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Scurdie Ness Lighthouse

Lighthouse
Scurdie Ness Lighthouse
Photo: Andrew Diack, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Original Geograph photograph · Report the wrong picture

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Recorded date
1870
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What is recorded here

Scurdie Ness Lighthouse answered Ferryden sailors’ call for a light on a coast known for deadly wrecks. David and Thomas Stevenson completed it in 1870; war brought black paint, automation ended resident operation in 1987, and the tall working tower still marks the approach to Montrose.

Why it was built

People in Ferryden asked for the lighthouse in 1867 because the rocky shore between the Bell Rock and Girdle Ness had claimed ships and lives. Its position near the end of Scurdie Ness lets the light mark both a dangerous stretch of North Sea coast and the entrance to Montrose harbour.

People and work

The engineers David and Thomas Stevenson designed and built the station. Its lamp was lit for the first time at six in the evening on 1 March 1870, while a crowd watched from the links and sands. Keepers then tended the light and climbed a tower with 170 steps.

How it changed

The original steady white light became a timed light in 1907. During the Second World War a keeper covered the tower in black paint so enemy aircraft could not use the white landmark by day, even though naval orders still required the lamp at night. Automatic equipment replaced resident operation in 1987.

What survives

The white stone tower remains on the same exposed headland and continues to serve shipping. It rises about 39 metres and is protected for its building and historical interest. The national record also keeps photographs, plans and details of the road and retaining work made for the station.

Why it mattered

Scurdie Ness joined a national lighthouse programme to a direct local demand for safer sailing. It gave ships a fixed guide at the harbour mouth, then adapted through changing lamp patterns, wartime concealment and automatic working without losing the original Stevenson tower.

Sources for this account

Sources checked 16 August 2026.

From OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors) n13012862377

Places near here

Picture notes
  • Computer-made picture. It does not show this monument.
  • Adrian Diack, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
  • Andrew Diack, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
  • Computer-made picture. It does not show this playground.
  • Richard Webb, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
  • Bartolo Creations, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
  • Stanley Howe, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
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