[6] Work began on the towers the following year: they were built on high and low ground either side of Pow burn, which flows into the Tyne at 'the Narrows' (the narrowest point of the river mouth).

A keeper was paid 20 shillings a year to keep a tallow candle alight in each tower every night for a certain number of hours either side of high tide.

The towers were increased in height at around this time; they are depicted on Ralph Gardner's map of 1655, still with their battlements (they were built with a defensive as well as a navigational purpose in mind).

To try to address this, the lighthouses were replaced in 1658 by moveable wooden structures; these proved unreliable, however, and in the 1680s Newcastle's Trinity House was seeking funds to repair the stone towers.

[7] In 1672 the Low Light found itself enclosed by Clifford's Fort, constructed that year to help defend the Tyne from coastal attack.

[14] It served as a fish warehouse during the 20th century; saved from dereliction in 1988, it became a training centre for the Deep Sea Fisheries Association and latterly was occupied by the Maritime Volunteer Service.

By the early 21st century the building was in a poor state of repair, but it was comprehensively refurbished after the MVS departed in 2011 and a modern annexe with viewing platform was added.

The Old Low Light subsequently opened to the public in 2014 as a museum and community resource; it contains a ground-floor café, a permanent exhibition on the first floor (telling the history of the lighthouses, Clifford's Fort and Fish Quay) and an event space above it.