NEW ZEALAND LIGHTHOUSES

Taoaroa Head

Marking the entrance to Otago Harbour, is Taiaroa Head lighthouse.

It was not uncommon during the 1850's for ships to spend days searching for the harbour entrance and the Otago Provincial Council recognized the importance of lights so in 1863 appointed James Balfour as Provincial Marine Engineer. It was not before time as in 1860 only 60 vessels had arrived at the port but by 1863 this had increased to 983. Balfour arrived from Scotland later in 1863 with both the lantern for Taiaroa Head and Cape Saunders.

James Balfour immediately set to work designing his first lighthouse for the council at Taiaroa Head. In 1864 a contract was let to Dunedin builder Hugh Calder at a cost of £3150. Calder was to complete the tower and attached house in only six months. Built from stone quarried locally and lined with kauri timber the light was ready to be lit on 2 January, 1865. The original light was red to distinguish itself from the proposed light at Cape Saunders.

Due to the Russian invasion scare of 1885, Armstrong retractable guns were proposed for the site. Initially the lighthouse was to be moved further up the hill to accommodate the gun sites but as this was deemed to costly the guns were placed nearby. But by this time the tensions between the British and Russians had eased and the scare was over. The guns were only ever test fired and on these occasions they cracked the lantern room windows. The guns were again manned during the two world wars.

By the 1890's quite a settlement had arisen near the lighthouse. The harbour board had a manned signal station and the captain and crew of the pilot boats lived nearby. The Justice Department built a small prison at the heads in the 1870's  and the guns had been manned since the 1880's. An estimate of the population at the time was over one hundred and a resident school teacher was appointed for the area.

In 1921 the Marine Department withdrew the keepers and the light was operated by signalmen employed by the Otago Harbour Board. The lighthouse was officially transferred to the harbour board on 1 December 1976, then to Port Otago Ltd in 1989. The light is now automated and monitored by signalmen from the signal station nearby.

Taiaroa Head also had a fog station and both the lighthouse and fog station are now listed with the New Zealand Historic Places Trust.

DIRECTIONS:

From Dunedin, take Andersons Bay Road, then Portobello Road out to the Otago Peninsula. 

Situated within the Royal Albatross colony, the lighthouse is observable from the car park and Albatross viewing areas.

Text and photographs. Copyright © 1999-2005 Mark Phillips. All rights reserved.