The Nore Lightship, once a familiar sight along the Thames Estuary, played an unexpected but memorable role in the history of St Katharine Docks in central London. Built in 1931 by J. Samuel White of Cowes for Trinity House, Light Vessel No. 86—commonly known as the Nore Lightship—served for decades as a floating lighthouse, guiding ships safely through the treacherous waters of the Thames approaches.
For much of its working life, the lightship was stationed near the Nore sandbank, a dangerous shoal near the mouth of the Thames. The area is historically significant—it was here that the world’s very first lightship was anchored in 1731, a British innovation that would be emulated around the world. Like its predecessors, LV 86 had no engine or propulsion system. Instead, it relied on mooring and carried a powerful fixed lantern housed in a distinctive tower amidships, its red-painted hull emblazoned with the name of its station: NORE.
After its decommissioning in the 1970s, the lightship was saved from the scrapyard and brought to St Katharine Docks, just east of Tower Bridge. By then, the former commercial dock had begun its transformation into a marina and leisure complex. The arrival of the Nore Lightship added a striking maritime presence to the revitalised site. Moored prominently within the docks, the vessel became a local landmark. During its time there, it served not as a museum but as a floating office—used primarily by a yacht brokerage, although its historic structure was largely retained.
The lightship remained in St Katharine Docks until the mid-1990s, when it was sold and moved once again—this time to Port Werburgh Marina on the River Medway in Kent. There, it found a new life as a houseboat, though its condition has varied in the years since. There have been periodic reports of restoration efforts, suggesting that the vessel is still afloat and valued by enthusiasts of maritime heritage.
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