Eyemouth Lifeboat Station

Eyemouth Lifeboat Station
Eyemouth Lifeboat Station
Eyemouth Lifeboat Station is located in Scottish Borders
Eyemouth Lifeboat Station
Eyemouth, Scottish Borders
General information
TypeRNLI Lifeboat Station
AddressGunsgreen Quay
Town or cityEyemouth, Berwickshire, TD14 5SD
CountryScotland, UK
Coordinates55°52′20″N 2°5′10″W / 55.87222°N 2.08611°W / 55.87222; -2.08611
Opened1876
Owner Royal National Lifeboat Institution
Website
https://rnli.org/find-my-nearest/lifeboat-stations/eyemouth-lifeboat-station

Eyemouth Lifeboat Station is located at the harbour town of Eyemouth, in the Scottish Borders, Scotland.

A lifeboat was first stationed here in 1876 by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI).[1]

The station currently operates a Shannon-class All-weather lifeboat 13-29 Helen Hastings (ON 1336), on station since 2018, and a D-class (IB1) Inshore lifeboat Sheila (D-877), since 2023.[1]

History

In December 1875, the town was visited by Capt. Gray-Jones, RNLI Assistant Inspector of Lifeboats, to assess the viability of a lifeboat placed here. With over 350 fishermen, there was an obvious case for a lifeboat, and a shortage of crew unlikely. A station was agreed.[2]

An order was placed with Woolfe of Shadwell for a 30-foot 8-oared self-righting 'pulling and sailing' (P&S) lifeboat, one with oars and sails, at a cost of £275. A launch carriage from Napton & Co. cost a further £117-5s-0d. A boathouse was constructed by Mr. J. Berry along the East Pier, along with a launchway, costing £517-10s-0d. Having been transported by rail from London to Burnmouth, the lifeboat and carriage were hauled by six horses through the town on 6 October 1876, to a ceremony at the beach, where the boat was named James & Rachel Grindlay by Mrs Grindlay, the boat being funded from the legacy of Mr. T Grindley of Edinburgh.[2]

A new boathouse was constructed in 1908, next to the old boathouse, but set 90° to face the river. Along with a new launchway, the total cost was £998-4s-11d. It was able to accommodate a slightly larger boat, the 35-foot Anne Francis (ON 592).

The Anne Francis was launched on 6 March 1917 to the aid of the schooner Livlig of Norway, wrecked off St Abb's Head, One crewman had been lost, with the seven remaining crew clinging to the rigging. With considerable skill in violent seas, Coxswain William Miller got the lifeboat alongside, and the seven men were rescued. Considering the conditions, the lifeboat then made the long journey around to Granton, Edinburgh to find safe harbour. Coxswain Miller was awarded the RNLI Bronze Medal.[3][4]

Eyemouth would get a motor-powered lifeboat in 1937. A Liverpool-class lifeboat, costing £3,835, with a top speed of 7.66 knots. At a ceremony on 21 Aug 1937, the boat was named Frank and William Oates (ON 795), the donor being their third brother Charles George Oates of Leeds. Frank Oates (1840–1875) was a British naturalist, and along with his brother William, had explored Africa. All three brothers were uncles to Capt. Lawrence Oates of the Scott Antarctic Terra Nova Expedition of 1910.[1]

Harbour works in 1963 would require the demolition of the lifeboat launchway. The station was closed temporarily, and the Clara and Emily Barwell (ON 893) was withdrawn. Replaced in 1964 by a larger 46ft Watson-class lifeboat, Swn-Y-Mor (Civil Service No.6), the Eyemouth lifeboats have since been moored afloat.[2]

Trent-class lifeboat 14-11 Barclaycard Crusader at Eyemouth

A new single-story station building was constructed on Gunsgreen Quay in 1992, followed by the arrival in 1996 of a new Trent-class lifeboat 14-11 Barclaycard Crusader (ON 1209), a 25-knot boat, costing £1,060,000. A new £107,000 pontoon berth was constructed in 2008, and a D-class (IB1) Inshore lifeboat was also placed on station in 2015.[5]

In 2018, the Trent-class lifeboat was withdrawn to the relief fleet, and Eyemouth would receive a £2.2 million Shannon-class lifeboat, 13-29 Helen Hastings (ON 1336)[1][6]

Station honours

The following are awards made to the crew of Eyemouth Lifeboat Station[5][4]

