173-year-old renovated light house inaugurated at Madras High Court

first lighthouse of the city was built inside the Fort St George. Following this, the second lighthouse was built in 1844 at a height of 161 feet in the Madras High Court complex.

This second lighthouse functioned till 1894 during which the third lighthouse was built and it started to function at a height of 175 feet. The third lighthouse was functioning till 1977 during which time the current lighthouse was built on the Marina beach front at a height of 148 feet.

Now, as part of the 125th anniversary of the Madras High Court, the second lighthouse, that was functioning between 1844 and 1894, has been reopened after renovation. This lighthouse can send light signals till 20 nautical miles into the sea. It is spread in a 16 feet diameter in its base and 11 feet in its peak. Constructed in a Doric structure, the lighthouse with a basement depth of 55 feet was constructed at a cost of Rs 60,000 in 1840. The stones used to construct the light house were brought from Pallavaram and it was not functioning for four years even after construction due to the delay in bringing the light to install at the top. Only during 1844, this light was installed and the lighthouse was declared open officially on January 1 that year.

The structure which came under the care of the Archeological Survey of India as a heritage site, was renovated in 2013 at a cost of Rs one crore.

Now, the lighthouse has been declared open to mark the 125th anniversary of the Madras High Court.