Smeaton's Tower stood were becoming eroded. Each time a large wave hit, the lighthouse shook from side to side. Smeaton's Tower ceased operation in 1879 with the illumination of Douglass's Tower on an adjacent rock. In 1882 the upper part of Smeaton's Tower was dismantled and rebuilt as a memorial to Smeaton on a new base on Plymouth Hoe, replacing the triangular obelisk that had been built there by Trinity House as a navigation aid in the early 19th century. It was opened to the public by the Mayor of Plymouth on 24 September 1884. The foundation and stub of the old
Donald Mackenzie Smeaton Donald Mackenzie Smeaton Donald Mackenzie Smeaton (9 September 1848 – 19 April 1910), son of David James Smeaton, was a Scottish politician who was the Liberal MP for Stirlingshire from January 1906 until January 1910. Smeaton was educated at the Abbey Park Institution, St. Andrew's, a boarding school run by his father, at which not less than 80 young men were boarded and educated. He then attended the University of St Andrews, where he graduated with an M.A. degree. Arriving in India in 1867, Smeaton held minor appointments in the North-Western Provinces. On 5 September 1873 Smeaton married Annette Louisa