Newhaven Lifeboat Station
Newhaven Lifeboat Station | |
---|---|
General information | |
Type | RNLI lifeboat station |
Architectural style | Steel-frame boathouse built on stanchions with brick and block construction |
Address | West Quay, |
Town or city | Newhaven, East Sussex, BN9 9BT |
Country | England |
Coordinates | 50°47′19″N 0°03′13″E / 50.78856°N 0.05374°E |
Opened | 1803–1809 re-established in 1825–1829 and 1852 |
Owner | Royal National Lifeboat Institution |
Website | |
Newhaven RNLI |
Newhaven Lifeboat Station is located in the port town of Newhaven in the English county of East Sussex, on the south coast of the United Kingdom.[1]
The original station was established in 1803 and taken over by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) in 1854.[2][3]
The station currently operates an All-weather lifeboat, the Severn-class David and Elizabeth Acland (ON 1243), on station since 1999, and a D-class (IB1) inshore lifeboat, Elaine McLeod Scott (D-812), on station since 2024.[4]
Location
Newhaven lifeboat station is situated on the west bank of the River Ouse within the Port of Newhaven, which is one of only two navigable harbours between the Isle of Wight to the west and Dover to the east. The Port of Newhaven[5] is a busy commercial port with a ferry terminal.[6] The harbour opens out onto the English Channel, one of the busiest stretches of waterway in the world.[7]
History
Newhaven’s first lifeboat was established in 1803[5] when a lifeboat which had been built to a design by Henry Greathead,[5] the pioneering rescue lifeboat builder from South Shields, was placed on station in the town. The boat was 22-feet long, and was 6-oared. The lifeboat was funded partly by a donation from Lloyd's of London, and the rest from locally raised donations.[8] The lifeboat was one of 31 of this type of lifeboat built by Greathead from his design of 1789 known as the Original. This type of lifeboat was designed to work in the shallow waters off the east coast of England,[9] but in small and open harbours like Newhaven, the Greathead-class boats were not popular because of their weight and the large number of crew needed to man them.[9] This may have been the case at Newhaven, as no record can be found that the boat was ever launched to a service.[5] In 1809 the boat was taken from the station and sent to Brighton.[2]
In 1825 the forerunner of the RNLI, the National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck, supplied a lifeboat to the town. There was still no boathouse in the town, and so this lifeboat when not in use was stored out in the open under a tarpaulin. This boat was in service at the town until 1829, when it was transferred to Cowes.[10]
There are no records of any other Newhaven lifeboat until 1852, when Newhaven was provided with a lifeboat by the Shipwrecked Fishermen and Mariners Royal Benevolent Society.[11] From 1851 the Society operated lifeboats, located at Lytham, Rhyl, Portmadoc, Tenby, Llanelli, Teignmouth, Hornsea and now Newhaven, but it was soon realised that it would be wiser if one organisation concentrated on rescuing lives at sea, whilst the other helped the survivors or their bereaved families. In 1854, the Society transferred its lifeboats to the RNLI.[12]
The RNLI's first life boat at Newhaven arrived in 1863. It had previously been on service at Boulmer and Thorpeness, and was extended to 35-feet by Forrestt of Limehouse, London, and for Newhaven was renamed Thomas Chapman. However, she only served Newhaven for four years, performing just one service, but rescuing five crew.[4]
A new boat arrived in 1867, a 33-foot self-righting lifeboat, also to be named Thomas Chapman, and built by Forrestt of London, costing £290-5s-0d. To house the new boat, Newhaven Lifeboat Station would finally get a boathouse, which was a brick built building on the west bank of the harbour, costing £471-8s-0d.[10]
In 1904, Newhaven became the first lifeboat station to operate a motor-powered lifeboat, when former Folkestone lifeboat J McConnell Hussey (ON 343) was temporarily assigned for trials. It had been fitted with an 11 h.p. engine, giving a speed of nearly 6knts.
