But in the case of the principal lights this but imperfectly represents their range, as they could be seen at any distance attainable by increased elevation. This gives the minimum distance to which the light can be seen, in clear weather, from a height of 10 feet above the sea level. The height of the lighthouse itself, from base to summit, is given sometimes in the third column. This gives the height of the flame above the highest tide level, consequently it is its minimum height, and is increased by the tidal range of the place. To avoid any ambiguity, I quote Findlay’s explanations of columns 5 and 6 verbatim: The black circle in column 4 denotes a catoptric reflector. Bidston is written in block capitals because it is a principal light. Findlay, 1861.įindlay explains the meaning of each column on page 32. Extract from “Lighthouses of the World”, Alexander G. The entry for Bidston is on page 39.įigure 1. Let’s start with Findlay’s Lighthouses of the World. I should disclose at this point that I do not, and never have, subscribed to any Flat Earth theory. You can bear with me as I try to make sense of it, or you can read this instead. One thing is certain those who seek only anomalous lighthouses will never find light. By now, however, some of Rowbotham’s lighthouses presumably have been closed, torn down, or destroyed by the elements.
Perhaps, for those lighthouses still operating, new observations would not confirm the reported anomalies. Perhaps the reported observations were made under unusual conditions. Schadewald concluded:Īnd what about Rowbotham’s anomalous lighthouses? Beats me. Bresher before him, vigorously refuted Rowbotham’s arguments, but could not explain the anomalies in Lighthouses of the World. Schadewald picked up the story in his 1992 article Looking for Lighthouses. Deducting 4 miles for the height of the observer, squaring the remaining 23 miles and multiplying that product by 8 inches we have a downward curvature of 352 feet from this deduct the altitude of the light, 228 feet, and there remains 124 feet as the distance which the light should be below the horizon ! Bidston Lighthouse was one of his chief examples:īy the same authority, at page 39, the Bidston Hill Lighthouse, near Liverpool, is 228 feet above high water, one bright fixed light, visible 23 nautical or very nearly 27 statute miles. Findlay (1861-2) to support his thesis that the earth was flat. He drew on, amongst other things, information published in Lighthouses of the World by Alexander G. Writing under the pseudonym “Parallax”, Rowbotham published Zetetic Astronomy: Earth Not a Globe in 1865. We are republishing this volume now in an affordable, modern, high-quality edition complete with the original text and artwork.In the nineteenth century, a fellow called Samuel Birley Rowbotham promoted a flat earth system which he called Zetetic Astronomy. Many vintage books such as this are becoming increasingly scarce and expensive. Contents include: "Introduction-Experiments proving the Earth to be a Plane", "The Earth no Axial or Orbital Motion", "The True Distance of the Sun and Stars", "The Sun moves in a Circle over the Earth, concentric with the North Pole", "Diameter of Sun's path Constantly Changing", "Causes of Day and Night, Seasons, &c.", "Cause of 'Sun Rise' and 'Sun Set'", etc. This volume will appeal to those with an interest in Flat Earth theory, and it is not to be missed by collectors of vintage literature of this ilk. According to Rowbotham, the Sun, Moon, planets, and stars are only a few hundred miles above the Earth. He is most famous "Zetetic Astronomy", an idea that the Earth is not spherical, but an enclosed plane centred at the North Pole and encircled by a wall of ice. Samuel Birley Rowbotham (1816 - 1884) was an English writer and inventor. "Zetetic Astronomy" is an 1881 treatise by Samuel Birley Rowbotham.
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