Arranmore Lighthouse, County Donegal

Arranmore Lighthouse can be found in the Northwest corner of Arranmore island facing out into the wide Atlantic ocean. There has been a lighthouse here since 1798, but was decommissioned in 1832 with the opening of Tory Island lighthouse. It was opened again in 1859 thanks to a deluge of requests from mariners and featured a new 23 metre tall tower designed by the redoubtable Mr George Halpin, who made good use of the masonry from the old structure in the process. It was fitted with a second order dioptric removed from Rathlin O’Birne the previous year.

It’s proximity to the Atlantic Ocean mercantile corridor meant that the lighthouse was used as a World War II observation post, keeping a look out for U-Boats.  Arranmore (Árainn Mhór) is in the Irish speaking Gaeltacht area of Donegal and is less than 5 kilometres from the Donegal mainland coast. It’s combination of hills, rocky mountainsides and small lakes make this a popular holiday destination especially for those who like walking.

Mains electricity came to the island in the late nineteen sixties and a mains supply was completed to the Lighthouse in 1970. Conversion of the Lighthouse to automatic operation took place in 1976 and the Keepers were withdrawn on 1st August 1976

In the course of my research for this station I spotted a heading; “Arranmore Light yarn,” and I thought I had come across some juicy lighthouse gossip from days gone by. Instead I was introduced to the delights of a fine weight tweed yarn that is 80% merino wool, 10% cashmere and 10% silk. If knitting is your thing, you should look it up!

Location:    55°00.903′ North, 08°33.666′ West.

Elevation:   71 m

Character:  Fl (2) W 20s. Auxiliary Light Fl R 3s over Stag Rocks

Range:         50 km