The lighthouse was designed by George Wells, and the components made at Chance Brothers in Smethwick in the West Midlands area of England.

[2] It was originally built 8 km (5.0 mi) out to sea from Cape Jaffa on the Margaret Brock Reef.

[citation needed] The federal government installed an automatic light to the structure in the early 1970s and handed operation to the National Trust of South Australia.

[citation needed] The lighthouse tower was moved to its present location in Kingston SE in 1976, where it became a museum.

[citation needed] An interactive display telling the tragic story of the 1852 shipwreck of the barque Margaret Brock was opened in 2016.