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Waglan Lighthouse and Tang Lung Chau Lighthouse on Waglan Island and Tang Lung Chau, Hong Kong respectively were gezetted as historical buildings under the Antiquities and Monuments Ordinance (Cap. 53) today (December 29).

Waglan Lighthouse and Tang Lung Chau Lighthouse, which commenced operation in 1893 and 1912 respectively, are two of the five surviving pre-war lighthouses in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong owes its prosperity to trade. Its harbour was a regular port of call even before 1841. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 gave a further impetus to the growth of trade. It was recognized by the Government and the business community that provisions should be made for lighting along the coasts. During the pre-war years, it was known that seven lighthouses, not including the Gap Rock Lighthouse, were constructed within Hong Kong waters. At present, five pre-war lighthouses still survive. Two of the five lighthouses are on Green Island while the other three are on Waglan Island, Tang Lung Chau and at Cape D'Aguilar respectively.

Commander Reed, a naval surveyor was instructed in 1867 to investigate suitable locations for lighthouses to cover the port approaches. He proposed Waglan Island and Gap Rock, a small island to the south of Hong Kong Island on the route to Singapore. However, as neither of the proposed locations was within the Hong Kong waters, the recommendation was not further pursued.

Towards the close of the nineteenth century, the proposal for lighthouses at the two main approaches to Hong Kong, Waglan Island and Gap Rock was revived again. With the endorsement made by the Chinese authorities, Waglan Lighthouse was built by the Chinese Customs Light Department of the Imperial Maritime Customs in 1893 and started to operate on May 9 in the same year.

The lighthouse was equipped with an up-to-date light, burning mineral oil with rotating apparatus floating on mercury. This method for rotating lights by floating the apparatus on a bath of mercury, which eliminated friction and permitted revolution as frequent as every 15 seconds, was invented in 1890. The technique led to a system of identifying lighthouses by the pattern of intervals of light and darkness. Waglan Light was one of the only two modern equipment introduced and installed in the Asian waters at that time.

The lighthouse was initially run by the Chinese Maritime Customs from Shanghai. Following the lease of the New Territories in 1898, it was then transferred to the administration and control of the Hong Kong Government on January 1, 1901.

During the Second World War, Waglan Lighthouse was extensively damaged by bombing. Repairs took place after 1945. It has been unmanned since August 1989. Waglan Lighthouse acts not only as a navigation aid, but also an outpost where weather information on the eastern corner of the territory is collected and fed to the Hong Kong Observatory.

Situated on Tang Lung Chau, a small island to the west of Hong Kong Island, Tang Lung Chau Lighthouse is also commonly known as Kap Sing Lighthouse. It was put into service on April 29, 1912. It is a skeletal steel tower of 11.8 metres high with a white lantern on top. The steel tower and light apparatus were obtained from England. The brick building which was the light keeper's house has a bedroom, a kitchen, a latrine and a storeroom. Rainwater was collected from the roof and diverted into an underground tank for use as there was no spring or fresh water supply on the island. The lighthouse is now unmanned and automated.

Waglan Lighthouse and Tang Lung Chau Lighthouse have served over thousands of vessels from south and west approaches to Hong Kong since the turn of the twentieth century. They are now under the management of Marine Department.

End/Friday, December 29, 2000

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