Southerness Lighthouse

Picturesque Southerness Lighthouse stands at the foot of the old part of Southerness village. This is the oldest surviving complete lighthouse in Scotland and was once home to the lighthouse keeper night after night, as he ensured safety from the perils of the Solway’s rocks and sands.

The lighthouse was completed in 1748 and would have been a familiar sight for the young John Paul Jones growing up at Arbigland. The sand and rocks of the Barnhouries off Southerness were especially dangerous, and the subject of folk tales such as ‘The Mermaid of Barnhourie’. The lighthouse was maintained until 1867, but the subsequent lack of it resulted in a horrendous series of shipping losses until Georgina Blackett of Arbigland (a great aunt of the previous owner), raised £250 to re-install the light. Inside the lighthouse there is a steep wooden staircase leading up to the light, where you will find spectacular views of the Solway Firth.