little background information (internal links may not  work) :

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The Old Lower Lighthouse is a disused lighthouse on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England. The lighthouse is situated close to the currently functioning Portland Bill Lighthouse, and found along the eastern side of Portland Bill. The lighthouse, including its boundary walls and coastguard house, became Grade II Listed in September 1978.^[1]

The Old Lower Lighthouse was opened on 29 September 1716 and had been rebuilt two times since, once in 1789 and again in 1869. It worked in tandem with the nearby Old Higher Lighthouse, which was built at the same time. The Old Lower Lighthouse was the first lighthouse in the world to use a true lenses. The remaining rebuilt version of the lighthouse seen today was built in 1869. Since 1961 the lighthouse has been the home of the Portland Bird Observatory.

The rocky promontory of Portland Bill is regarded as one of the greatest navigational hazards in the Channel. A treacherous race, which can run at 10 knots in spring tidal streams, are created as tide and current clash as they round it. The dangers are worsened by the Shambles, which is a two mile long sandbank that lies south-east of Portland Bill and whose depth reaches a mere 11 feet in two places at low tide. The Bill is still an important way-point for coastal traffic, and three lighthouses have been built to protect shipping, in particular from its strong tidal race and shallow reef.

In 1669, Sir John Clayton, a London speculator, made the first recorded proposal for a lighthouse at Portland Bill. This linked to a time when the value of commercial shipping rose after the Civil War, and the loss of many ships on Portland's coastline was causing further alarm. However a lighthouse at the Bill was not purely to save vessels, as profits could be made from the light dues levied on passing vessels. Clayton applied for a Crown Patent for a building which was to show one light above another in the same tower. However the construction and maintenance of a lighthouse in remote locations was expansive, and so Clayton's proposal was abandoned.^[2]

In 1702 Charles Langrishe and Captain William Holman saw the opportunity to raise funds for the area, and at the same time protect shipping from natural hazards along the coast. With support from various shipowners and the Weymouth Corporation, they petitioned William III for a lighthouse that year. However the King died before any Patent was granted. Trinity House had rejected the petition initially, as they did not believe a light at the Bill was needed, however Langrishe and co continued to push for a lighthouse for several years. It took 14 years for Langrishe and Holman to get Trinity House to concede that Portland Bill posed a threat to vessels. In 1716, at a rental of £100 a year, a 61 year lease was signed entitling them to erect ""one or more lighthouses with good lights to be kept continually there in the night season"". The Patent was not granted till 26 May 1716, but construction had already commenced before then. The first coal-fired lights shone on 29 September 1716.^[3] Langrishe, who became one of the Patentees, built the twin lighthouses at the Bill. The reason for the two separate towers was to give a clear bearing by day and by night for passage past Bill Point and the Shambles Sandbank.^[4]

Christopher Comben, a Portlander, became one of the lighthouse keepers in 1721, and this was the start of a family connection with the lighthouses that lasted until 1906. The various generations of Combens would become keepers themselves. However operation of the lighthouses was not an easy task, and coal had to be hauled from the east side of the island, made further difficult as there were no tracks to the Bill. The Comben family had the job of hauling the coal across fields from the village of Easton.^[5] It was stockpiled into a near field, which became known as Coal Lands. The new lights greatly aided vessels around the Bill, however reports had been made to Trinity House that the lighthouses were not always lit. In both the Old Lower and Higher Lighthouse's early period of functioning, the lights were badly kept, sometimes not lit at all, and in 1752 an inspection was made by two members of the Board of Trinity House who approached by sea to find ""it was nigh two hours after sunset before any light appeared in either of the lighthouses"". Trinity House terminated the lease and the lights reverted back to them.^[6]

In 1788 Trinity House decided that both lighthouses were no longer adequate, and hired Weymouth builder William Johns to rebuilt the Lower Lighthouse, at a cost of £2000. At the same time the Higher Lighthouse was fitted with oil lamps invented by the Frenchman Aimé Argand. The new Lower Lighthouse was a very elegant structure, with a 63 foot high tower, slender in design, and also featuring Gothic style doors and windows. Inside was a spiral staircase of Portland Stone which led up to the lantern house, around which was a narrow parapet. An inscription over the doorway read: ""For the direction and comfort of navigators for the benefit and security of commerce: A lasting memorial of British hospitality to all nations. This lighthouse was erected by the ancient corporation Trinity House of Deptford Strond in 1789. Distance from the cliff 1608 feet."" This plaque was later preserved in the 1906 Portland Bill Lighthouse.^[4]

