Lighthouses · South West England
Portland Bill Lighthouse
In or near Fortuneswell.
Portland Bill Lighthouse — lighthouse on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England, UK.
Wikimedia Commons contributors — see linked file page for photographer and licence licence
Plan your visit
- Typical visit
- 30 min–1 h
- Free entry
- Family-friendly
- Dog-friendly
Getting there & planning your visit
To visit Portland Bill Lighthouse, you can use the postcode DT5 2JT for sat-nav coordinates. Entry to the lighthouse is free.
About
Portland Bill Lighthouse is a working or historic lighthouse on the United Kingdom coast. Records date its origin to 1903. Heritage designation: Grade II listed building. Managed by Trinity House. Wikidata describes it as: "lighthouse on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England, UK". Coordinates: 50.5143°, -2.4564°.
Photo gallery
Heritage listing
Portland Bill Lighthouse is a functioning lighthouse at Portland Bill, on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England. The lighthouse and its boundary walls are Grade II Listed. As Portland Bill's largest and most recent lighthouse, the Trinity House operated Portland Bill Lighthouse is distinctively white and red striped, standing at a height of 41 metres (135 ft). It was completed by 1906 and first shone out on 11 January 1906.
From the Historic England List Entry under OGL v3.
Summary from the official site
Portland Bill Lighthouse, built in 1906, is a historic lighthouse located at the southern tip of Portland Bill. Visitors can explore the area, which includes the old lighthouses and a bird observatory, while learning about the lighthouse's significant maritime history and its role in guiding ships safely through the challenging waters.
Read more on the official property page.
Protected designations
- Site of Special Scientific Interest: Isle of Portland SSSI
Designations sourced from Natural England open data under OGL v3.
From the Wikipedia article
Portland Bill Lighthouse is a functioning lighthouse at Portland Bill, on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England. The lighthouse and its boundary walls are Grade II Listed. As Portland Bill's largest and most recent lighthouse, the Trinity House operated Portland Bill Lighthouse is distinctively white and red striped, standing at a height of 41 metres (135 ft). It was completed by 1906 and first shone out on 11 January 1906. The lighthouse guides passing vessels through the hazardous waters surrounding the Bill, while also acting as a waymark for ships navigating the English Channel.
Excerpt from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0. See the source article linked in Sources below.
Background
History
in the distance]] The two original lighthouses, now known as the Old Higher Lighthouse and Old Lower Lighthouse, operated as a pair of leading lights to guide ships between Portland Race and The Shambles sandbank. At the turn of the 20th-century, Trinity House put forward plans for building a new lighthouse at Bill Point. They acquired the required land in 1903. The builders, Wakeham Bros. of Plymouth, began work on the foundations in October 1903. Chance & Co of Birmingham supplied and fitted the lantern. A pressurised vapour paraffin lamp was used, placed at the centre of a large (first-order) revolving optic; weighing 3.5 tons, this was made up of four asymmetrical catadioptric lens…
Visiting
In 2019-2020 a new non-rotating LED light source was installed in the lantern room and a new omnidirectional fog signal was installed on the exterior lantern gallery (replacing the electric emitter installed in the 1990s). The two LED lanterns (one of which is used, the other kept on standby) have a reduced range of 18 nmi.
Sourced from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Coordinates
- 50.5143, -2.4564
- District
- Dorset
- Parish
- Portland
- Postcode
- DT5 2JT
- Parliamentary constituency
- South Dorset
- Phone
- +44 1255 245156
- Established
- 1903
- Opening
- unknown
- Official site
- www.trinityhouse.co.uk
Sources
- wikidata: Q2753005 (CC0)
- wikipedia: Portland Bill Lighthouse (CC BY-SA 4.0)
- commons: Portland Bill Lighthouse - geograph.org.uk - 1722508.jpg (CC BY-SA 4.0)
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Frequently asked questions
- Where is Portland Bill Lighthouse?
- Portland Bill Lighthouse is in South-East England, United Kingdom (postcode DT5 2JT), in the parish of Portland.
- What is Portland Bill Lighthouse?
- Portland Bill Lighthouse — lighthouse on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England, UK.
- How do I get to Portland Bill Lighthouse?
- Drivers can use postcode DT5 2JT.
- When was Portland Bill Lighthouse built?
- Built or established in 1903.
- Who runs Portland Bill Lighthouse?
- Portland Bill Lighthouse is operated by Trinity House.
- Is Portland Bill Lighthouse a listed building?
- Portland Bill Lighthouse is officially recognised as Grade II listed building listed.
- Is Portland Bill Lighthouse a protected site?
- Yes — Portland Bill Lighthouse is part of the Isle of Portland SSSI Site of Special Scientific Interest.
- Is Portland Bill Lighthouse free to visit?
- Yes, Portland Bill Lighthouse is free to enter.