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Story: East Coast places

East Cape lighthouse

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East Cape lighthouse

East Cape lighthouse is sited at the most easterly point of the North Island, as British explorer James Cook surmised when he named the promontory. The lighthouse was first erected on nearby East Island (Whangaōkena) in 1900, but was moved to the mainland, due to land instability, in 1922. The station was automated in 1985.

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by Andy Palmer

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How to cite this page

Monty Soutar, East Coast places – East Cape, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/33481/east-cape-lighthouse (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Monty Soutar, published 23 August 2011, updated 1 March 2015.