Calicut Lighthouse

The British port of Calicut initially lay between the North Pier and South Pier, with a lighthouse and flagstaff. The Calicut lighthouse was built in February 1847. According to William Logan's Malabar Manual, it was a 102.5 feet high laterite lime column, which was visible ten miles into the sea, on a clear day. Its light was visible at 14 miles from the sea, in the night.

The British port limit was extended by a mile north towards Bhatt Road in 1902-03. This was to provide for handling dangerous cargo like kerosene oil and gunpowder away from the busy stretch between the two piers. The port went through a modernisation phase, as part of this northward extension. Both the piers were repaired and the lighthouse was shifted close to the North Pier, in 1902. The new 49 feet high lighthouse, is a white cylindrical masonry tower situated at 11°15'30.3"N (latitude) and 75°4609.0E (longitude). Designated with an Admiralty No: F0686, the Calicut lighthouse is marked on navigational charts with the characteristics FI(2)W6s. This is technical data conveying information that it emits two white flashes, every six seconds

It has been almost fifty years since the last ship called at Calicut. Lighthouses all over the world have either become obsolete or upgraded themselves, adding other modern aids. But the Calicut lighthouse has not changed and continues to faithfully flash its old-fashioned beams into the sea, almost waiting forlornly for that one ship that might come over the horizon, spreading her sails, seeking black gold and other riches of the Malabar Coast.