We felt so confident we could do it. Engineers devised a sophisticated hydraulic system to power the lighthouse along rails which movers kept slick with soap. The lighthouse basically floated on 100 rollers along seven rails, pushed by five hydraulic jacks. Each roller was attached to a 100-ton hydraulic jack so the structure could be tilted and aligned to remain perfectly vertical. The push jacks are on the left as the lighthouse moves toward the right.
Workers slide guide rails into the V-shaped guides on the steel mats.
Workers prepare the new foundation, with the lighthouse still at its old site in the distance. Basically, as it went over the terrain, it could move like a tricycle, Knott says. The rails moved along steel mats set atop gravel. Guides on the mats kept the rails aligned. When the lighthouse had moved over a section of land, workers picked up the gravel, steel mats and rails and moved them to the front of the lighthouse.