Harwich Lifeboat Station is located at The Quay, at the northern tip of the Harwich peninsula, which sits on the southern side of the confluence of the River Stour and the River Orwell, on the coast of Essex.
A lifeboat station was established at Harwich in 1821, by the Essex Lifeboat Association, but closed in 1826. The station was re-established by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) station in 1878.
The station serves a particularly busy section of coastline with Harwich being a very busy ferry terminal, with the Port of Felixstowe, the United Kingdom's busiest container port, just across the estuary.Journal of Commerce: THE JOC TOP 50 WORLD CONTAINER PORTS
The station currently operates the All-weather lifeboat 17-03 Albert Brown (ON 1202), on station since 1996, and the Inshore lifeboat Tierney Harvey & Sonny Reid (B-907), on station since 2018.
History 1821: first station A lifeboat was first stationed at Harwich in 1821, and was named Braybrooke, in honour of Richard Griffin, 2nd Baron Braybrooke, Lord Lieutenant of Essex. The lifeboat was financed by the Essex Lifeboat Association, but no funds were available for a boathouse, so the Braybrooke was moored in the harbour. On the Suffolk side of the estuary at Landguard Fort there was a second lifeboat, the Orwell, which was eventually sold and converted to a yacht. The Harwich lifeboat had ceased operations by 1826, and the fate of the Braybrooke is unknown.Wreck and Rescue on the Essex Coast - The wreck and rescue series. Author: Malster, Robert.Publisher: D.B.Barton; First edition. Hardback 168 pages. Edition: October 1968.
1875–1917: second station and closure Following the wreck of the passenger steamship SS Deutschland on Kentish Knock on 6 December 1875, local appetite for a Harwich lifeboat was much increased. No time was wasted. On 6 January 1876, just one month after the loss of the Deutschland, and following a visit to Harwich by the RNLI Inspector of Lifeboats, a meeting of the RNLI committee of management resolved to establish a station at Harwich. Within the month, a new 35-foot self-righting 'Pulling and Sailing' (P&S) lifeboat was dispatched, towed from the River Thames to the station free of charge, by the steamship Lord Alfred Paget. The carriage and equipment were also freely transported by the Great Eastern Railway.
On 24 February 1876, it was recorded that a lease, at a nominal annual rent, had been granted by Her Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for War, for the site at Timberfields (now on Angelgate), for a proposed lifeboat house costing £247.
Funding for the lifeboat, and its carriage and equipment, was provided by a gift from Miss Burmester of London. At a ceremony on 7 September 1876, the lifeboat was paraded through the town, the station was officially opened, and after a service by Rev. S. Farman, the lifeboat was named Springwell in accordance with the donor's wishes.
The Springwell remained at Harwich from 1876 until 1881 and was credited with saving the lives of 61 people, 23 of which had been saved during the launch to the barque Pasithea of Liverpool on 16 February 1883.
In 1889 the RNLI obtained its first steam-powered lifeboat, the Duke of Northumberland (ON 231), which was sent to Harwich in 1890. The station with Springwell became known as Harwich No. 1 station, whilst the mooring near Halfpenny Pier where the Duke of Northumberland was kept afloat, became the No. 2 station. In 1892, the Duke of Northumberland was sent to on Merseyside. It was replaced in 1894 by another steam lifeboat, the City of Glasgow.
In 1902 the No. 1 station lifeboat Springwell, the second boat to bear that name, was scrapped. In 1904 station No. 1 was given another Watson-class lifeboat, Ann Fawcett. In the years leading up to World War I, Harwich was used for the testing of new motor lifeboats which were sent to other stations.A chronological history of the Fishguard lifeboat at the RNLI website retrieved 30 September 2013 In 1912 the Ann Fawcett was withdrawn from service once again leaving the City of Glasgow the only lifeboat on station.
