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Roman Rock Lighthouse
Lighthouse in False Bay, near Simon's Town, South Africa From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Roman Rock Lighthouse is a lighthouse in False Bay, near Simon's Town. It is the only lighthouse in South Africa built on a single rock.[1][2]
The light was first exhibited on 16 September 1861.[3]
The light was electrified in 1992 at the request of the South African Navy.[4]
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History
Designed by Alexander Gordon of the British Lighthouse Authority,[5] the lighthouse was a difficult endeavor due to the harsh conditions of the area, with fierce winds and turbulent seas, limited construction to a mere 96 working days annually, stretching the build over four-year.[4] The original lighting mechanism was designed by James De Ville, a London-based lamp manufacturer, and consisted of a revolving platform that carried eight single-wick oil burners set in polished metallic reflectors. These burners made a full rotation every four minutes.[5] John Williams served as the first head lighthouse keeper, overseeing a small team of two other men that rotated shifts every seven days.[5] In 1914 the lighting mechanism was replaced and the tower was no longer staffed by lighthouse keepers,[4] replaced by an acetylene gas cylinders that provided automatic flashes every six seconds.[5] The lighting mechanism was updated again in 1992 to be electrical at the request of the South African Navy.[4]
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