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What a difference a coat
of paint can make!
Note also the addition of
the higher pole which has a green light on it which flashes in conjunction
with the channel markers.
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Designer :
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C. Y. O'Connor |
First Lit :
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July 20th 1903 |
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Tower structure
:
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Cast iron - painted green with classical details |
Tower Height
:
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15m |
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Elevation :
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m |
Range :
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11miles |
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Illuminating
apparatus :
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fixed green light |
Fuel :
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? |
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Light Character
:
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? |
Latitude :
Longitude: |
32 03.4S
115 43.9E |
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July 20th 2003 was the Centenary
of the first lighting of the South Mole Light with a white occulting light.
It was to be another week
before the South Mole Light would flash out its own green light which has
continued until today.
Centenary Celebrations : July 20 1903
- 2003
Beaconsfield Primary School
students became involved in making sure that the 100th birthday of the
South Mole Light would not be forgotten :)
As a school excursion the
Year 1/2 class and the Senior ILC class (Intensive Language Centre - where
students spend one year acquiring the English language before they move
on to their local Primary schools), joined to share in discovering
about lighthouses by first visiting the 'Beacons by the Sea Exhibition'
at the new Fremantle Maritime Museum and then visiting the South Mole Lighthouse.
Following the excursion, the students created a variety of arts works based on their observations of the South Mole Light
Aislinn |
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Lewis |
Chantal |
Nicole |
Ben |
| With the construction of
the Fremantle Harbour, there was a corresponding development in the installation
of permanent lights. As the Arthur Head was being demolished to make way
for the Arthur Head Battery, the stone was immediately used to build the
groynes to protect the harbour entrance. Initially, the North Mole was
constructed to a length that offered sufficient protection for the construction
of the South Mole, which was then the first to be ready for the installation
of its light tower.
Two identical cast iron towers, designed by C.Y. O'Connor, had already arrived in 1902. The South Mole light was lit in 1903, and immediately problems were noted. The Dioptric white occulting light of the four order was too powerful and caused confusion with the Woodman Point Leading Light, both of which were visible beyond Rottnest. The solution was to install a fixed green light on the South Mole. The North Mole light which had previously displayed a green light, would henceforth carry a fixed red light. |
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| Fremantle is known as the Gateway to Australia. The harbour still has the occasional Passenger Liner visit but you are more likely to see huge container ships or live sheep transport carriers passing through the harbour mouth. | During the war, an observation post was situated at the very end of the mole. You can still see the remaining buildings. Also visible are the cement slipways where the anti submarine nets would be lowered by steel cables to enable shipping to pass through the harbour. Once through, the nets would be winched back into place. |
The Fishing Boat Harbour, on the other side of the south mole, is the home base for a major fishing industry including prawns, sardines (pilchards) and crayfish.
Only able to see this
as a solo lighthouse page?
Check out the frames
version of Lighthouses of Western Australia.
Want to bookmark or reference
this particular lighthouse page?
use this url
www.upnaway.com/~obees/lights/metro/freosmole.htm