By the breakout of the First World War in 1914, the City of Glasgow, the second to bear this name, was the only lifeboat at Harwich. In 1917 the Admiralty commandeered the lifeboat for patrol duties. Harwich Lifeboat Station was closed, leaving the area to be covered by Aldeburgh Lifeboat Station to the north and Walton and Frinton Lifeboat Station to the south.
1960s–1980: reopening and European Gateway incident Harwich Lifeboat Station did not reopen until 1965, when increased traffic to the Harwich ferry as well as the Port of Felixstowe across the estuary necessitated more lifeboats in the area. A 16-foot inflatable Inshore lifeboat boat was stationed for the summers of 1965 and 1966. In September 1967, a 44-foot Waveney-class lifeboat, Margaret Graham, was sent to Harwich. After a successful two-year trial period, the Margaret Graham was made a permanent fixture at Harwich, where she remained until being replaced by the John Fison in 1980.
The most notable incident attended by a Harwich station lifeboat was the European Gateway incident of 19 December 1982. The roll-on roll-off car ferry European Gateway was leaving Felixstowe for Zeebrugge when it collided with the train ferry Speedlink Vanguard approaching Harwich Harbour. The bow of the Speedlink Vanguard struck the European Gateway amidship, and she quickly capsized to the point where only half the starboard side of the vessel was above the water. Numerous lifeboats and tugs responded to the scene and began rescuing passengers from the European Gateway within minutes. The Speedlink Vanguard launched her own lifeboat to assist. Within an hour all passengers but six had been rescued. By the time the John Fison arrived, all that remained was to search for the bodies. The John Fison recovered two bodies, three others were located by other boats, and one remained unaccounted for.
1997–2003: new station
In 1997, Harwich received 17-03 Albert Brown (ON 1202), a fast lifeboat built by Green Marine in 1995. She is 17 meters long, 5.5 meters wide with a depth of 1.38 meters, with a top speed of 25 knots and a range of 250 nautical miles. The Albert Brown was financed with bequest from Victoria Brown to commemorate her husband Albert Brown, and christened by Terry Waite CBE on 25 May 1997.
In 2002, Harwich acquired the Sure and Steadfast (B-789), an second generation rigid inflatable boat (RIB). She was named on 18 May 2003 after the motto of the Boys' Brigade in recognition of the fund raising efforts for the RNLI by that organization.
In 2003, funds were secured for a new boathouse and facilities, at a cost of £1.25 million.
On 21 May 2018, the new lifeboat Tierney Harvey & Sonny Reid (B-907) arrived in the town to a warm welcome from crowds and supporters. She was funded by The John & Elizabeth Memorial Trust, which was set up in 1998.
Harwich lifeboat museum The 1876 boathouse at Timberfields was opened by the Harwich Society as a lifeboat museum in 1994. The centrepiece is motor lifeboat Valentine Wyndham Quinn (ON 985) which had been stationed at from 1968 until 1984. After further service in Ireland, it was first displayed at Cromer. Being rather larger than the 'pulling and sailing' lifeboat that the building had been designed for, the lifeboat had to be partly dismantled to fit through the doors.
