Historical Sites and Heritage Locations

Point King Lighthouse, located on the north shore entrance to Princess Royal Harbour, was the first navigational light for the port of Albany and the second lighthouse built on Western Australia’s coastline.

In 1857 the British Government offered to erect two lighthouses in Albany, one on Breaksea Island and the other on Point King, if the local government agreed to meet the running costs. The P&O Steamship company and other passenger ships greatly appreciated the idea of these new lighthouses and so the construction went ahead. The prefabricated lights arrived on 9 June and the building started later that year. The lights shone for the first time on 1 January 1858, with William Hill as the light keeper.

These positions changed hands quickly, and with inexperienced light keepers, fell into disrepair. This was soon remedied when Samuel Mitchell was appointed to the position in 1867 and held it until 1903 when he was replaced by John Reddin. Reddin was the last resident light keeper because from July 1911 the Port Pilot Crew went and trimmed the light each night. In 1913 power was installed so it became automatic. It deteriorated rapidly until finally, it ceased to work.