Barns Ness Lighthouse is located 5 km from Dunbar and was constructed by engineer David A. Stevenson between 1899 and 1901. Taking approximately 2.5 years to construct, it was illuminated in October 1901 and was constructed from stone quarried from Craigree (near Cramond) and Barnton.
The stone proved resilient during the second world war, where the lighthouse was machine-gunned, yet sustained no damage.
The lighthouse had been manned by two lighthouse-keepers; however, in 1966 it was electrified, with a backup generator and emergency battery (used if the generator failed). It remained semi-automated, requiring only a single keeper, until 1986, when it was completely automated.
In early 2005, the UK and Ireland lighthouse authorities issued a consultation regarding a review of lighthouses, and it was decided that the Barns Ness Lighthouse was no longer needed. It was finally deactivated in October 2005.
Famous quotes containing the words barns, ness and/or lighthouse:
“I see before me now a traveling army halting,
Below a fertile valley spread, with barns and the orchards of summer,
Behind, the terraced sides of a mountain, abrupt, in places rising high,”
—Walt Whitman (1819–1892)
“Never stop fighting ‘til the fight is done.”
—David Mamet, U.S. screenwriter, and Brian DePalma. Elliot Ness (Kevin Costner)
“It is the cry of a thousand sentinels, the echo from a thousand labyrinths; it is the lighthouse which cannot be hidden.”
—E.M. (Edward Morgan)