Station honours The following are awards made at Harwich:
RNIPLS Silver Medal Samuel Wordley, Master of the smack Samuel – 1829 William Mudd, Master of the smack Lively– 1829
William Jennings, Master of the smack Spy – 1832
RNLI Silver Medal William Newson, Master of the smack Alfred – 1855
William Lewis, Master of the smack Tryall – 1856
Thomas King, Master of the smack Paragon – 1862
Thomas Adams, Master Mariner – 1862 Henry Bacon – 1862 Benjamin Lambeth – 1862 John Lambert – 1862 Robert Scarlett – 1862 George Wyatt – 1862
John Carrington, Master of the Steam Tug Liverpool – 1876
William Britton, Second Coxswain – 1881 Capt. St Vincent Nepean RN, the Institution's District Inspector – 1881
William Tyrrell, Coxswain – 1893
RNLI Bronze Medal Petty Officer Kenneth Verdun Lee, Coxswain – 1983 Seaman Barry James Warner – 1983
Second Officer Michael Anthony Wright – 1983 Seaman Thomas Edward Wakelin – 1983
A Framed Letter of Thanks signed by the Chairman of the Institution R. Ramplin, Helm – 1981 P. Dawson, crew member – 1981 P. Brand, crew member – 1981
Capt. J. Lukes – 1983 A. Taylor – 1983 D. Webb – 1983
George Lawn, lorry driver – 1983
P. Burwood, Coxswain Mechanic – 1985 L. Smith, Second Coxswain – 1985 K. Brand, crew member – 1985 D. Gilders, crew member – 1985 E. Clifton, crew member – 1985
D. Gilders, Second Coxswain Assistant Mechanic – 1987 K. Brand, Emergency Mechanic – 1987 P. Dawson, crew member – 1987 P. Smith, crew member – 1987 R. Barton, crew member – 1987 Capt. R. Shaw, Honorary Secretary, crew member – 1987 H. Bell, Branch Chairman, crew member – 1987
Paul Smith, Second Coxswain – 2001
A Letter of Thanks signed by the Deputy Director Masters of the tug Gray Delta – 1983 Masters of the tug Gary Gray – 1983 Capt. H. H. McGibney of the European Gateway – 1983
11 Medals, awarded by The Hospitaliers Sauveteurs Bretons Coxswain and crew of the steam lifeboat – 1908
Member, Order of the British Empire (MBE) Capt. Roderick Willis Shaw, Honorary Lifeboat Operations Manager – 2013QBH
Roll of honour In memory of those lost whilst serving Harwich lifeboat:
Died attempting to save the crew of the schooner Alvidia, 13 February 1869 George Wyatt, Master of the fishing smack Alfred
Drowned when the lifeboat Springwell capsized, 18 January 1881. William Wink (53)
Harwich lifeboats Essex Lifeboat Association Name Built Class Comments Braybrooke 1821 1821−1826 Norfolk and Suffolk-class non-self-righting lifeboat of unknown dimensions, built by Geo. Graham of Harwich.
Harwich No.1 Station ON Name Built Class Comments Springwell 1876 1876−1881 35-foot Self-Righting (P&S) 35-foot x 9-foot (10-oared) self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, gift of Miss E. Burmester of London, built by Woolfe of Shadwell, London, costing £433. 317 Springwell 1881 1881−1902 45-foot Self-Righting (P&S) 45-foot x 11-foot (12-oared) self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, gift of Miss E. Burmester of Regents Park, built by Woolfe of Shadwell, London, costing £600. 206 Reserve No.3 1890 1890−1891 38-foot 2in x 9-foot (12-oared) self-righting lifeboat, built by Livie of Dundee, costing £451. 517 Ann Fawcett 1904 1904−1912 43-foot Watson (P&S) 43-foot x 12-foot 6in (10-oared) Watson-class non-self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, legacy of Mrs A. Fawcett, built by Thames Ironworks of Blackwall, London, costing£1,711. Station closed, 1912
Harwich No.2 lifeboat station ON Name Built Class Comments 231 1889 1890−1892 362 City of Glasgow 1894 1894−1897 362 City of Glasgow 1894 1898−1901 446 City of Glasgow 1901 1901−1917 Station closed, 1917
All-Weather Lifeboats ON Op. No. Name Class Comments 1004 1967−1980 1060 44-020 John Fison 1980−1996 1202 17-03 Albert Brown 1996−
Inshore lifeboats D-class Op. No. Name Class Comments D-71 1965−1970 D-14 1968 1971 D-201 1973 D-206 1974−1975 D-240 1976−1978 D-225 1977−1978
B-class Op. No. Name Class Comments B-526 1978−1987 B-571 British Diver II 1987−2002 B-789 Sure and Steadfast 2002−2018 2018−
Geographic location of neighbouring stations
See also List of RNLI stations List of former RNLI stations Royal National Lifeboat Institution lifeboats Felixstowe Lifeboat
Notes
References