Lighthouses of China: Southern Zhejiang

The Chinese province of Zhejiang (formerly spelled Chekiang) occupies the central coast of the country, south of Shanghai and north of the Formosa Strait. The province faces east on the East China Sea. The coastline is hilly and irregular, with more than 3000 islands of all sizes offshore.

This page lists lighthouses in southern Zhejiang Province; those in the northern half of the province are on the Northern Zhejiang page. The principal ports in this region are Jiaojiang (formerly called Hiamen) and Wenzhou. These ports did not attract much foreign interest during the colonial period. Although Wenzhou was a treaty port that shipped tea to Europe, the European powers built very few lighthouses in the area. As a result, nearly all the lights listed are of recent origin and modern design, like the Jongjiang lighthouse at right.

Lighthouses in China are maintained by the PRC Maritime Safety Administration. The administration is organized in four regional administrations, with district offices in the major ports. All the lights on this page are maintained by the Wenzhou MSA office, which is part of the Shanghai Region. In Chinese, jiao or chiao is a cape, dao, tao, yu, or hsu is an island, wan is a bay, and kang or gang is a harbor. Due to competing systems for transliterating Chinese into Latin characters, there are always several possible spellings for the names of places in China.

ARLHS numbers are from the ARLHS World List of Lights. CN numbers are the serial numbers used by the Shanghai regional office of MSA. Admiralty numbers are from volume F of the Admiralty List of Lights & Fog Signals. U.S. NGA List numbers are from Publication 112.

General Sources

Aids to Navigation: This English-language web site of the PRC Maritime Safety Administration has data and small photos of many of the lighthouses (click on "Aton Query").
East China Sea Navigation Aids: Lighthouse data posted by the Shanghai Region office of the MSA.
Light Query Results: This is part of a long light list for all of China posted by the Shanghai MSA office. Southern Zhejiang lights are found beginning on page 68 of the list. This list seems to be only slightly more recent than the MSA site.
China AMS Topographic Maps: A fine collection of U.S. Army Map Service maps of China, in English, posted by the University of Texas Library.

