They belong to Borkum like the sand to the sea and the beach tents to the beach.
Borkum's lighthouses. The largest East Frisian island has a total of five to offer in the town center and on the south beach. The Old Lighthouse, the New Lighthouse, the Electric Lighthouse, the Düne cross-mark light and the Fischerbalje entrance light. Each with a different story, but all with the same purpose: seafaring to make Borkum safer. The three most famous landmarks are presented below.
The Old Lighthouse
It is the oldest lighthouse and at the same time the oldest building on all of the East Frisian Islands. Archaeological excavations on Borkum revealed that there was already a small church here in the 14th century. In 1576, the city of Emden replaced the steeple of the small church with a 40 meter high tower as a daily mark for shipping: sea travel around the dreaded Borkum reef became a little safer. In 1817 everything became simpler: The Kingdom of Hanover had the Old Borkum Tower converted from a daylight to a lighthouse with oil lamps and parabolic mirrors. When the lighthouse burned out in 1879, Prussia built the New Borkum Lighthouse.
The New Lighthouse
The New Lighthouse – officially the “Great Lighthouse” – has been showing the way for nighttime shipping off the East Frisian Islands for over 130 years. But it also provides valuable services during the day. With its 60,3 meter height, the New Lighthouse gives guests a wonderful view - over the small island town, the dune landscape of Borkum, the UNESCO Wadden Sea World Heritage Site and the open North Sea. It was built in six months in 1879. 308 steps lead up to the viewing platform. Another seven steps in the lantern lead to the beacon, which serves as a nighttime orientation for ships sailing in front of the mouth of the Ems. The tower stands on the west side of the North Sea island of Borkum, making it the westernmost lighthouse in Germany. It is a popular photo motif for guests day and night
The Electric Lighthouse
It looks like you would imagine a “real” lighthouse to be. Round, red and white stripes and in the middle of the dunes. The builders around 1890 were less concerned with creating the perfect holiday motif than with making night shipping in the area of the mouth of the Ems even safer. It hasn't been in operation for several years. Which can't stop the electric lighthouse from continuing to radiate an almost stereotypically beautiful North Sea romanticism with its paint. The 27 meter high electric lighthouse is located on the edge dune south of the town center of Borkum and is a 15-minute walk from there easy to reach.
On August 11, 2003, the responsible waterways and shipping office in Emden extinguished the leading light because there was currently a sandbank running through the fairway. The tower continues to serve as a radar antenna carrier in the German-Dutch traffic safety system in the mouth of the Ems.