East Coast

Place of the lighthouse

The Buchan Ness Lighthouse is located near the coastal village of Boddam in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is 47 km north of Aberdeen and 5 km south of Peterhead. Sea cliffs rise to 61 meters, south of the village. A coastal path leads along these to the Bullers of Buchan. Bullers of Buchan refers both to a collapsed sea cave and to the adjacent village. The small hamlet of cottages here is also known by the same name, and was historically a fishing village launching small boats from the bay. The slipway may still be seen at low tide.

The cliffs at the Bullers provide a nesting site in spring for colonies of seabirds, including kittiwakes, puffins, fulmars, shags, razorbills and guillemots along with herring gulls and great black-backed gulls. Eider ducks may also be seen here, and gannets are frequently seen passing en route to their colonies north at Troup Head and south at Bass Rock. Grey seals may be seen in the bay, and dolphins are often seen passing by offshore.

For centuries, the area around the Buchan Ness headland was the departure point from which trading and whaling voyages departed, en route to Archangel, Greenland and Spitsbergen, among others.

The Lighthouse

Petitions were received by the Commissioners in 1819 from the Magistrates, town Councils and Harbour trustees of Peterhead, to have a lighthouse erected on Buchan Ness or any more eligible part of the coast. The area was surveyed by Robert Stevenson, Engineer to the former Board, who decided on the present position oposite of the village Boddam. It was not, however, until 1827 that the light was first exhibited.

By order of Robert Stevenson, the island on which the lighthouse stands was connected to the mainland by a wooden bridge with nine spans of about 7 meters. The bridge was about 5.5 meters high and 2.5 meter wide and was erected by John Gibb for £200.

The original tower had the color of the natural stone used, but his grandson David later (1907) commissioned a central red band to be painted on the 35 meter long white tower, so that the lighthouse could also be used as a day marker.

The tower is constructed from large blocks of local granite and stands 35 metres in height. The gallery around the top of the tower is decorated in a neoclassical style, similar to the Egyptian style as used at Ardnamurchan Point and Covesea Skerry. However, this style has not been implemented in the other buildings around the lighthouse. John Gibb of Aberdeen was the contractor responsible for the building of Buchan Ness.

A semi-circular building has been placed on the west side of the tower at the base of the tapering granite tower. This building has 5 windows and is equipped with a cornice and an access door from the outside of the complex, but can also be reached directly from the lighthouse keepers' homes.

On each side of the lighthouse is a lighthouse keeper's house, each with 2 octagonal chimneys and a flat roof. The doorways have flat lintels. There is a window next to both sides of the door. On the other side of these houses, a high wall has been placed, creating a courtyard and protecting it from the wind.

Warning systems (Light, Fog horn, Radar Beacon)

The 'twinkling' light installed by Robert Stevenson in 1827, produced by a series of Argand burners with silver-plated copper reflectors that rotated faster than any other light, was a success. In 1879 Lord Kelvin considered it one of the three best flashing lights in the world.

Since 1827 there have been many changes to the lighting supply. In 1910 a diopter lens was installed. The dome had to be expanded for this. Later the light intensity was increased from 6,500 to 786,000 candela. In 1978 the lantern was converted to an electric light and electric control, with the light intensity increased to 2,000,000 candela. The lighthouse was automated in 1988 and is now remotely monitored from the Board’s headquarters in Edinburgh.

In 2013, the lighthouse was redesigned and the lighting was modernized, including two (Biform) LED lamps. The original lens carriage and machine housing are retained, but the 1970s lens bulls have been replaced. This was due to compliance with European Union guidelines requiring the removal of the mercury bath on which the lens rotates. The new lamps use much less power (about 80 watts) and will be seen as a whiter light. The range has also been reduced during this renovation, from 29 NM to 18 NM ~ 33.3 km.

