Casquets lighthouses per ton of ship when vessels passed the rocks and in turn he paid Trinity House 50 pounds per year for the right to run the lighthouses. The lighthouses reverted to Trinity House in 1785. They were converted to oil lamps with metal reflectors which were first used on 25 November 1790; and upgraded again with apparatus to rotate a beam of light in 1818. This had a clockwork mechanism which was wound up every hour and a half and gave one flash every 15 seconds. The lighthouses were badly damaged and the lanterns smashed in a severe storm on
Woody Island Lighthouses importance of the area for maritime and communication purposes. The Woody Island Lighthouses and Ancillary Buildings Site is associated with Commander George Poynter Heath, the first Portmaster of Queensland (1862–1890), a significant figure in the development of the Queensland lighthouse service. Heath was responsible for supervising the opening of 13 new ports, establishing 33 lighthouses, 6 lightships and 150 small lights and marking the inner route through the Barrier Reef. The place demonstrates rare, uncommon or endangered aspects of Queensland's cultural heritage. The Woody Island lighthouses are further significant as rare examples of twin lighthouses constructed along the Queensland coast.