Cowan Cowan Point Light, was also known as Cowan Cowan Light or Cowan Point Light, was located on Cowan Cowan Point, on the western shore of

Moreton Island Moreton Island (Mulgumpin) is an island on the eastern side of Moreton Bay on the coast of South East Queensland, Australia. The Coral Sea lies on the east coast of the island. Moreton Island lies northeast of the Queensland capital, Brisbane. ...

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

History

The first settlement at the point was a

pilot station A pilot station is an onshore headquarters for maritime pilots, or a place where pilots can be hired from. To get from a pilot station to an approaching ship, pilots need to use fast vessels to arrive in time, i.e. a pilot boat. History Histor ...

, moved from Amity Point in August 1848. The pilot station was later moved to Bulwer. The first lighthouse was constructed in the early 1860s, a wooden tower. It carried a large kerosene burner with a reflector and showed a fixed white light. In 1867, together with the construction of the Comboyuro Point Light tower, the tower was extended to . In 1873 it was decided that the tower should be upgraded again. The new lighthouse was constructed in 1874 by the brothers John and Jacob Rooney of Maryborough, who had already constructed Sandy Cape Light in 1870. The Rooney brothers also constructed

Lady Elliot Island Light Lady Elliot Island Light is an active lighthouse located on Lady Elliot Island, the southernmost coral cay of the Great Barrier Reef, north-east of Bundaberg, Queensland, Australia. The lighthouse is located on the western side of the island. It ...

around the same time, and the same lantern plan was used for both lighthouses. They later constructed Cape Bowling Green Light in 1874, Cape Capricorn Light in 1875, and finally Booby Island Light in 1890. The apparatus was also upgraded and the old apparatus was installed on the old Comboyuro Point tower which was moved to

Burnett Heads Burnett Heads is a coastal town and locality in the Bundaberg Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Burnett Heads had a population of 2,908 people. Geography The locality of Burnett Heads is on the southern side of the Bur ...

and is now known as the Old Burnett Heads Light. The light was intensified in 1883 by installed condensing prisms. Further construction is reported in 1899, though no details exist.

Coastal erosion Coastal erosion is the loss or displacement of land, or the long-term removal of sediment and rocks along the coastline due to the action of Wind wave, waves, Ocean current, currents, tides, wind-driven water, waterborne ice, or other impacts ...

problems were reported as early as 1898. In 1901 the tower and the cottage were moved inland to protect them from the aforementioned erosion. A 1909 listing describes the tower as a wooden tower, carrying a fixed fourth order

dioptric Dioptrics is the branch of optics dealing with refraction, especially by lenses. In contrast, the branch dealing with mirrors is known as ''catoptrics''. Telescopes that create their image with an objective that is a convex lens ( refractors) are ...

apparatus. The light was showing red and white sectors and was visible for . In 1909 the pilot station at Bulwer was closed except for a remaining signal station. In 1912 this signal station was moved to Cowan Cowan. For part of its lifetime, the signal station was operated by the Cowan Cowan light keeper. In 1950 the light was converted to acetylene gas, automated, and demanned. The '' List of Lights'' lists an active light at the site, a square metal tower, which also serves as a

daymark A daymark is a navigational aid for sailors and maritime pilot, pilots, distinctively marked to maximize its visibility in daylight. The word is also used in a more specific, technical sense to refer to a signboard or daytime identifier that ...

, with orange yellow squares on the northwest and southwest faces. The light, displayed at a focal height of , is a flash every two seconds, white, red or green, depending on the direction (Fl.W.R.G. 2s), visible for . Green is shown on 345°−016°30′, red is shown on 016°30′−048°30′, 055°−132° and 141°−188° while white is displayed on 048°30′−055° and 132°−141°. The light is partially obscured by trees on 165°−188°.

References

{{authority control Lighthouses completed in 1874 Lighthouses in Queensland South East Queensland 1874 establishments in Australia

History

See also

References