Whitehaven Lifeboat Station
| Whitehaven Lifeboat Station | |
|---|---|
 | |
 First site of Whitehaven Lifeboat Station | |
  Whitehaven, Cumbria | |
| General information | |
| Status | Closed |
| Type | RNLI Lifeboat Station |
| Location | (Old) New Quay |
| Town or city | Whitehaven, Cumbria |
| Country | England |
| Coordinates | 54°33′03.0″N 3°35′50.0″W / 54.550833°N 3.597222°W |
| Opened | 1804 / RNLI 1865 |
| Closed | 1924 |
Whitehaven Lifeboat Station was located in the town of Whitehaven, Cumberland, Cumbria.
A lifeboat was first stationed here in 1804. The station was transferred to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) in 1865.[1]
On 18 Dec 1924, Whitehaven Lifeboat Station was closed.[2]
History
[edit]At a meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Town and Harbour of Whitehaven, on 30 September 1803, a decision was made to order for Whitehaven, the largest size of lifeboat available, from pioneering lifeboat builder Henry Greathead of South Shields. According to Greathead's documents, the 1½ ton (unnamed) boat for Whitehaven was a 12-oar 28-foot lifeboat, costing £149.[3]
After a 4-day trip overland from South Shields, the boat arrived in Whitehaven on 10 January 1804.[4]
It would be nearly 10 years until the boat was needed, when the vessel Brothers of Workington was washed ashore on 17 November 1813, at the entrance to the harbour. Even then, the lifeboat was not immediately available, its storage location at the time is unknown, and so the harbour boat with a crew of five, was first dispatched to the vessel. Sadly, one of those five crew, Thomas Farrell, was lost overboard. At a review following this incident by the harbour trustees in March 1814, a plan was made to provide a new lifeboat house on the New Quay.[5]
In July 1865, it would appear that the transfer of the provision of a lifeboat at Whitehaven, from the Trustees to the RNLI, was at the instigation of the RNLI. A Miss Leicester, of London, had approached the RNLI, with an offer to fund a lifeboat specifically for Whitehaven.[6]
A 33-foot 10-oar self-righting boat, Robert Whitworth, costing £255 and built in 1864 by Forrestt of Limehouse, London, had served at Tynemouth for one year, and had then been transferred to Bridlington. However, she was found too heavy for Bridlington due to the soft sand, and it was this boat that was then placed at Whitehaven. A new boat house was constructed north of the North Pier, on land that is now Whitehaven Marina Yard, funded by the Harbour Commissioners. The boat arrived on 29 March 1866, and was renamed Elizabeth, after the donor's mother.[7]
On 14 November 1871, the sloop Demetian Lass (Dometian Lass) was abandoned whilst on passage from Runcorn, to the Isle of Skye, Outer Hebrides, before she drifted back out to sea. Her crew of four were rescued by the Whitehaven lifeboat.[8]
Whitehaven got another boat in 1875, officially placed at Whitehaven No.2 station. This was actually Seascale Lifeboat Station, some 13 miles down the coast, but with all the crew being Whitehaven men. The station was closed in 1895, the lifeboat having launching just four times in 20 years, and having carried out just one successful rescue of 3 men, in its first year.[9] For more information, please see –
Two more lifeboats were assigned to Whitehaven, the first in 1884 and then one in 1903. Both were named Elizabeth Leicester.[10]
On 10 May 1885, the Norwegian barque Thorsbjerg parted both her cables, and was driven ashore, while awaiting the tide to enter the port. Her crew of nine, and the Pilot, were rescued by the Whitehaven Lifeboat Elizabeth Leicester (ON 78).[11][12]
The 1865 boathouse was demolished in 1909, with a new one constructed on the same site. In 1924, it was noted that there had been no service calls since February 1918, over six years. At a meeting of the RNLI Committee of Management on 18 Dec 1924, the decision was taken to close the station with immediate effect. Six Whitehaven lifeboats had been called upon 19 times, and saved 33 lives, plus the whole crew of the Thistle in 1819, whose numbers were not recorded.[13]
Whitehaven lifeboats
[edit]Whitehaven
[edit]| ON[a] | Name | On Station[13][14] | Class | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| − | Unnamed | 1804−1823 | Greathead | non-self righting |
| − | Unnamed | 1823−1853 | 27-foot Greathead type | 10-oar non-self-righting |
| − | Unnamed | 1853−1866 | 27-foot Peake | |
| Pre-419 | Elizabeth | 1866−1884 | 33-foot Self-righting (P&S) | First RNLI Lifeboat at Whitehaven. Recorded as Elizabeth Leicester on the service board, but as Elizabeth on all other documents. |
| 78 | Elizabeth Leicester | 1884−1903 | 34-foot Self-righting (P&S) | |
| 507 | Elizabeth Leicester | 1903−1924 | 35-foot Self-righting (P&S) | Sold 1924. Last reported as a derelict yacht at Newport, Wales in 2004 |
- ^ ON is the RNLI's Official Number of the boat.
- Pre ON numbers are unofficial numbers used by the Lifeboat Enthusiast Society to reference early lifeboats not included on the official RNLI list.
Whitehaven No.2 Station
[edit]Please see Seascale Lifeboat Station
See also
[edit]Notes
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2025). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2025. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. p. 122.
- ^ Leonard & Denton 2025, p. 122.
- ^ Morgan, Trevor; Ramsden, Neville (1975). History of the Whitehaven (Whitehaven No. 1) and Seascale (Whitehaven No. 2) Lifeboats'. pp. 1–14.
- ^ "Whitehaven Lifeboat". West Cumberland Times. 23 October 1804.
- ^ Morris, Jeff (2011). The Story of the Whitehaven and Seascale Lifeboats. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 1–46.
- ^ "Whitehaven Lifeboat". Whitehaven News. 18 July 1865.
- ^ Leonard & Denton 2025, p. 10.
- ^ "Latest Shipping Intelligence". Daily News. No. 7972. London. 16 November 1871.
- ^ Morgan & Ramsden 1975, pp. 5–8.
- ^ Leonard & Denton 2025, pp. 20, 36.
- ^ "Severe Gale In The North. Loss of Life And Damage To The Fishing-fleet". The Cornishman. No. 356. 14 May 1885. p. 6.
- ^ "Thorsbjerg". The Lifeboat. XII (138): 672. November 1885. Retrieved 15 June 2025.
- ^ a b Morgan & Ramsden 1975, p. 1–14.
- ^ Leonard & Denton 2025, pp. 10–36.