Roche's Point Lighthouse, Maritime navigation beacon at Cork Harbour entrance, Ireland
Roche's Point Lighthouse is a circular masonry tower 15 metres high, with a lantern and gallery, painted white along with its adjacent buildings and enclosed by a stone wall. It stands on a headland on the east side of the entrance to Cork Harbour. The tower is not open to visitors, though the site is reached by road.
The current structure was built in 1835 to replace an earlier, smaller tower at the same location. The new design included advanced lighting systems with reflectors and oil lamps that significantly improved navigation safety.
The lighthouse's Irish name is Rinn an Róistigh, and its white-painted compound walls and buildings are kept white for daytime visibility. The last keeper, Jim Power, stayed on as attendant after automation in 1995. On 4 June 2017, an open day marking the bicentenary drew 1,500 visitors who climbed to the balcony, with former keepers present.
The site is reached by road on the headland east of the Cork Harbour entrance, and the grounds stay open while the tower itself is not open to visitors. The light was automated in 1995, and the fog signal was discontinued on 11 January 2011. The headland is exposed, so expect wind and rain.
The second-order Fresnel lens fitted in 1876 is still in use. When the light was upgraded in 2018, the new LED bulb was placed at its centre rather than replacing the lens, as happens at many other lighthouses. The landward side of the beam is unintensified so it does not disturb people on shore.
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