History
The NLB was formed in 1786 as the Commissioners of Northern Light Houses by Act of Parliament, to oversee the construction and operation of four Scottish lighthouses; Kinnaird Head, North Ronaldsay, Scalpay and Mull of Kintyre. The Commissioners' most famous engineer was Robert Stevenson, whose sons David, Alan, and Thomas followed their father into the profession. The Stevenson dynasty built the majority of the Northern lights, in some exceptionally challenging locations. Their lights were some of the engineering masterpieces of their time, notably those at Bell Rock, Skerryvore and Muckle Flugga.
Between 1876 and 2005 the NLB also maintained foghorns at a number of locations. The last (at Skerryvore) was sounded for the last time on 4 October 2005.
Read more about this topic: Northern Lighthouse Board
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“This above all makes history useful and desirable: it unfolds before our eyes a glorious record of exemplary actions.”
—Titus Livius (Livy)
“the future is simply nothing at all. Nothing has happened to the present by becoming past except that fresh slices of existence have been added to the total history of the world. The past is thus as real as the present.”
—Charlie Dunbar Broad (1887–1971)
“History takes time.... History makes memory.”
—Gertrude Stein (1874–1946)