Fish Quay Old Low Light
The Fish Quay Old Low Light is a historic lighthouse structure standing on the north bank of the River Tyne at North Shields, in the borough of North Tyneside. It is one of two paired navigational lights — the other being the High Light — that were built in the early nineteenth century to guide vessels safely through the treacherous shifting sandbanks at the mouth of the Tyne. The Old Low Light is the lower of the pair, positioned closer to the water's edge, and in combination with the High Light would have allowed mariners to align the two beams into a transit line, keeping their vessels on a safe channel as they entered or departed the river. It has long since ceased to function as an active lighthouse, but it endures as one of the most recognizable and evocative heritage structures along the Tyne waterfront.
The structure was built around 1807, designed by the engineer John Stokoe, and its construction reflects the urgent maritime necessity of the age. The Tyne was one of the busiest coal-exporting rivers in the world at that time, with hundreds of collier brigs and keelboats working the estuary constantly, and the sandbanks at the river mouth claimed a horrifying number of vessels each year. The pairing of a high and low light to create a safe transit line was a well-established navigational technique, and the North Shields lights were regarded as an important improvement to safety on the river. Over the course of the nineteenth century, as the river mouth was progressively dredged and improved and the navigational channels became better understood, the practical need for the lights diminished, and the Old Low Light was eventually decommissioned.
Physically, the Old Low Light is a sturdy, handsome tower of local stone, squat and powerful in appearance rather than the tall elegant column of a deep-sea lighthouse. Its thick walls and robust form speak to the hard conditions of the North Sea coast, and it has a certain no-nonsense industrial character that fits perfectly into the working-class maritime heritage of North Shields. Standing close to it, you are struck by the solidity of the masonry, weathered by two centuries of salt winds and North Sea squalls. The building has at various points in its post-lighthouse life been used for different purposes, including as a centre for the fishing community, and it retains traces of that layered history in its fabric.
The surrounding area, the Fish Quay district of North Shields, is one of the most atmospheric and genuinely characterful waterfronts on the entire northeast coast of England. This is a working fish quay in the truest sense — trawlers and fishing vessels still tie up here, the smell of salt water and fresh catch hangs in the air, and the scene has a lived-in authenticity that many regenerated waterfronts have lost. Fish merchants, smokehouses, chandlers and boat repairers all contribute to a sense that this is a place that has always worked for a living. The Low Lights Tavern, a celebrated historic pub long associated with the fishing community, stands nearby and adds to the convivial character of the quay.
Visiting the Fish Quay and the Old Low Light is a straightforward and deeply rewarding experience. North Shields is well served by Metro, the Tyne and Wear rapid transit system, with North Shields Metro station a reasonable walk from the quay, and there are also bus connections through the town. By car, the Fish Quay is signposted from the main routes through North Shields and parking is available nearby. The quay is a public space and the exterior of the Old Low Light can be viewed at any time, though access inside the building depends on its current use and any events or openings organised by local heritage groups. The area is at its most lively and evocative during the morning, when the fishing boats are active and the quayside trades are under way.
One of the more poignant and fascinating aspects of the site is what it represents in terms of lost maritime life. The waters off the Tyne mouth in the era before these lights were built were notorious for shipwrecks, and many local families lost fathers, brothers and sons to the sandbanks. The Volunteer Life Brigade, one of the earliest shore-based rescue organisations in Britain, was established nearby at Tynemouth partly in response to the terrible toll of wrecks at the river's mouth, and the Old Low Light stands as a quiet monument to that long struggle between the people of the Tyne and the dangers of the sea they depended upon for their livelihood. The interplay of the High Light and Low Light as a system also represents an elegant pre-electronic solution to a navigation problem, and it speaks to the ingenuity of early nineteenth-century harbour engineering in ways that reward reflection when you stand before the building.