1865: The Stage is Set for Building a French Lighthouse at the “End of the World”

May 3, 1865

The French government formally authorized the start of construction on the Phare des Pierres Noires (Black Rocks Lighthouse) on the northwest coast of France.  This conical structure is specifically located at Le Conquet, which is a commune in the department of Finistère (an administrative division of France’s Brittany region). Le Conquet is the westernmost settlement of mainland France; “Finistère” is the Breton language phrase for “end of the world.”

The Phare des Pierres Noires was designed by engineer Victor Fénoux. (The above photo shows this lighthouse under construction.) The Phare des Pierres Noires was inaugurated on May 1, 1872. It has since served as one of the lighthouses helping to facilitate the safe passage of vessels through a local waterway known as the Chenal du Four “Channel of the Oven”).

The Phare des Pierres Noires was automated in 1992. In 2015, it was officially listed by the French government as a Monument historique (Historical Monument).

Photo Credit: Public Domain

For more information on the Phare des Pierres Noires (Black Rocks Lighthouse), please check out https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierres_Noires_lighthouse

Additional information on lighthouses in that section of the department of Finistère is available at https://www.ibiblio.org/lighthouse/fns.htm