She served Newhaven for 5 months, before being transferred to Tynemouth for further trials, but it was much liked by the crew, who requested that their regular boat, now the Michael Henry (ON 407) be also fitted with an engine. She was sent to Thames Ironworks, with a reserve lifeboat being placed on station until the return of Michael Henry in 1908.[10]
In 1909, the lifeboat house was extensively modified, and a new slipway was constructed.[13]
On 30 May 1940, the RNLI received a request from the Ministry of Shipping, to assemble as many lifeboats as possible at Dover within 24hrs. Newhaven Lifeboat Cecil and Lilian Philpott (ON 730) arrived in Dover the following morning. She was then used for the Dunkirk evacuation, making one trip and repatriating 51 men, finally arriving back on station on 11 June.[14]
A new Arun-class lifeboat, 52-32 Keith Anderson (ON 1106) arrived on service at Newhaven in 1985. Built by Wm. Osbourne of Littlehampton and costing £415,000, she was funded from the auction of a collection of Jewellery, donated by Mrs Esme Anderson in memory of her late husband.[10]
In November 1999, Newhaven's current lifeboat arrived on station. Costing £1,725,000, she is the 25-knot Severn-class lifeboat 17-21 David and Elizabeth Acland (ON 1243).[4]
Station honours
The following are awards made at Newhaven[13][15]
- John Sullivan, Seaman - 1827
- Lt. James Rawstone, RN - 1833
- Lt. Samuel Grandy, RN - 1833
- Thomas Morgan, Commanding, Revenue Cutter Stork - 1833
- Lt James Read, RN - 1833
- Mr Abraham H Young, Chief Boatman, HM Coastguard - 1849
- Charles Leese, Gunner - 1860
- Richard Payne, Coxswain - 1930
- Leonard Alfred John Peddlesden, Coxswain - 1944
- William Harvey, Coxswain - 1955
- Richard Payne, Coxswain - 1924
- Mr C J Skinner, decorator - 1926
- Benjamin Clark, crew member - 1944 (posthumous),
- Alfred Eager, crew member - 1944
- Stephen Holden, crew member - 1944
- Richard Lower, crew member - 1944
- Harold Moore, crew member - 1944
- Frederick Parker, crew member - 1944
- Stanley Winter, crew member - 1944
- The Maud Smith Award 1954
(for the bravest act of lifesaving during the year by a member of a lifeboat crew)
- William Harvey, Coxswain - 1955
- A Framed Letter of Thanks signed by the Chairman of the Institution
- Leonard Patten, Coxswain - 1988
- Ian Johns, Coxswain - 2006
- A Gold Watch from The King of Denmark
- Richard Payne, Coxswain - 1929
- A Silver Goblet from The King of Denmark
- Each of the crew - 1929
- Richard Kenneth Sayer, Honorary Secretary - 1969[16]
- Ian David Johns, Former Coxswain - 2012[17]
Newhaven lifeboats
All-weather lifeboats
ON[a] | Op.No.[b] | Name | In Service[18] | Class | Comments |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
– | – | Unnamed | 1803–1809 | Greathead | [Note 1] Transferred to Brighton in 1809.[10] |
– | – | Adeline | 1807–???? | Unknown | [Note 2] [10] |
Pre-099 | – | Unnamed | 1825–1829 | 18-foot Norfolk & Suffolk (P&S) | [Note 3] Transferred to Cowes in 1829[10] |
Pre-245 | – | Friend in Need | 1852–1863 | 29-foot Self-righting (P&S) | [Note 4] |
Pre-247 | – | Thomas Chapman | 1863–1867 | 30-foot Self-righting (P&S) | [Note 5] Previously Prudhoe at Boulmer |
Pre-485 | – | Thomas Chapman Elizabeth Boys from 1870– |
1867–1877 | 33-foot Self-righting (P&S) | [Note 6] [10] |
Pre-571 | – | Michael Henry | 1877–1881 | 37-foot Self-righting (P&S) | [Note 7] |
211 | – | Michael Henry | 1881–1897 | 37-foot Self-righting (P&S) | [Note 8] |
407 | – | Michael Henry | 1897–1905 | 37-foot Self-righting (P&S) | [Note 9] |
343 | – | J. McConnel Hussey | 1904 | 38-foot Self-righting (Motor) | [Note 10] |
265 | – | Quiver No.1 | 1905–1908 | 37-foot 2in Self-righting (P&S) | |
407 | – | Michael Henry | 1908–1912 | 37-foot Self-righting (Motor) | |
628 | – | Sir Fitzroy Clayton | 1912–1918 | 38-foot Self-righting (Motor) | [Note 11] |
Station Temporarily Closed 1918–1919 | |||||
628 | – | Sir Fitzroy Clayton | 1919–1930 | 38-foot Self-righting (Motor) | |
730 | – | Cecil and Lilian Philpott | 1930–1959 | 45ft 6in Watson | [19][20] |
950 | – | Kathleen Mary | 1959–1977 | 47ft Watson | Last slipway launched boat |
1045 | 44-019 | Louis Marchesi of Round Table | 1977–1985 | Waveney | |
1106 | 52-32 | Keith Anderson | 1985–1999 | Arun | |
1243 | 17-21 | David and Elizabeth Acland | 1999– | Severn |
- 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 [4] | Class | Comments |
---|---|---|---|---|
D-774 | Arthur Hamilton | 2022–2024 | D-class (IB1) | |
D-812 | Elaine McLeod Scott | 2024– | D-class (IB1) |
Neighbouring Station Locations
See also
Notes
- ^ 22-foot Greathead lifeboat, built by Henry Greathead of South Shields, costing £120 when new.
