On Saturday 7 March, the Spurn Lightship opened its doors to the public in the first major milestone for the Hull Maritime project.
Built almost a century ago to guide larger ships navigating the treacherous River Humber, Spurn Lightship is a beloved ship at the heart of the city’s maritime story.
The vessel underwent 14 months of meticulous restoration that preserved the ship’s historical integrity, involving structural repairs and interior and below-decks refurbishment. The work also upgraded the visitor experience with improved access and interpretation, including a new way to see the Spurn Lantern up close.
The restoration was carried out as part of the Hull Maritime project, a Hull City Council initiative supported by The National Lottery Heritage Fund. The project aims to create an immersive and educational new maritime heritage trail that includes Spurn Lightship, the Arctic Corsair, the North End Shipyard and the Maritime Museum.
Beckett Rankine has been the Client Naval Architect, Engineer and Technical Supervisor of the Hull Maritime project since 2018. The firm has provided expert support, design and project management services for the ship, its new berth and moorings, as well as producing the Conservation and Maintenance Management Plans that underpinned Spurn Lightship’s restoration and will guide its future.
The restoration was carried out by Dunston Ship Repairs Ltd, chosen for their excellence in sympathetic restorations that preserve as much of the vessel’s historic fabric as possible.
Spurn Lightship’s restoration won the prestigious Martyn Heighton Award for Excellence in Maritime Conservation 2023, awarded by National Historic Ships UK.
John Monasta, Associate Director and Head of Naval Architecture, said,
“Spurn Lightship’s opening is a major milestone in the Hull Maritime project, and a beautiful example of what can be achieved with sympathetic historic ship restorations. It’s a privilege to help protect and preserve a vessel that is so important to Hull’s maritime history; even more so when finding solutions that enable a new, interactive interpretation of the ship’s story.
We’re delighted to see visitors on board and can’t wait for Spurn Lightship to be joined on Hull’s maritime heritage trail by Arctic Corsair later this year.”
