FHBRO # 89-214

LOL # 1060

BUILT 1876

POSITION 46 30 46 N 63 29 .07W on beach, 209 degrees 46 minutes 305 m from front range on beach at the NW side of harbour entrance

LIGHT Red light: flash, 2 seconds; eclipse, 2 seconds

FOCAL HEIGHT 13.2 m (40 ft)

TOWER HEIGHT 14.1 m (46 ft)

NOMINAL RANGE Not applicable

The light tower at New London consists of a square tapered tower with an attached dwelling. It is 4.5 m (15 feet) square at the base, 2.3 m (7 feet 6 inches) square at the top, and was designed by the Department of Marine. It has few decorative touches except for the shed roofs over the openings. The shingled tower is painted white with red trim and has a vertical red stripe on the range. It was originally constructed as an independent light but became the back range when a new front light was built in 1879. The site has changed little over the years. The Front Range Light location has changed several times due to shifting sands in the channel at the harbour entrance.

A complete list of all keepers is not available. The following people were keepers of the New London Lighthouse. James A. Pigeon was keeper from 1918 until October, 1931. Hugh John MacRae was keeper from October 16, 1931 until he went on military leave on October 31, 1940. He was temporarily replaced by his brother, Charles Earl MacRae. Charles was the temporary keeper from November 1 to November 30, 1940. Claude Adams took over as temporary keeper on December 1, 1940. Claude died on January 23, 1943, and his wife Maisie Adams, from French River, took temporary charge of the lights. She became the Island’s only female light keeper, a position she held until she resigned in 1956. W. Roland Paynter was hired as temporary keeper on May 1, 1957, and continued until the tower was electrified.

The lighthouse was rented from the mid-Sixties until 2000, when the Canadian Coast Guard discontinued private leases of Island lighthouses.