For the rescue of two skin-divers north west of Ebb Carr Rocks on 6 October 1990
James A Dougal, Acting Coxswain/Assistant Mechanic - 1991
For the rescue of 7 men of the Norwegian steamer Livlig on 6 March 1917
William Miller, Coxswain - 1917
  • The Maud Smith Award 1990
    (awarded for the bravest act of lifesaving during the year by a member of a lifeboat crew)
For the rescue of two skin-divers north west of Ebb Carr Rocks on 6 October 1990
James A Dougal, Acting Coxswain/Assistant Mechanic - 1991
  • The Thanks of the Institution inscribed on Vellum
For the rescue of two skin-divers north west of Ebb Carr Rocks on 6 October 1990
John Buchan, crewman - 1991
David Collin, crewman - 1991
George Walker, crewman - 1991
Joseph Walker, crewman - 1991
Robert Walker, crewman - 1991
Alister Crombie, crewman - 1991
For the rescue of three crew of the launch Norman Forster on 17 October 1992
John Johnston, Coxswain - 1993
  • A Framed Letter of Thanks signed by the Chairman of the Institution
For the rescue of three lives of the trawler Hatcliffe on 25 March 1983
A Dougal, Coxswain - 1983
J Aitchison, Second Coxswain - 1983
J Tarvit, Second Coxswain/Mechanic - 1983
J Dougal, Acting Assistant Mechanic - 1983
A Redden, crew member - 1983
J Buchan, crew member - 1983
J Purves, crew member - 1983
I Dougal, crew member - 1983
John Duncan Johnston, former Coxswain - 2007NYH[7]

Eyemouth lifeboats

All-weather lifeboats

ON[a] Op. No.[b] Name In service[1] Class Comments
Pre-616 – James & Rachel Grindlay 1876–1888 30-foot Self Righting (P&S) [Note 1][8]
157 – James & Rachel Grindlay 1888–1901 34-foot Self Righting (P&S) [Note 2]
345 – Sarah Pickard 1901–1909 34-foot Self Righting (P&S) [Note 3]
592 – Anne Frances 1909–1937 35-foot Self Righting (P&S) [Note 4]
795 – Frank & William Oates 1937–1951 Liverpool
893 – Clara and Emily Barwell 1951–1963 Liverpool
Station Closed 1963–1964 due to Harbour reconstruction works
784 – Swn-Y-Mor
(Civil Service No.6) 		1964–1967 46ft Watson
820 – Louise Stephens 1967–1974 46ft Watson
1026 44-008 Eric Seal
(Civil Service No.36) 		1974–1996 Waveney
1209 14-11 Barclaycard Crusader 1996–2019 Trent
1336 13-29 Helen Hastings 2018– Shannon [9]
Pre ON numbers are unofficial numbers used by the Lifeboat Enthusiast Society to reference early lifeboats not included on the official RNLI list.

Inshore lifeboats

Op. No.[b] Name In service [1] Class Comments
D-745 MyWay 2015–2023 D-class (IB1)
D-877 Sheila 2023– D-class (IB1) [10]

Launch and recovery tractors

Op. No.[b] Reg. No. Type In service[1] Comments
T52 KXT 420 Case LA 1949–1958
T46 KGP 1 Case LA 1958–1963
  1. ^ ON is the RNLI's Official Number of the boat.
  2. ^ a b c Op. No. is the RNLI's Operational Number of the boat or vehicle carried on the hull.

See also

Notes

  1. ^ 30-foot Self Righting (P&S), built by Woolfe of Shadwell, costing £275.
  2. ^ 34-foot 10-Oared Self Righting (P&S), built by Watkins of Blackwall, London, costing £362.
  3. ^ 34-foot 10-Oared Self Righting (P&S), formerly at Dunbar.
  4. ^ 35-foot 10-Oared Self Righting (P&S), built by Thames Ironworks, costing £828.

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2024). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2024. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 4–132.
  2. ^ a b c Morris, Jeff (July 1996). The History of the Eyemouth Lifeboats. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 1–46.
  3. ^ "Livlig". The Lifeboat. 23 (263). August 1917. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  4. ^ a b Cox, Barry (1998). Lifeboat Gallantry. Spink & Son Ltd. ISBN 0 907605 89 3.
  5. ^ a b "Eyemouth's station history". RNLI. Retrieved 8 January 2024.
  6. ^ "Eyemouth Shannon class lifeboat to be named Helen Hastings". RNLI. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
  7. ^ "Ordinary Members of the Civil Division of the said Most Excellent Order of the British Empire". The Gazette. Retrieved 14 February 2024.
  8. ^ Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2021). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2021 (2021 ed.). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 2–120.
  9. ^ "Eyemouth RNLI officially names its new Shannon class lifeboat". RNLI. 2 June 2019. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  10. ^ Lorimer, Wendy (16 September 2023). "Eyemouth RNLI volunteers celebrate lifeboat naming ceremony". RNLI. Retrieved 10 February 2024.