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French Pass

French Pass 1

Lighthouse overview 

French Pass Lighthouse marks the channel between D’Urville Island and the mainland at the top of the South Island. 

 

Lighthouse feature: 

Details 

Location: 

latitude 40°55’ south, longitude 173°50’ east 

Elevation: 

3 metres above sea level 

Construction: 

cast iron tower 

Tower height: 

7 metres 

Light configuration: 

drum type lens, illuminated by a 35-watt incandescent bulb 

Light flash character: 

fixed light with red and white sectors 

Power source: 

12-volt battery charged by solar power 

Range: 

10 nautical miles (18 kilometres) white sector, 7 nautical miles (13 kilometres) red sector 

Date light first lit: 

1884 

Automated: 

1961 

Demanned: 

1967 

  

Access to French Pass Lighthouse 

French Pass Lighthouse is not accessible to the public. 

There is no public access to enter the lighthouse

It can be seen by boat on the seaward side.

Find French Pass Lighthouse on the map (opens in new tab)

History of French Pass Lighthouse 

French Pass separates the mainland from D’Urville Island. Before the lighthouse was built, the channel was used by small boats. During the 1870s, as settlements in Wellington and Nelson grew, passenger and mail steamers also began to use French Pass. Provided ships avoided the reef between the mainland and D’Urville Island, the route was quicker and more comfortable. 

In the 1860s, a stone beacon was placed on the outer edge of the reef but was difficult to see at night. By 1880, the Wellington to Nelson mail steamer used the pass regularly at night, which alarmed the then Secretary of Marine. He wrote: 

“Some serious casualty will arise if a light is not put up.” 

Despite this warning, it was another two years before a light was fitted to the beacon. As soon as the work was finished, the beacon was struck by a steamer, causing considerable damage to both the beacon and the vessel. 

In 1884, the French Pass Lighthouse was built on the mainland, facing out to the repaired beacon. The lighthouse was first lit that year. 

 

Operation of the light 

In 1961, the acetylene-powered lighthouse became one of the first to be automated. A keeper remained as caretaker for another six years. In 1967, the light was replaced and the keeper left the station. 

The light was converted to mains electricity in 1971. 

It was later upgraded to a 35-watt tungsten halogen bulb powered by 12-volt battery (charged by solar power). 

 

Life at French Pass Lighthouse 

A single keeper was stationed at the French Pass Lighthouse and was also responsible for the channel beacon. A local family helped by ferrying the keeper out to the beacon whenever the light went out, which happened often. 

The first few years of daily journal entries contain many reports of the beacon light failing. Several times the wind was so strong that the keeper could not relight it. In one week of bad weather, the keeper had to relight the beacon three times. 

After seven years of this, the keeper wrote to the then Marine Department to complain that his small retainer was not worth risking his life by going out to the beacon in gale‑force winds and rough seas. The complaint seems to have worked. The following year the keeper reported, with satisfaction: 

“The French Pass light has not blown out this year.”