On the Leamouth Peninsula, where the River Thames and Bow Creek meet, lies Trinity Buoy Wharf, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.
The site was used by the Brethren of Trinity House, now known as Corporation of Trinity House, from 1803, with the sea wall being constructed in 1822.
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| A photo of both lighthouses, circa 1900s. |
Originally there were two lighthouses, with one being built in 1852, by James Walker, and the other between 1864-1866, by James Douglas. The former was demolished in the 1920s, while the latter one still stands today.
Both lighthouses were used to train lighthouse keepers and for testing lighting systems, not for their true purpose, as the River Thames is not that dangerous a stretch of water.
The original lantern, at the top of the lighthouse, came from the Paris Exposition of 1867, where Trinity House had demonstrated improved systems of electric lighting for lighthouses.
Michael Faraday set up a workshop, next door to the lighthouse, and carried out experiments here, discovering the principles underlying electromagnetic induction, electrolysis and diamagnetism.
Today the lighthouse, along with the rest of Trinity Buoy Wharf, has become a centre for arts and culture, with the lighthouse now home to 'Longplayer'.
'Longplayer' is a one thousand year long musical composition. It began playing at midnight on the 31st of December 1999, and will continue to play without repetition until the last moment of 2999, at which point it will complete its cycle and begin again. Conceived and composed by Jem Finer, it was originally produced as an Artangel commission, and is now in the care of the Longplayer Trust.
The composition of Longplayer results from the application of simple and precise rules to six short pieces of music. Six sections from these pieces – one from each – are playing simultaneously at all times. Longplayer chooses and combines these sections in such a way that no combination is repeated until exactly one thousand years has passed.
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