Maritime relic: The old Green Island lighthouse, built in 1875, features projected rock-faced quoins and cross-shaped openings.

The Green Island lighthouse compound has been declared a monument under the Antiquities & Monuments Ordinance.

The Development Bureau said the compound comprises an old lighthouse built in 1875, a new lighthouse built in 1905, a former European quarters and a former keeper's house.

The old and new Green Island lighthouses are two of the five surviving pre-war lighthouses in Hong Kong playing an important role in the city's maritime history.

The old lighthouse started operation on July 1, 1875. In 1901, there was a plan to move the lantern of Cape D'Aguilar lighthouse to Green Island. As such, a higher and larger tower to accommodate the Cape D'Aguilar light was necessary.

Construction of a new lighthouse adjacent to the old one started in 1904 making the old light redundant upon completion. The new lighthouse was fully automated in the 1970s and is still in use.

Structure features

The old lighthouse is a 12-metre-high small circular tower constructed of granite. Its doorway features projected rock-faced quoins. The new lighthouse is also a circular tower. Constructed of granite and concrete, it is about 17.5 metres high with a steel lantern on top.

The former European staff quarters, probably built in the late 19th century, forms an integral part of the lighthouse compound. The former keeper's house is a one-storey flat-roofed block featuring segmental arched windows and overhanging eaves.

From the 1950s local staff started to replace Europeans as the light-keepers. However, their duties were replaced by automatic operational devices in the 1970s.

The two lighthouse staff quarters were once converted and used as the Police Recreation Centre. At present the quarters, the keeper's house and the surrounding area (except the lighthouses) are leased to the Wu Oi Christian Centre as a youth drug treatment and rehabilitation facility.