Fleetwood Lifeboat Station is located on The Esplanade at the port of Fleetwood, a Lancashire town at the north end of The Fylde, sitting at the mouth of the River Wyre.

A lifeboat was first stationed at Fleetwood by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) in 1859.

The station currently operates 13-14 Kenneth James Pierpoint (ON 1321), a All-weather lifeboat, on station since 2016, and a smaller Inshore lifeboat, Harbet (D-853), on station since 2021.

History At a meeting of the RNLI committee of management on Thursday 2 September 1858, in response to a letter from Capt. Edward Frodsham Noel K. Wasey, RN, H.M. Coastguard, and following a visit by the Inspector of Lifeboats, the RNLI agreed to place a lifeboat at Fleetwood.

A new boathouse was constructed opposite the North Euston Hotel at a cost of £174-18s-6d, and a Peake-class self-righting 'Pulling and Sailing (P&S) lifeboat, one with sails and (six) oars, was constructed by Forrestt of Limehouse, London, costing £140. The boat arrived on station on 20 March 1859. John Fox was appointed Coxswain, and Capt. Wasey appointed Honorary Secretary.

Contrary to the expected few calls, the request for a lifeboat by Capt. Wasey could not have come a moment too soon. In 1860, the lifeboat was involved in no less than three medal rescues. On 22 January 1860, the Fleetwood lifeboat was towed over four miles by a steam-tug, to the schooner Ann Mitchell of Montrose, where after seven attempts, the sole survivor was rescued. Coxswain Fox and Capt. Wasey were each awarded the RNLI Silver Medal. For a further two services, on 19 February 1860, rescuing four men, and on 20 October 1860, rescuing 15 men and the Pilot, Capt. Wasey was awarded second and third service clasps to his silver medal, a remarkable achievement in one year.

In 1862, following a gift of £340 from Miss Mary Wasey, a new lifeboat was provided for Fleetwood, a 10-oared self-righting boat, built by Forrestt. She arrived in November 1862, transported free of charge from London to Fleetwood by the London and North Western Railway Company, and was named Edward Wasey.

Following a three-year closure of the station between 1930 and 1933, for the reconstruction of the boathouse, Fleetwood would receive their first motor-powered lifeboat. The self-righting lifeboat had a 35-hp petrol engine, delivering , and was named Sir Fitzroy Clayton (ON 628), after Col. Sir Fitzroy Clayton, , chairman of the Institution from 1908 until his death in 1915. The lifeboat was previously stationed at , Sussex, where she rescued 108 lives.

Fleetwood latest All-weather lifeboat is a £2.2M state-of-the-art lifeboat. 13-14 Kenneth James Pierpoint (ON 1321), arrived on station at 13:14 on 26 June 2016. The lifeboat was funded by the legacy of Miss Kathleen Pierpoint from Altrincham, Cheshire, who died in 2012, with the lifeboat named in memory of her brother Kenneth, a young RAF pilot killed in World War Two in 1942.

Fleetwood boathouses The 1858 lifeboat house was nearly washed away in a storm of 1863, and so a new brick-built boathouse, costing £161-17s-10d, was constructed at Pharos Place, next to the Pharos Lighthouse. Today it is a private residence.

Following a gift of £900 from Col. William Blackburne, a new lifeboat was provided for Fleetwood in 1879, Child of Hale, and the residue of the money funded the construction of a third boathouse and slipway, now thought to have been close to the site of the current lifeboat station. A larger 46-foot boat arrived in Fleetwood in 1887, Edith (ON 76) to become the No.2 boat, and was moored afloat.

Fleetwood had for a long time been a key Railway Hub and Steamer terminus, with vessels arriving and departing from and to the Isle of Man, Belfast, Barrow and Ardrossan, tying up right alongside the railway station. In 1840, the fastest way to Glasgow from London was via a steamer from Fleetwood to Ardrossan.

In 1893, the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway, and the London and North Western Railway, needed to extend their harbour moorings, right over the site of the lifeboat station slipway. Funded by the railway companies, a fourth boathouse and slipway was constructed in 1894, which was large enough to accommodate the 46-foot lifeboat; by now the single remaining boat in Fleetwood, the Child of Hale (ON 75) having been retired in 1892.

However, the slipway location meant it suffered from a regular build up of sand and shingle, to the point where the boat was having to be kept moored afloat, so in 1901, a fifth site was acquired 80 yards east of the Beach Lighthouse, or Low Light as more commonly known, and a new slipway constructed. Having been the cause of the previous relocation, the railway companies moved the 1894 boathouse, and re-constructed it over the new slipway. This boathouse remained in use for the next 75 years, although the station was closed between 1930 and 1933 for alterations, and the construction of another new slipway, ready for the arrival of a new motor-powered lifeboat, the Sir Fitzroy Clayton (ON 628).

The 1901 boathouse finally became redundant in 1976, and was demolished in 1977, when the new lifeboat Lady of Lancashire (ON 1036) arrived. This boat was designed to be moored afloat, and required the construction of a mooring pen.

A small boathouse, constructed in the late 1960s to house a Inshore lifeboat, was washed away in a storm of November 1977, and completely destroyed. The launch tractor was found buried in deep sand, and the Inshore lifeboat (D-187) was found on Pilling Sands, returning to service after repairs.

