Green Point Lighthouse

Standing on the edge of Mouille Point, this candy red and white striped beacon is often mistakenly called Mouille Point Lighthouse. First lit in 1824, it is said to be the first “solid” lighthouse on the South African coast.

Aside from the original lights being replaced by a single revolving beam, the lighthouse is still very much in its original form.

The lighthouse is used today as the Head Office of the Lighthouse Services, which owns and maintains 45 lighthouses in South Africa.

The purpose of the Green Point Lighthouse is to act as a night beacon for vessels sailing into Table Bay. This being said, The Green Point area has still had its fair share of shipwrecks. One of the most notable was the South African Seafarer, which went down on 1 July 1966.

In early days, there were many complaints from nearby residents about the noise from the foghorn in misty conditions. Nowadays, Green Point Lighthouse is part of a much nosier and denser urban setting, which means that the modified foghorn blends in well and would surely be missed should it have to stop one day.