Saxby (Vormsi)
Coordinates: 59 ° 1 ' N , 23 ° 8' E
Saxby (German Saksbi , Estonian Swedish Saxbe ) is a village ( Estonian küla ) in the rural municipality of Vormsi ( Vormsi vald ) in Lääne County . The place is in the northwest of the fourth largest Estonian island Vormsi (German Worms , Swedish Ormsö ).
Population and history
Saxby has only four residents today (as of December 31, 2011). The village is only a few hundred meters from the west coast of Vormsis.
The place was first mentioned in 1540 under the name Saxby . In 1565 he is recorded as Saxeby . The village is said to have been founded by a German, hence the name "Sachsendorf". From 1588 to 1850 only Estonian-Swedish residents lived in Saxby .
lighthouse
Saxby's landmark is the lighthouse built in 1864, the oldest of the three Vormis lighthouses. It is the first lighthouse in Estonia to be built according to the system of the inventor Alexander Gordon . The lighthouse made of cast iron plates is 24 meters high. Its beam of light can be seen twelve nautical miles .
The other two lighthouses at Norrby did not enter service until 1935.
Near the Saxby lighthouse are the remains of the great sea fortifications that the Tsarist army built in the early 20th century.
literature
- Baltic historical local dictionary. Part 1: Estonia (including Northern Livonia). Started by Hans Feldmann . Published by Heinz von zur Mühlen . Edited by Gertrud Westermann . Cologne, Vienna 1985 (= sources and studies on Baltic history. Volume 8/1), ISBN 3-412-07183-8 , p. 528.
Web links
- Entry in Eesti Entsüklopeedia (online version)
- Saxby Lighthouse (Estonian Maritime Administration)
- History of the lighthouse (Estonian)