The semaphore kept an eye on users of the sea!
It was on 23 May 1864 that the semaphore station was commissioned on a high point of the Chaume dune known as "les dunes de la Vigie". At the time, its telegraphic capabilities made it the only communication channel between ships and land on the Sablais coast.
Although the first surveillance systems for French ships were set up at the request of Napoleon I, it was only when the semaphores were reactivated in 1862 that the decision was taken to set up the one at La Chaume. It was part of a vast network of 162 new semaphores built along the French coast, most of them before 1875. They were equipped with a telegraph to enable ships to transmit their communications, and were involved in rescue operations and gathering meteorological information.
Séraphin Chaigneau, an entrepreneur from Chaum, was commissioned to carry out the work. He built a T-shaped building, with the part facing the ocean raised by one storey to form a tower with a flat roof. It contained a total of 3 flats and a room on the first floor dedicated to surveillance and communication.
It was under the responsibility of a chief lookout and a lookout in charge of monitoring the Chaumoise coastline and the entrance to the port. They used two types of language: by means of a 'Dupillon'-type panel mast located on the roof terrace, they could emit signals based on the positions of the mast's articulated arms. This was complemented by a second mast placed forward for the signals of the "international code of signals" dating from 1856 and based on coloured flags, convertible into letters or words.
It was later equipped with the "Bréguet" dial telegraph system, which was eventually replaced by the Morse system at the end of the 19th century.
The La Chaume semaphore station was decommissioned on 30 June 1952. The town later acquired the land and then the semaphore itself on 10 October 1974.
From 1978 to 1997, the site was converted into a youth hostel before being sold and transformed into a tourist residence. The building is now divided into several private properties.
Born in Les Sables-d'Olonne, she developed a passion for history and heritage at an early age.
Passionate about architecture, she has set up a number of guided tours designed to showcase the local heritage, always seeking to link the built and the human.
