Stanhoe news
Lighting the way
A large group of members of Stanhoe and Barwick WI met in April to hear Karl Lumbers of Trinity House speak about the organisation, and 500 years of its history, as well as its present day activities. Having been invited, as a past ship’s captain, to be one of the 400 “Younger Brethren” of Trinity House, made up of previous members of the Merchant Navy and the Royal Navy, his presentation was full of interest.
photo: Rosemary Brown
“Younger Brother”: Karl Lumbers of Trinity House
We learnt about the first wooden lighthouses, built in 1698. and 1708, and the first stone built striped one built in 1759, all individually lit by coal fires, and overseen by a lighthouse keeper. Originally Trinity House supplied pilots to take ships up The Thames, and other large rivers. Nowadays the pilots are more likely to work on “superyachts”, and the lighthouses and buoys marking dangerous places in the sea are powered automatically by solar panels and LED lights, and lighthouse keeping is a job of the past.
The modern Trinity House organisation has many charitable functions, and supports a range of seafaring charities, funded by levies on ships going into port, and by rents collected from farms which they own. One of their aims is to encourage young people to go to sea as a career. And Princess Anne is the hard working, supportive “Master of Trinity House”.
After this very interesting, professional, talk the meeting became very sociable, and notice was given of several outings for members to enjoy, and of future meetings, before members departed in a happy mood.