Jiaojiang Light
PRC Maritime Safety Administration photo

Sanmen Bay Area Lighthouses
Jomaopeng Yu (2): 1997 (station established 1959). Active; focal plane 23 m (79 ft); two white flashes every 6 s. 8 m (26 ft) hexagonal brick tower, covered with white ceramic tiles. Located on a small island about halfway between the mainland and Kinmendao. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. CN-2638.
Taizhou Bay and Jiaojiang (Haimen) Lighthouses
Note: Taizhou (Taichow) Bay leads to the port of Jiaojiang, formerly called Haimen. The city's name was changed in 1981 to avoid confusion with other Haimens in Jiangsu and Guangdong Provinces. However, the city is still called Haimen in many contemporary sources, including MSA's web site. The Ji Islands are scattered across the mouth of Taizhou Bay.
Kinmendao (Kinmen Tao) (2): 1959 (station established 1955). Active; focal plane 57 m (187 ft); white flash every 4 s. 9 m (30 ft) hexagonal stone tower with lantern and gallery, covered with white ceramic tiles. Located on an islet off the northeastern tip of Kinmendao, the northernmost of the Ji Islands, about 50 km (30 mi) east northeast of Jiaojiang. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. CN-2639.
Chenghengshan (2): 1993. (station established 1955). Active; focal plane 26 m (89 ft); two white flashes every 6 s. 10 m (33 ft) round stone tower with gallery, covered with white ceramic tiles. Located on an islet in the entrance to Taizhou Bay, about 25 km (15 mi) east southeast of Jiaojiang. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. CN-2645.
* Jiaojiang (3): 1978 (station established 1954). Active; focal plane 33 m (108 ft); two white flashes every 6 s. 13 m (43 ft) round concrete tower with double gallery, covered with red ceramic tiles. MSA's photo is at the top of this page. Located on a wooded ridge that interrupts the quays of Jiaojiang (Haimen) harbor, on the south side of the Lingjiang estuary. Google has an indistinct satellite view. Site appears open, tower closed. CN-2650.
Jiaojiang 'Long Shoal': 2000. Active; focal plane 9 m (30 ft); yellow light occulting once every 12 s. 9 m (30 ft) round strongly conical concrete tower, mounted on four concrete piles. Lighthouse painted orange; the tower also carries an X-shaped daymark. Google has a satellite view. This light, which marks a shoal parallel to the main channel in Jiaojiang's harbor, was built by the Taizhou Prefecture Port Authority and transferred to MSA in 2001. Accessible only by boat. Site and tower closed. CN-2650.1.
Xiadachen (Xiaojiaotou) (3): 1999 (station established 1955). Active; focal plane 23 m (75 ft); two white flashes every 6 s. 12 m (39 ft) hexagonal concrete tower, faced with brick, with lantern and gallery. Lighthouse painted white. Located on an islet north of Xiadachen Dao in the Taizhou Islands, about 50 km (30 mi) southeast of Jiaojiang. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. CN-2669; Admiralty F3675.5; NGA 18984.
Zhu Yu (Chu Hsu) (2): 1959 (station established 1955). Active; focal plane 63 m (207 ft); three white flashes every 10 s. 10 m (33 ft) round cylindrical concrete tower with gallery, painted white. Located atop an islet about 1.5 km (1 mi) west of the western tip of Xiadachen Dao. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. CN-2672; Admiralty F3674; NGA 18996.
Songmen Area Lighthouses Luo Yu (Lo Hsu) (3): 1993 (station established 1955). Active; focal plane 79 m (259 ft); white flash every 3 s. 9 m (30 ft) hexagonal cylindrical stone tower with gallery, covered with tiles colored with red and white vertical stripes. This light is an important navigational aid for ships approaching Wenzhou from the north. Located atop a small island about 10 km (6 mi) off the end of the Songmen Peninsula. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. CN-2684; Admiralty F3670; NGA 19000.
'Sugarloaf Island': 2001 (station established 1955). Active; focal plane 83 m (272 ft); two white flashes every 6 s. 10 m (33 ft) round cylindrical concrete tower with gallery, covered with ceramic tiles colored white with red trim. Located on an island about 8 km (5 mi) northwest of Bishan Dao at the south end of Aiwan Bay. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. CN-2689.
'Hsuan-Men Wan': Date unknown. Active; focal plane 32 m (105 ft); white flash every 4 s. 12 m (39 ft) round concrete tower with gallery, painted white. Located on a small island in the entrance to Hsuan-Men Bay, northeast of the island of Yuhuan Dao. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. CN-2692.
Wenzhou Approach Lighthouses
Dong Tou (Damen Dao East Point) (3): 1996 (station established 1955). Active; focal plane 39 m (128 ft); two white flashes every 6 s. 10 m (33 ft) round cylindrical concrete tower with gallery, covered with white ceramic tiles. Damen Dao is the largest island in Wenzhou Bay, about 11 km (5.5 mi) long; since it is inhabited the lighthouse may be accessible. Located at the eastern tip of Damen Dao. Site status unknown. CN-2702; Admiralty F3661; NGA 19068.
Wenzhou Harbor Lighthouses
Dongtou Islands Lighthouses
Tasanpang (Tasanpan) Shan (2): 2003 (station established 1955). Active; focal plane 53 m (174 ft); three white flashes every 10 s. 8 m (26 ft) round cylindrical concrete tower with gallery, covered with ceramic tiles colored white with red trim. NGA lists the original light, a small pyramidal structure. Tasanpang Shan is a small but inhabited island in the Dongtou Channel, one of the approaches to Wenzhou. Located on the highest point of the island. Site status unknown, but probably accessible. CN-2782; Admiralty F3660; NGA 19080.
