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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

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.

Read the whole record

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

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Recorded date
1870
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Photo credits
  • Andrew Smith, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
  • Adrian Diack, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
  • JThomas, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
  • Andrew Wood, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
  • Andrew Diack, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
  • Anne Burgess, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
  • 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
  • Leslie Barrie, Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
Scurdie NessFindspot, Polished Axehead (stone) · 67 ydCharm: Johnny Main's Harbour, Scurdie Ness, North SeaSchooner (19th Century) · 248 ydRose: Scurdie Rock, Montrose Harbour Approach, North SeaLugger (19th Century) · 248 ydMains of UsanMan-made underground passage (prehistoric) · 1162 ydSt Mary's ChapelBurial Ground (medieval) - (post Medieval), Chapel (medieval) - (post Medieval) (possible) · 1212 ydUsan, Chapel MillGrain Mill · 1238 ydRiver South EskFindspot, Shot (metal) · 1449 ydMontrose, Traill Drive, Traill PavilionPavilion · 1463 ydBamse GraveMemorial · 1472 ydRashick KnapHeadland · 1670 ydRobert Burns StatueMemorial · 1.2 miMid LinksPark · 1.3 mi

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