Tŵr Mawr Lighthouse

Tŵr Mawr lighthouse (meaning "great tower" in Welsh), on Ynys Llanddwyn on Anglesey, Wales, marks the western entrance to the Menai Strait.

Tŵr Mawr Lighthouse

Tŵr Mawr lighthouse
Location	Ynys Llanddwyn Anglesey Wales United Kingdom
Coordinates	53.135165°N 4.415574°W / 53.135165; -4.415574
Tower
Constructed	1845
Construction	stone tower
Height	11 metres (36 ft)
Shape	massive conical tower and roof
Markings	white tower
Operator	Llanddwyn Island National Nature Reserve
Heritage	Grade II listed building
Light
Deactivated	1975
Focal height	25 metres (82 ft)
Range	7 nautical miles (13 km; 8.1 mi)

History

The 1873 tower is tapered in a style characteristic of Anglesey windmills. It is 33 feet (10 m) high and 18 feet (5.5 m) in diameter. It may have been constructed by an Anglesey stone mason, and it is possible that the tower itself was originally used as a windmill.

The lantern and fittings cost £250 7s 6d, including the adaptation of an "earlier tower". The north-east door is flanked by small windows, and the two floors above also have small windows, but the top does not. The conical roof is slated and has a flagpole. The present lantern window is about 6 feet 6 inches (1.98 m) by 2 feet (0.61 m). The optic, silver-plated reflector and Fresnel lens are dated 1861 and were used into the 1970s. The lantern was originally lit by six Argand lamps with reflectors.

A smaller, conical tower, with a domed top, is located to the south-east, and may be an earlier structure. The walls are 6 feet 8 inches (2.03 m) in radius and 3 feet (0.91 m) thick, with a door to the north-west, and show signs of cracking to the rubble-filled walls on the west.

Neither tower is shown on the chart of Lewis Morris, dated 1800, but they both appear on the Ordnance Survey 1818-1823 2 inches/mile map. They both probably originated as unlit markers. The cottages nearby have been used as craft workshops, and the local community here once serviced pilot-boats and lifeboats.

See also

• List of lighthouses in Wales