...on the tiny St Mary's (or Bait) Island, just north of Whitley Bay.
The lighthouse and adjacent keepers' cottages were built in 1898, on the site of an 11th-century monastic chapel,
whose monks maintained a lantern on the tower to warn passing ships of the danger of the rocks.
The lamp was powered by paraffin, and wasn't electrified until 1977. St Mary's the last Trinity House lighthouse lit by oil.
The lighthouse was decommissioned in 1984, just two years after its conversion to automatic operation. Although no longer
in operation, it is regularly open to visitors (with access at low tide) and includes a small museum and a visitor centre.