Duncannon Lighthouses

There are two lighthouses at Duncannon on the Wexford shore of the Waterford estuary, north of Hook Head.  Duncannon North Lighthouse operates with the leading light at Duncannon Fort, forming a transit to guide vessels over Duncannon Bar, a sandbar south of the fort in the River Suir. 

Duncannon Fort Lighthouse

Duncannon Fort Lighthouse is on the site of a castle dating back to the fifteenth century.  The first record of a lighthouse here dates to the 1770s, and in 1791, it was recorded that a new lighthouse was established in September of that year, though it is unclear what exactly it replaced.

Two lights were displayed in the tower: a fixed white and a fixed red light. A tide light was exhibited when the tide was at half-tide or less.

Duncannon North Lighthouse

A new lighthouse was established at Duncannon North in the 1830s following the decision to build a new lighthouse at Roche’s Point. After around only twenty years of operation, Roche’s Point Lighthouse was deemed insufficient, and as a result, it was dismantled in 1838 and relocated to Duncannon, and a new lighthouse at Roche’s Point was built.  

The lighthouse was established on 1 June 1838, forming a rear leading light with the Fort lighthouse. It originally operated using oil lamps and was converted to acetylene operation in 1937. It was converted to electric operation in May 1971 and decommissioned in 1991.

Duncannon North lighthouse was sold at auction in July 2011. The previous owner bought it around twenty years earlier from the Commissioners of Irish Lights when it was also sold at auction following decommissioning.

Duncannon Fort is open to the public, and guided tours are available.

If the tide is out, viewing both Duncannon North and Fort lighthouses from the beach is possible. Duncannon North Lighthouse can be viewed from the roadside near Arthurstown, but it is privately owned and not accessible to the public.