The Town of Cobourgs lighthouse is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. The lighthouse is located at the end of the East Pier. It was one of five square tapered concrete lighthouse (or lighttowers) constructed between 1924 and 1931 by the federal government, “as aids to navigation for commercial and pleasure craft.

The Cobourg East Pierhead lighttower is only one of numerous aids established since 1884 to aid craft navigating in and out of the Cobourg Harbour. A light on the out end of the harbour’s east pier harbour was lit on 10 November 1915. This 35 foot pole light was a supplement to an existing harbour light first established on the east pier in 1844, and maintained by the Town of Cobourg Corporation. (A light on the west pier was established in 1883 and later replaced.) The current concrete harbour light on the breakwater at the out end of the east pier was built in 1924 to house an electric light and an electrically drive diaphone fog alarm plant. Its construction did not come at a particularly noteworthy time in the development of Cobourg.

For many years the harbour lights aided commercial traffic, including the Cobourg Rochester car ferries, which ran daily service from the late-19th century until about 1952. By 1966, Cobourg was developing into a haven for pleasure craft in addition to 80-100 commercial arrivals a year. By 1979, commercial traffic was “non-existent,” though the light and fog alarm continued to be used by the Cobourg Yacht Club and other pleasure craft. A new fog alarm installed in the light tower in 1972 annoyed the citizenry; it was alter, and in 1980 was discontinued. No significant person or event is believed to be directly associated with the light tower.

For more information on the Cobourg East Pier Cultural Heritage Evaluation Report 2020.11.12 click here.

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