McCrae Lighthouse
McCrae Lighthouse - Beacon of the Bay
The McCrae Lighthouse, also called the Eastern Shore Light, guided ships through Port Phillip’s South Channel for more than a century before it was decommissioned in 1994. Standing 33.5 metres tall, it remains Victoria’s tallest lighthouse and a striking landmark on the Mornington Peninsula.
The current structure was built in Birmingham by Chance Bros. & Co. in 1874, shipped to Australia, and assembled at McCrae in 1883. Earlier, a timber-framed light had stood here before being hauled by bullock wagon to Arthurs Seat for use as a lookout. Inside the iron tower, a narrow spiral staircase of 120 steps leads to the lantern room, where the beam once reached up to 25 kilometres across the bay.
Known variously as the Dromana, Rosebud or South Channel Lighthouse, it played a vital role in navigation, projecting white beams to guide ships safely through the channel and red light to mark the dangerous sandbanks nearby. Transferred to the McCrae Foreshore Committee in 1996, the lighthouse now stands as a preserved reminder of the peninsula’s maritime heritage.
Location
676 Point Nepean Rd, McCrae 3938 View Map
-38.3482029,144.9278974
676 Point Nepean Rd ,
McCrae 3938
676 Point Nepean Rd ,
McCrae 3938
McCrae Lighthouse