Bulwer Island Light, also known as Bulwer Island Range Rear Light, is an inactive lighthouse that was on Bulwer Island, in the suburb of Pinkenba, City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. In 1983, it was moved to the Queensland Maritime Museum in South Brisbane.

Bulwer Island Light
Bulwer Island Lighthouse, at the Queensland Maritime Museum
Map
LocationBrisbane
Queensland
Australia
Coordinates27°28′54″S 153°01′36″E / 27.48158°S 153.02662°E / -27.48158; 153.02662 (Bulwer Island Light (museum site))
Tower
Constructed1909
Constructiontimber frame clad covered by corrugated iron
Height52 feet (16 m)
Shapecylindrical tower with balcony and lantern
Markingswhite tower, red lantern dome
OperatorQueensland Maritime Museum
Light
First lit1912
Deactivated1983

History edit

The station was established in 1909. The current light was lit in 1912, as the rear light of a pair of leading lights at the mouth of Brisbane River.[1] It was at the northern end of Bulwer Island on the eastern side directly adjacent to the river (27°23′41″S 153°09′01″E / 27.39462°S 153.15032°E / -27.39462; 153.15032 (Bulwer Island Light (active site))).[2] Made of hardwood frame clad with corrugated iron, it was the eight and last of its kind to be constructed, the first seven being Little Sea Hill Light, Grassy Hill Light, Goods Island Light, Bay Rock Light, Old Caloundra Head Light, North Point Hummock Light (demolished) and Gatcombe Head Light (demolished).[3] In 1983 the lighthouse was replaced by a skeletal tower, and relocated to the Queensland Maritime Museum. The original location was adjacent to the Bulwer Island oil refinery.[4]

The tower went through restoration in 2005, replacing timber and rotted windowsills. The ground level cover was also painted, and access was improved.[5]

Visiting edit

The Queensland Maritime Museum is located on the southern bank of the Brisbane River just south of the South Bank Parklands precinct of Brisbane, and close to the Goodwill Bridge. The museum is open daily[6] and the ground level of the lighthouse is open to visitors.[4]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "Bulwer Island Light - Lighthouse Explorer Database - Lighthouses at Lighthouse Depot". lighthousedepot.com. Archived from the original on 14 June 2011. Retrieved 28 November 2010.
  2. ^ "9543-32442 Lytton 42" (Map). Queensland Government. 1982. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  3. ^ "Caloundra Lighthouses (entry 602746)". Queensland Heritage Register. Queensland Heritage Council. Retrieved 13 July 2015.
  4. ^ a b Rowlett, Russ. "Lighthouses of Australia: Southern Queensland". The Lighthouse Directory. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Retrieved 14 November 2010.
  5. ^ Jack Duvoisin and Col Gladstone, Queensland Maritime Museum (July–August 2005). "Bulwer Island Lighthouse restoration work". Lighthouses of Australia Inc Bulletin. 8 (4). Archived from the original on 28 December 2010., note that Rowlett says 2004, but may relate to the day of the grant or to another restoration.
  6. ^ "QMMAWeb". maritimemuseum.com.au. Retrieved 28 November 2010.