Southwold lighthouse

Construction of the lighthouse began in 1887, led by Sir James Douglass, Engineer in Chief of Trinity House. A light was lit on a temporary structure in February 1889 and the lighthouse itself began operating on 3 September 1890. The light was initially powered by a six-wick Argand oil burner; it displayed a group occulting characteristic (the light being eclipsed twice every 20 seconds) and had a visible range of 17 nmi. The light was white, but shone red across defined sectors to the north and to the south (indicating the Barnard sands and Sizewell Bank respectively); in addition, 'spare' light, which would otherwise have shone needlessly westwards, was diverted by way of vertical…

The lighthouse is 31 m tall, standing 37 m above sea level. It is built of brick and painted white, and has 113 steps around a spiral staircase. Two keeper's cottages were built next to the lighthouse rather than living quarters being made in the lighthouse itself. Guided visits are, from 2023, run by the Adnams brewery, which stands nearby, and may be booked via that company's website. The lighthouse was the site of charity abseil events in 2009, 2011 and 2013. The events raised money for the Southwold lifeboat operated by the RNLI from Southwold harbour.