The Lower Lighthouse was soon the chosen subject of an experiment by Trinity House, to house a special lens for direct glazing into lantern windows, which was being developed by Thomas Rogers. Following a string of successful low-light tests, the new lens were installed in copper frames around the lantern house, alternating with plane glass panels. The light from the 6 Argand lamps were concentrated into a series of fixed beams, reaching 18 miles on a clear night. This successful project meant that Portland in 1789 was the first lighthouse in the world to use a true lens.^[7]

Around the start of the 19th century, amidst fears of invasion from the French, the Lower Lighthouse was the location of two mounted cannons. 18 pounders were also situated at the Higher Lighthouse.^[8] Portland Bill had partly inspired the decision to create a harbour of refuge with the construction of Portland Harbour's breakwaters. Once the harbour was created, shipping movements past Portland Bill naturally increased, and dues from vessels passing the lighthouses tripled from the 1830 level of £3043. In 1856 the Lower Lighthouse received new equipment and keepers' accommodation which cost a total of £1000. That same year the Higher Lighthouse was raised by 15 feet to increase its range. However Trinity House were still not satisfied and decided in 1866 to completely rebuild both lighthouses, which was successful done in 1869. By this point oil for the lamps were brought over land from Castletown, as the sea conditions at the Bill had only allowed the Trinity House steamer to land supplies directly at the Bill twice in 20 years.^[9]

On 17 June 1903 a Committee was formed to treat with the Corporation of Trinity House for the acquisition of one acre, 66 poles of land at the Bill, for a new lighthouse.^[10] The group met in the George Inn to discuss plans for the new lighthouse. The Higher and Lower Lighthouses could not be adapted to take on the latest apparatus, and so Trinity House made plans to build a single lighthouse on Bill Point. By mid-1905 the builders, Wakeham Bros of Plymouth, had completed the high masonry tower, when Chance & Co of Birmingham arrived to hoist their great lantern to the top. The new lighthouse cost a total of £13,000, and included coastguard accommodation. Lighthouse keepers Taylor and Comben moved house from the old Lower Light and they lit the new lamp for the first time on 11 January 1906. From that point the Old Lower and Old Higher Lighthouses became disused.

The following year saw both lighthouses auctioned at the George Inn. They were advertised as ""Wonderfully suited for consumptives in winter, and convalescents in other seasons. In the fertile garden of the Lower Lighthouse potatoes are dug when people elsewhere are thinking of planting."" In the end the Higher Light sold for £405, and the Lower Light was withdrawn at £400.^[11]

After its decommission, the lamp room was removed, which later simply became an observation room. Some of the buildings that were surrounding the lamp room were also cleared.^[6] The lighthouse became a family home for a number of years after.^[12] The work on a road to Portland Bill commenced in 1922, and soon the once isolated part of Portland was accessible to visitors. The Bill soon became a popular tourist destination, and the Lower Lighthouse became the Longstone Ope Tea Rooms and Gardens, while a number of wooden huts were erected as cafes close to the new lighthouse. However it eventually reverted to private hands once again.^[13] After changing hands several times, the lighthouse and its buildings lay derelict and empty after the Second World War. The lamp room disappeared, paintwork flaked away and the entire structure lapsed into ruin. At one point during this time, plans were to convert it into an amusement arcade, however others thought differently.

During the 1950s, the studying of bird migration was becoming established on Portland, and for a decade the stalwarts had to endure temporary accommodation in caravans, the RN Wireless Station and even underground premises at Southwell, before the generosity of Miss Helen Brotherton allowed them to settle permanently at the lighthouse. In 1961 the lower lighthouse was officially opened by Sir Peter Scott as a bird observatory, where a year before it had been slightly modified and converted for this new use. The observatory became a registered charity and has continued ever since.^[14] The independent organisation caters for naturalists of all persuasions, whilst hostel-style accommodation in the Old Lower Lighthouse was made available for up to 24 guests at a time to enjoy the natural environment of Portland.^[15] The main accommodation is located in the lighthouse and annexe, whilst the adjoining self-contained lighthouse-keepers cottage holds up to four people.^[16] The observatory remains a favourite haunt for Bill Oddie.^[17]

The garden of the Lighthouse remains one of the few vegetated areas on the rocky part of the Portland Bill area and therefore attracts many species of birds, particularly smaller species, as the hedges provide a place for the birds to rest and feed on insects.^[18]

type=printed

city/ region=portland

period=post-war (1945 - present)

postage condition=posted

number of items=single

size=standard (140x89mm)