Cullercoats Lifeboat Station
| Cullercoats Lifeboat Station | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Cullercoats Lifeboat Station | |
  Cullercoats, Tyne and Wear | |
| General information | |
| Type | RNLI Lifeboat Station |
| Location | Cullercoats Lifeboat Station |
| Address | Cullercoats Harbour, North Side |
| Town or city | Cullercoats, Tyne and Wear, NE30 4PZ |
| Country | UK |
| Coordinates | 55°02′07.7″N 1°25′55.3″W / 55.035472°N 1.432028°W |
| Opened | 1852 |
| Owner | Royal National Lifeboat Institution |
| Website | |
| Cullercoats RNLI Lifeboat Station | |
Listed Building – Grade II | |
| Feature | Cullercoats Lifeboat Station (1896) |
| Designated | 22 March 2013 |
| Reference no. | 1411983[1] |
Cullercoats Lifeboat Station is located on the north side of Cullercoats Harbour, in the town of Cullercoats, North Tyneside, in the county of Tyne and Wear.
A lifeboat was first stationed here by the Royal National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck (RNIPLS) in 1852, which became the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) in 1854.[2]
The Cullercoats RNLI station currently operates a B-class (Atlantic 85) Inshore lifeboat Daddy's Girl (B-935), on station since 2022.[3]
History
[edit]In 1852, Algernon Percy, 4th Duke of Northumberland, president of the RNIPLS, made funds available for the provision of a lifeboat at Cullercoats. A 36-foot long, 15-foot wide, stone-built boathouse was constructed, also at the expense of the Duke. A modified lifeboat, based on the prize-winning design of James Beeching, was created by James Peake, Master Shipwright at Woolwich Royal Naval Dockyard, and a carriage to transport the boat was designed by Col. Colquhoun, RA, Master-General of Ordnance. Both lifeboat and carriage arrived in Cullercoats on 3 September 1852, the boat being named Percy in honour of the Duke.[4]
By 1858, Percy was found to be suffering from dry rot. A replacement 32-foot 10-oared Peake-class lifeboat was ordered from Forrestt of Limehouse, London, costing £174, and requiring a larger carriage, costing a further £80-5s-0d. Costs were again funded by the Duke of Northumberland, and the boat was once again named Percy.[4]
A replacement boathouse was constructed in 1866 to accommodate the larger 33-foot lifeboat Palmerston. Thirty years later, a third boathouse was constructed in 1896. A brick structure, it was built on the site of the 1866 boathouse, and cost £750. Funded by the Co-operative wholesale society, who had also funded a lifeboat Co-operator No.1 (ON 5) in 1884, it was opened on 8 August 1896 by Mr Tweedell, chairman of the Newcastle branch of the Society. It is still in use to this day, and is grade II listed by Historic England.[5][6]
The era of Pulling and Sailing lifeboats (those with oars and sails) at Cullercoats came to an end in 1937, with the arrival of a Liverpool-class motor-powered lifeboat (which would also still have sails), the Richard Silver Oliver (ON 794). The boat had a single 35-hp engine, delivering a speed of 7.33 knots, and cost £3,684. After 85 years, this would also be the first non-self-righting lifeboat at Cullercoats, which 2 years later would prove very costly.[7]
On a training exercise in 1939, the lifeboat was capsized off Sharpness Point. 6 crewmen were lost, including the Coxswain and the Honorary Secretary. The remaining crew refused to use another non-self-righting lifeboat, and the station was closed until the arrival of a self-righting boat in 1940.[5][8]
Following a coastal review in 1968, with All-weather lifeboats at flanking stations Blyth and Tynemouth, and with a D-class Inshore lifeboat at Cullercoats since 1965, the RNLI decided to withdraw the Cullercoats All-weather lifeboat. 37-08 Sir James Knott (ON 975) was formally withdrawn on 4 May 1969, being transferred to the Relief fleet, and then to Redcar in 1972. Over the following years, the D-class lifeboats would be replaced with a larger twin engine C-class lifeboat, and then in 1991, a B-class (Atlantic 21).[4]
Station honours
[edit]The following are awards made at Cullercoats.[5][9]
- Alexander Donkin – 1827
- The medal for this service was stolen and a new medal was re-issued in 1833.