The foghorn was nicknamed Boddam Coo (cow) and no longer sounds. It was installed in 1904 and gave three explosions every ninety seconds. Before the installation, Boddamers hit tin basins with spoons to warn sailors in the fog of the dangers on the coast. The fog horn was reequipped in 1978 and discontinued in 2000.

A RACON (RAdar beaCON) replaced the fog horn at the Lighthouse in 2000, although the remains of the foghorn are still in place. The fog horn which is seen today replaced an earlier one, which like other fog horns picked up a nickname; The Buchan Coo. This RACON, which aids vessels during weather in which the light can not be seen, transmits a signal with a distinctive character, which enables the vessel to gain an idea of location; it is mounted on the gallery above the Emergency Light, which is formed of several LED units.

Operational status

Today, the Lighthouse remains fully functional and is remotely controlled from Edinburgh, whilst the Keeper's Houses, which are now surplus to the requirements of the Northern Lighthouse Board have been sold off to private owners who rent the cottages as holiday accommodation.

Actual use of the Lighthouse buildings

The lighthouse cottages, called Skerry Cottage, have been converted into comfortable modern accommodation who have maintained the traditional look of a lighthouse keeper’s cottage. There are two bedrooms with one having a king size bed whilst there are twin beds in the second bedroom. The lounge has a romantic open fireplace and there is a modern fitted kitchen. The bathroom has a bath and shower.

Additional information

Being so close to Peterhead, it is inevitable that Boddam tends to be overshadowed by it. This wasn't always so: a map produced in the 1600s showed Boddam to be larger than its northern neighbour. Just to the south stood Boddam Castle, built by the Keiths of Ludquharn in the 1500s. The most notable early member of the family to be born at Boddam Castle was Sir William Keith (1669-1749), who went on to become Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania and Delaware (USA).

Today only fragmentary ruins remain of Boddam Castle. The headland location chosen by the Keiths for their castle was guarded by the start of the cliffs that run for five miles south west from here to Slains Castle and Cruden Bay. About half way along this stretch of cliffs is the Bullers of Buchan, a collapsed sea cave forming an almost circular pot and an arch.

Boddam's early development was largely due to the shelter afforded by Buchan Ness, which made it an attractive base for fishing boats. This led to a short-lived fishing station being established here by the Dutch in the years around 1700. But the development of modern Boddam dates back to a decision in the 1820s by the Northern Lighthouse Board to build a lighthouse on Buchan Ness.

The arrival of the lighthouse was followed in 1831 by the construction of a harbour. In the 1840s the harbour was greatly expanded by George Hamilton-Gordon, the 4th Earl of Aberdeen. Further harbour improvements were made in the 1870s to provide for vessels exporting the red Peterhead granite being quarried in ever larger quantities from Stirling Hill, a mile to the south east. These included the construction of a tramway linking the quarries with the harbour. The quarries also helped attract the railway to Boddam: a branch line from Ellon arrived in 1897.

The early decades of the 1900s saw much of Boddam's fishing fleet attracted away by the better harbour facilities available at Peterhead. The railway closed to passengers in 1932, and to freight in 1945. After the Second World War, Boddam became home to RAF Buchan, an important Cold War radar station tracking Russian aircraft over the North Atlantic. Until 2005 this was also home to one of the UK's two "Control and Reporting Centres", which oversaw the UK's air defences. This role has since passed to RAF Boulmer in Northumberland, and the RAF Buchan "domestic site" in Boddam is due to be redeveloped.

World War II

During WWII, like several Lighthouses along this coast, it was damaged by explosives. In Buchan's case, it was a floating mine that washed ashore and exploded 45 meters to the south of the Walled Compound. The resulting damage was the destruction of 3 glass panes in the Lantern, 20 panes destroyed in the houses, engine room and tower itself, Locks, hinges and bolts of 4 doors being damaged as well the ceilings of the 1st Assistant's Kitchen and Bedroom collapsing and 20 slates being blown from the Store Room's roof. Amazingly, no one was injured.