Finally, a new RNLI and Coastguard building was constructed in 2006, complete with crew facilities, a retail outlet, and secure storage for the lifeboat, which is launched with the aid of a davit.

Station honours The following are awards made at Fleetwood:

RNLI Silver Medal Capt. Edward F. N. K. Wasey, RN, H.M. Coastguard - 1860 John Fox, Coxswain – 1860 Capt. Edward F. N. K. Wasey, RN, H.M. Coastguard – 1860 (Second-Service clasp) Capt. Edward F. N. K. Wasey, RN, H.M. Coastguard – 1860 (Third-Service clasp) William Swarbrick, Master of the Steam Tug Wyre – 1863 Robert Gerrard, Pilot – 1863 Robert Wright, Coxswain – 1890 James Fogg, Master of the fishing smack Osprey – 1890 George Wilkinson, crew member, Osprey – 1890 Robert Wright, Coxswain – 1895 (Second-Service clasp) Jeffrey Wright, Coxswain – 1941 Sydney Norman Hill, Mechanic – 1941 RNLI Bronze Medal James Leadbetter, Coxswain – 1949 'The Thanks of the Institution inscribed on Vellum' James Leadbetter, Second Coxswain – 1941 Richard Wright, Assistant Mechanic – 1941 William Houston, crew member – 1941 David Wright, crew member – 1941 Stephen James Musgrave, Second Coxswain – 1984 William Fairclough, Coxswain – 1987 Vellum Service Certificate Barrie Farmer, crew member – 1984 David Owen, crew member – 1984 The Ralph Glister Award 1984 Stephen James Musgrave, Helm – 1985 Barrie Farmer, crew member – 1985 David Owen, crew member – 1985 Bronze Medal, awarded by the RSPCA Steve Carroll, Mechanic – 2005 Member, Order of the British Empire (MBE) Christopher Hurst, Coxswain – 2009QBH

Roll of honour In memory of those lost whilst serving at Fleetwood.

Two crew of the fishing smack Osprey drowned, attempting to rescue the three crew of the schooner Jean Campbell, 7 November 1890 James Abram (24) George Greenall (25)

Received serious injuries to his arm during the launch of the lifeboat on 13 April, and died on 4 June 1945. William Wright, Head launcher (73)

Fleetwood lifeboats Fleetwood / Fleetwood No. 1 ON Name Built Class Comments 1859 1859−1862 30-foot Peake self-righting (P&S) x (6-oared) Peake-class self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, built by Forrestt of Limehouse, London, costing £153.Transferred to . Pre-396 1862 1862−1879 32-foot Peake self-righting (P&S) x (10-oared) Peake-class self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, gift of Miss M. Wasey of Newbury, Berkshire, built by Forrestt of Limehouse, London, costing £166.Broken up in 1879. Pre-643 Child of Hale 1879 1879−1887 34-foot self-righting (P&S) x (10-oared) self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, gift of Miss Mary Wasey of Newbury, Berkshire, built by Woolfe of Shadwell, London, costing £363.Broken up in 1887. 75 Child of Hale 1877 1887−1893 37-foot self-righting (P&S) x (12-oared) self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, gift of Col. W. Blackburne of Leamington, built by Woolfe of Shadwell, London, costing £393 when new.Previously unnamed reserve lifeboat. Sold in 1892. 76 Edith 1884 1887−1894 x self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, gift of Mrs G. Carew, built by Woolfe of Shadwell, London, costing £583 when new.Previously unnamed at . Fleetwood No.2 lifeboat (1887–1893). Sold in 1894 359 Maude Pickup 1894 1894−1930 43-foot Watson (P&S) Station closed for reconstruction, 1930–1933 Pre ON numbers are unofficial numbers used by the Lifeboat Enthusiasts' Society to reference early lifeboats not included on the official RNLI list.

Motor lifeboats ON Op.No. Name Built Class Comments 628 − Sir Fitzroy Clayton 1912 1933−1935 38-foot self-righting (motor) x self-righting (motor) lifeboat, with a single 35-hp 'Tylor' petrol engine, built by Thames Ironworks of Blackwall, London, costing £3,081.Previously at and . Sold in 1935. Renamed La Moye. Houseboat, broken up at Bowness in 1986. 657 − Frederick H. Pilley 1920 1935−1939 38-foot self-righting (motor) x self-righting (motor) lifeboat, gift of Mr F. H. Pilley, with a single 45-hp 'Tylor' petrol engine, built by Summers and Payne of Southampton, completed by S. E. Saunders of Cowes, costing £5,592.Previously at and . Sold in 1939. Renamed Anzac, Seaspell, Ladybird and Natalie. Damaged by fire at Stockton-on-Tees, September 1992. 813 − Ann Letitia Russell 1938 1939−1976 1036 44-015 Lady of Lancashire 1974 1976−1989 Transferred to 1156 William Street 1989 1989−2016 1321 13-14 2016 2016− More post-service details can be found on the respective lifeboat class pages.

Inshore lifeboats Op.No. Name Class Comments D-91 1966−1970 D-187 1970−1984 1984−1992 D-424 City of Chester 1992−2000 D-556 Saddleworth 2000−2009 D-719 2009−2021 D-853 Harbet 2021−

See also List of RNLI stations List of former RNLI stations Royal National Lifeboat Institution lifeboats

Notes

References

External links Fleetwood RNLI station information