St. Mary's Lighthouse (Explored 24th April 2013)
This will be my last posting from trip into Northumberland.
St. Mary's Island was originally called Bates Island, Hartley Bates or Bates Hill as it was originally owned by the Bates family who were prominent locally. It is sometimes known as Bait Island, probably due to a misunderstanding of the meaning of the name. The island is opposite Curry's Point on the mainland and is connected to the coast at low tide by a rocky causeway. The main feature of the island is St. Mary's Lighthouse which was built in 1898.
In medieval times there was a chapel on the island dedicated to St Helen. Within the chapel was the Lady Light, also known as St. Katherine's Light. The light was later, wrongly, ascribed to St. Mary and, as a result, the island became known as St. Mary's Island. It is debatable whether the light was used as a warning to shipping or was purely religious. Next to the chapel was a burial ground where monks and local people were interred. Traces of St. Helen's Chapel were destroyed when the lighthouse was built in 1898.
The timbers in the foreground are thought to be from an old loading stage.
St. Mary's Lighthouse (Explored 24th April 2013)
This will be my last posting from trip into Northumberland.
St. Mary's Island was originally called Bates Island, Hartley Bates or Bates Hill as it was originally owned by the Bates family who were prominent locally. It is sometimes known as Bait Island, probably due to a misunderstanding of the meaning of the name. The island is opposite Curry's Point on the mainland and is connected to the coast at low tide by a rocky causeway. The main feature of the island is St. Mary's Lighthouse which was built in 1898.
In medieval times there was a chapel on the island dedicated to St Helen. Within the chapel was the Lady Light, also known as St. Katherine's Light. The light was later, wrongly, ascribed to St. Mary and, as a result, the island became known as St. Mary's Island. It is debatable whether the light was used as a warning to shipping or was purely religious. Next to the chapel was a burial ground where monks and local people were interred. Traces of St. Helen's Chapel were destroyed when the lighthouse was built in 1898.
The timbers in the foreground are thought to be from an old loading stage.