- John Redford, Coxswain – 1853
- Andrew Taylor, Coxswain – 1898
- The Thanks of the Institution inscribed on Vellum
- Major William Adamson, Honorary Secretary – 1886
- Brian Gould, Helm – 1995
- Robert Oliver, Helm – 1996
- Robert Oliver, Helm – 2012
- The Walter and Elizabeth Groombridge Award 1996
(for the outstanding inshore lifeboat rescue of the year)
- Robert Oliver, Helm – 1997
- A Framed Letter of Thanks signed by the Chairman of the Institution
- Mark Charlton, crew member – 1996
- David Pendlington, crew member – 1996
- Robert Oliver – 2010
- Peter Clark – 2010
- Grahame Wood – 2010
- Gary Hawksford – 2010
- Grahame Wood, crew member – 2012
- Stephen Potts, crew member – 2012
- Exceptional First Aid Certificate
- Ross Dun, crew member – 2011
- Grahame Wood, crew member – 2011
- Raymond James Taylor, Honorary Secretary – 1995[10]
- Geoffrey Cowan, Community Safety Officer – 2020[11]
Roll of honour
[edit]In memory of those lost whilst serving Cullercoats lifeboat.[5]
- Liverpool-class lifeboat Richard Silver Oliver (ON 794), a non-self-righting lifeboat, capsized on exercise, 22 April 1939
- George Brunton, Coxswain
- J Redford Armstrong, Second Coxswain
- J Leonard Abel, Motor Mechanic
- John Heddon Scott, Assistant Mechanic
- Lt. Cmdr Lionel E R Blakeney-Booth, RN, Honorary Secretary
- Kenneth L Biggar, naval cadet
Cullercoats lifeboats
[edit]All-weather lifeboats
[edit]| ON[a] | Op. No.[b] | Name | On Station[12] | Class | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-250 | – | Percy | 1852–1859 | 30-foot Self-righting Peake (P&S) | [Note 1] |
| Pre-351 | – | Percy | 1859–1865 | 32-foot Self-righting Peake (P&S) | [Note 2] |
| Pre-452 | – | Palmerston | 1866–1884 | 33-foot 1in Self-righting (P&S) | [Note 3] |
| 5 | – | Co-operator No.1 | 1884–1907 | 37-foot 1in Self-righting (P&S) | [Note 4] |
| 571 | – | Co-operator No.1 | 1907–1937 | 37-foot 6in Self-righting (P&S) | [Note 5] |
| 794 | – | Richard Silver Oliver | 1937–1939 | Liverpool | [Note 6] |
| Station Closed 1939–1940 | |||||
| 727 | – | Westmorland | 1940–1951 | 35ft 6in Self-righting motor | |
| 880 | – | Isaac and Mary Bolton | 1951–1963 | 35ft 6in Self-righting motor | |
| 975 | 37-08 | Sir James Knott | 1963–1969 | Oakley | |
- All-weather lifeboat withdrawn in 1969
- 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
[edit]D-class and C-class
[edit]| Op. No.[b] | Name | On Station[13] | Class | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| D-50 | Unnamed | 1965 | D-class (RFD PB16) | |
| D-87 | Unnamed | 1966–1968 | D-class (RFD PB16) | |
| D-100 | Unnamed | 1969–1974 | D-class (RFD PB16) | |
| D-229 | Unnamed | 1975–1984 | D-class (Zodiac III) | |
| C-512 | Unnamed | 1984–1991 | C-class (Zodiac Grand Raid) | formerly D-512 |
B-class
[edit]| Op. No.[b] | Name | On Station[14] | Class | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| B-514 | Guide Friendship 1 | 1991–1992 | B-class (Atlantic 21) | |
| B-591 | Edmund and Joan White | 1992–2006 | B-class (Atlantic 21) | |
| B-590 | Wolverson X-Ray | 2006–2007 | B-class (Atlantic 21) | |
| B-811 | Hylton Burdon | 2007–2022 | B-class (Atlantic 85) | |
| B-935 | Daddy's Girl | 2022– | B-class (Atlantic 85) |
Launch and recovery tractors
[edit]| Op. No.[b] | Reg. No. | Type | On Station[15] | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| T19 | TY 2547 | Clayton | 1949–1951 | |
| T5 | IJ 3424 | Clayton | 1951–1954 | |
| T14 | XW 2075 | Clayton | 1954–1955 | |
| T35 | FYM 558 | Case L | 1955–1963 | |
| T71 | 519 GYM | Case 1000D | 1963–1969 | |
| TW18H | H710 RUX | Talus MB-4H Hydrostatic Mk1.5 | 1991–1993 | |
| TW22H | K501 AUX | Talus MB-4H Hydrostatic Mk2 | 1993–2004 | |
| TW21H | J495 XUJ | Talus MB-4H Hydrostatic Mk2 | 2004–2017 | |
| TW59H | DU04 DVW | Talus MB-4H Hydrostatic Mk2 | 2017– |
See also
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ^ 30-foot 10-oared Self-righting (P&S) lifeboat
- ^ 32-foot 10-oared Self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, built by Forrestt of Limehouse, London
- ^ 33-foot 10-oared Self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, built by Forrestt of Limehouse, London
- ^ 37-foot 1in 10-oared Self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, built by Forrestt of Limehouse, London
- ^ 37-foot 6in Self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, built by Thames Ironworks.
- ^ Capsized on exercise, 1939, with the loss of 6 crew. The station was closed until 1940.
References
[edit]- ^ Historic England, "Cullercoats Lifeboat Station (1411983)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 16 May 2024
- ^ Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2025). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2025. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. p. 115.
- ^ Leonard & Denton 2025, p. 85.
- ^ a b c Morris, Jeff (June 1994). The History of the Cullercoats Lifeboats. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 1–46.
- ^ a b c d "Cullercoats' station history". RNLI. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
- ^ "Cullercoats Lifeboat Station". Historic England. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
- ^ Leonard & Denton 2025, pp. 48–49.
- ^ Heslop, Anna (18 April 2019). "80th Anniversary of Cullercoats Lifeboat Disaster". RNLI. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
- ^ Cox, Barry (1998). Lifeboat Gallantry. Spink & Son Ltd. ISBN 0907605893.
- ^ "Ordinary Members of the Civil Division of the said Most Excellent Order of the British Empire". The Gazette. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
- ^ "British Empire Medal (Civil Division)". The Gazette. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
- ^ Leonard & Denton 2025, pp. 4–49, 46–57.
- ^ Leonard & Denton 2025, pp. 87–90, 102.
- ^ Leonard & Denton 2025, pp. 81–85.
- ^ Leonard & Denton 2025, pp. 103–109.