Zhuangyuanao Shan (2): 2002 (station established 1954). Active; focal plane 17 m (56 ft); white flash every 4 s. 10 m (33 ft) round cylindrical concrete tower with gallery, covered with ceramic tiles colored white with red trim. Zhuangyuanao is an inhabited island on the north side of the Dongtou Channel. Located at the western tip of the island. Site status unknown, but possibly accessible. CN-2784.
'Plum Blossom Reef' (2): 1997 (station established 1954). Active; focal plane 17 m (56 ft); white flash every 4 s. 12.5 m (41 ft) hexagonal cylindrical concrete tower with gallery, covered with ceramic tiles colored black. Located on a reef off the western tip of Dongtou Shan, the largest island of the Dongtou group, on the south side of the Dongtou Channel. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. CN-2786.
Beitse Shan (2): 1993 (station established 1963). Active; focal plane 28 m (92 ft); white flash every 4 s. 8.5 m (28 ft) hexagonal cylindrical concrete tower with gallery, covered with white ceramic tiles. Located atop Beitse Shan, northernmost of the Tse Islands, a small group south of Dongtou Shan. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. CN-2792.
Longanjiao (2): 1960 (station established 1955). Active; focal plane 12 m (39 ft); four white flashes every 12 s. 12.5 m (41 ft) hexagonal cylindrical concrete tower with gallery, covered with white ceramic tiles. Located on a dangerous reef on the approach to Wenzhou from the southeast, about 10 km (6 mi) southwest of Niyu Shan. Site status unknown. CN-2793.
Southern Zhejiang Lighthouses Beijishan (Peichi Shan): 1990. Active; focal plane 135 m (443 ft); three white flashes every 20 s. 20 m (66 ft) square cylindrical concrete tower with lantern and a round control center, rising from a U-shaped 1-story concrete crew building and signal station. Tower covered with red ceramic tiles; the attached building is white with red trim and a red roof. Beijishan is the largest and northernmost of the Ji Islands, an isolated group about 50 km (30 mi) southeast of Wenzhou. Located at the highest point of the island. Site status unknown. ARLHS PRC-007; CN-2794.1; Admiralty F3650; NGA 19086.
Dongqua Hsu (2): 1995 (station established 1908). Active; focal plane 79 m (259 ft); two white flashes every 6 s. 13 m (43 ft) square cylindrical concrete tower with lantern and gallery, covered with white ceramic tiles; lantern roof painted red. The original lighthouse, a 7.5 m (25 ft) cast iron tower, was repaired after being damaged during World War II. It is not known if the tower was salvaged for display. It's also not clear why NGA does not list this historic light station. Located on a small island about 13 km (8 mi) west of Beijishan. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. CN-2796.
Beilong (Peilung) Shan (2): 2001 (station established 1970). Active; focal plane 37 m (121 ft); white flash every 6 s. 10 m (33 ft) square cylindrical concrete tower with gallery, covered with white ceramic tiles. Beilong Shan is an inhabited island about 20 km (13 mi) off the mainland coast and a similar distant west of Beijishan. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown, but possibly accessible. CN-2798; Admiralty F3648.8; NGA 19085.5.
Lizhi Shan (2): 1978 (station established 1955). Active; focal plane 89 m (292 ft); three white flashes every 10 s. 9.5 m (31 ft) round cylindrical concrete tower with gallery, painted with red and white horizontal bands. Located atop a small island about 7 km (4.5 mi) west northwest of Beilong Shan. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. CN-2799; Admiralty F3648.6; NGA 19085.
'King Reef' (2): 1989 (station established 1955). Active; focal plane 22 m (72 ft); three white flashes every 10 s. 13 m (43 ft) 2-stage round cylindrical stone tower with gallery, covered with white ceramic tiles. Located on a reef off the southeastern tip of the island of Loyingshan, a few miles north of the Fujian border. Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. CN-2831.
Nankuanshan (2): 1990 (station established 1955). Active; focal plane 67 m (220 ft); two white flashes every 6 s. 10 m (33 ft) 12-sided stone (?) tower with gallery, painted with black and white horizontal bands. Nankuanshan is an inhabited island in the mouth of the Kuanjiang river, at the border between Zhejiang and Fujian. Site status unknown, possibly accessible. CN-2833.
Taishan Islands Lighthouse
Note: The Taishan Islands are located about 30 km (19 mi) off the mainland precisely on the border between Zhejiang and Fujian provinces. We believe the islands are in Zhejiang, although the lighthouse is maintained by the MSA section office in Fuzhou, Fujian.
Xitaishan (2): 1992 (station establishment date unknown). Active; focal plane 144 m (472 ft); white flash every 4 s. 24.5 m (80 ft) with lantern, six sweeping buttresses, and a circular observation room under the lantern. Lighthouse covered with white ceramic tile; lantern roof painted red. MSA has a small photo. Located at the highest point of Xitaishan (West Taishan). Accessible only by boat. Site status unknown. ARLHS PRC-068; CN-2861; Admiralty F3648; NGA 19087.

Information available on lost lighthouses:

Notable faux lighthouses:

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