Cullercoats_Lifeboat_Station
Cullercoats Lifeboat Station
Lifeboat station in Tyne and Wear, England
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.
| Cullercoats Lifeboat Station | |
|---|---|
Cullercoats Lifeboat Station | |
| 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 |
| Opened | 1852 RNIPLS |
| Owner |  Royal National Lifeboat Institution |
| Website | |
| https://rnli.org/find-my-nearest/lifeboat-stations/cullercoats-lifeboat-station | |
Listed Building – Grade II | |
| Feature | Cullercoats Lifeboat Station (1896) |
| Designated | 22 March 2013 |
| Reference no. | 1411983[1] |
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 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.[2]
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.[3]
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.[3]
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.[4][5]
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.[2]
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.[4][6]
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).[2][3]
The following are awards made at Cullercoats.[4][7]
- Alexander Donkin, 1827
- The Medal for this service was stolen and re-issued as a new Medal 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, Helmsman - 1995
- Robert Oliver, Helmsman - 1996
- Robert Oliver, Helmsman - 2012
- The Walter and Elizabeth Groombridge Award 1996
(for the outstanding inshore lifeboat rescue of the year)
- Robert Oliver, Helmsman - 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[8]
- Geoffrey Cowan, Community Safety Officer - 2020[9]
In memory of those lost whilst serving Cullercoats lifeboat.[4]
- 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
All-weather lifeboats
| ON[lower-alpha 1] | Op. No.[lower-alpha 2] | Name | In service[10] | Class | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| – | – | Percy | 1852–1859 | 30-foot Self-righting Peake (P&S) | [Note 1] |
| – | – | Percy | 1859–1865 | 32-foot Self-righting Peake (P&S) | [Note 2] |
| – | – | 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
Inshore lifeboats
| Op. No.[lower-alpha 2] | Name | In service[2] | 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-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
| Op. No.[lower-alpha 2] | Reg. No. | Type | In service[2] | 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– | |
- 30-foot 10-oared Self-righting (P&S) lifeboat
- 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.
- Historic England, "Cullercoats Lifeboat Station (1411983)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 16 May 2024
- Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2024). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2024. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 4–132.
- Morris, Jeff (June 1994). The History of the Cullercoats Lifeboats. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 1–46.
- "Cullercoats' station history". RNLI. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
- "Cullercoats Lifeboat Station". Historic England. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
- 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 0-907605-89-3.
- "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, Richie; Denton, Tony (2021). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2021. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 2–120.