- ^ Built by Christopher Wilson of London
- ^ 18-foot (4-oared) Norfolk & Suffolk (P&S) lifeboat, built by William Plenty of Newbury, Berkshire, costing £90.
- ^ 29-foot (10-oared) Self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, built by James Beeching of Great Yarmouth, costing £125.
- ^ 30-foot Self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, built by James Beeching of Great Yarmouth, extended to 35-foot by Forrestt of Limehouse.
- ^ 33-foot Self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, built by Forrestt of Limehouse.
- ^ 37-foot Self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, built by Forrestt of Limehouse.
- ^ 37-foot Self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, built by Woolfe of Shadwell, costing £430.
- ^ 37-foot (12-oared) Self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, built by the Thames Ironworks of Blackwall, London, costing £728.
- ^ First RNLI motor-powered lifeboat
- ^ Lifeboat sent away for trials at The Lizard.
References
- ^ OS Explorer map 122: Brighton and Hove. Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publishing Date:2009. ISBN 978 0319240816
- ^ a b For Those In Peril – The Lifeboat Service of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, Station by Station. Author: Leach, Nicholas. Publisher: Silver Link Publishing Ltd, First Issue 1999. Work:Part 2, South Coast of England – Eastbourne to Weston-super-Mare, Page 71, Newhaven Lifeboat Station. ISBN 1 85794 129 2
- ^ "Newhaven's station history". Newhaven Lifeboat Station. RNLI. Retrieved 29 November 2024.
- ^ a b c d Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2024). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2024. Lifeboats Enthusiasts Society. pp. 4–132.
- ^ a b c d Heroes All! – The story of the RNLI. Author: Beilby, Alec. Publisher: Patrick Stephens Ltd, First edition, 1992. Work; Chapter 17, Page 170, description of the Station. ISBN 9 781852604196
- ^ Ports of the World – 1979. Editor: Reithmuller, John. Publisher: Derek H. Deere. Thirty Second Edition. Work: Page 109, The Port of Newhaven. ISBN 0510491553
- ^ "The Dover Strait". Reference to the amount of shipping in the channel. Maritime and Coastguard Agency. 2007. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
- ^ "Historic Newhaven". Reference to the funding of the Greathead lifeboat. Newhaven Town Council. Archived from the original on 13 April 2014. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
- ^ a b Riders of the Storm – The story of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. Author: Cameron, Ian. Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson. First Edition, 2002. Work: Chapter 1, Beyond all human aid. Page 19. reference to the Greathead lifeboat and its utilization. ISBN 9780297607908
- ^ a b c d e f g h Morris, Jeff (December 1999). The Story of the Newhaven Lifeboats (3rd ed.). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 1–30.
- ^ "History of the Shipwrecked Mariners Society". History Details about the SFMRBS. Shipwrecked Fishermen and Mariners’ Royal Benevolent Society. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
- ^ "Our History". Shipwrecked Mariners' Society. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
- ^ a b "Newhaven's station history". RNLI. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
- ^ "1940: Dunkirk little ships". RNLI. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
- ^ Cox, Barry (1998). Lifeboat Gallantry. Spink & Son Ltd. ISBN 0-907605-89-3.
- ^ "British Empire Medal (Civil Division)". The Gazette. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
- ^ "Ordinary Members of the Civil Division of the said Most Excellent Order of the British Empire". The Gazette. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
- ^ Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2021). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2021. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 2–18.
- ^ "Cecil and Lilian Philpott". Dunkirk Little Ships. Retrieved 9 March 2024.
- ^ "The Newhaven Lifeboat Cecil & Lilian Philpott". Dunkirk1940.org. Retrieved 9 March 2024.