Holyhead Lifeboat Station is located in Wales
Holyhead Lifeboat Station
Location shown on Anglesey, Gwynedd
General information
TypeRNLI Lifeboat Station
LocationAnglesey
CountryWales, United Kingdom
Coordinates53°19′05″N 4°38′31″W / 53.318°N 4.642°W / 53.318; -4.642
Opened1828
Owner Royal National Lifeboat Institution

Holyhead Lifeboat Station (Welsh: Gorsaf Bad Achub Caergybi) is a Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) lifeboat station in the coastal town of Holyhead, Anglesey, Wales. It is one of the three oldest lifeboat stations situated on the North Wales coast, a disused building of which houses the Holyhead Maritime Museum.

History

Holyhead Lifeboat 1950 until 1980 Barnett Class ON884 St Cybi (CS No 9) at Chatham

Holyhead Lifeboat Station was first mentioned in 1825 when it was decided a lifeboat would be built for the coastal town of Holyhead. A local committee was formed three years later and the first lifeboat arrived at the station shortly afterwards.[1] The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) took over control of the station in 1855 and an lifeboat house was built three years later. The station covered the shipping lane in and out of Liverpool.

In 1892, Holyhead Lifeboat Station received its first steam lifeboat, which was one of six to serve in the RNLI. The lifeboat was involved in an operation to rescue crew members of the SS Harold in 1908 which anchored near rocks between North Stack and South Stack. The third steam Lifeboat to serve at Holyhead, James Stevens No.3, was retired in 1928 when it was replaced by a motor-powered Watson-class lifeboat, H.C.J. (ON 708)

Twenty-one years later, a new boathouse and slipway were constructed on Salt Island.[2] The boathouse and slipway were used until 1980, when a new Arun-class boat was allocated to the station and kept afloat in the harbour. Unfortunately, wash from the ferry traffic led to the boat's GRP hull being damaged, and as a temporary measure a steel-hulled Waveney-class boat was placed on station while the boathouse and slipway were reconditioned and a new Tyne-class boat was constructed for the station. The new boat entered service in 1985, and slipway launching continued until 1997 when a new, more protected, berth was found for another Arun-class boat, 52-37 Kenneth Thelwall (ON 1123) to take over.

In 2003, the Arun-class was replaced by the present {{Lbc|Severn) Lifeboat, 17–41 Christopher Pearce (ON 1272)

An inshore lifeboat station was established on the site in 1967. The boathouse was expanded in 1987 to fit a D-class lifeboat (EA16) and its launching trolley. Its current inshore boat, (D-791) Mary & Archie Hooper, entered service in 2016.[2] Lead was stolen from the station's roof in the morning of 16 June 2011.[3] In February 2015 the station appointed its first female helm.[4]

Holyhead Lifeboats

All Weather Lifeboats

ON[lower-alpha 1] Op. No.[lower-alpha 2] Name In service [5] Class Comments
Unnamed[6] 1858–1864 30ft Self-Righting (P&S) Later named Forester
Princess of Wales[6] 1864–1875 30ft Self-Righting (P&S)
192 Thomas Fielden
(Holyhead No.1)		 1875–1891 37ft Self-Righting (P&S)
264 Joseph Whitworth
(Holyhead No.2)		 1890–1915 37ft Self-Righting (P&S)
300 Thomas Fielden 1891–1897 39ft Self-Righting (P&S)
231 Duke of Northumberland
(Holyhead No.3)		 1892–1893 50ft Steam-class
231 Duke of Northumberland 1897–1922 50ft Steam-class
617 Fanny Harriet
(Holyhead No.2)		 1915–1929 37ft Self-Righting (P&S)
420 James Stevens No.3 1922–1928 56ft 6in Steam-class James Stevens Lifeboats
708 H.C.J. 1928–1929 45ft 6in Watson-class
485 Reserve No.D7
(Holyhead No.2)		 1929–1930 34ft Self-Righting (Motor) Previously Robert and Catherine at Appledore (Braunton Burrows)
717 A.E.D. 1929–1950 Barnett-class
884 St.Cybi
(Civil Service No.9)		 1950–1980 Barnett-class
1086 52-15 Hyman Winstone 1980–1983 Arun-class
1003 44-004 Faithful Forester 1984–1985 Waveney-class
1095 47-004 St.Cybi II
(Civil Service No.40)		 1985–1997 Tyne-class
1123 52-37 Kenneth Thelwall 1998–2003 Arun-class
1272 17–41 Christopher Pearce 2003– Severn-class

Inshore Lifeboats

Op. No. Name In service [5] Class Comments
D-116 unnamed 1967–1976 D-class (RFD PB16)
D-249 Caribbean I 1976–1988 D-class (Zodiac III)
D-358 unnamed 1988–1996 D-class (EA16)
D-507 Spirit of Bedworth and Nuneaton 1996–2005 D-class (EA16)
D-654 Angel of Holyhead 2005–2016 D-class (IB1)
D-791 Mary & Archie Hooper 2016– D-class (IB1)
  1. ↑ ON is the RNLI's Official Number of the boat.
  2. ↑ Op. No. is the RNLI's Operational Number of the boat carried on the hull.

Station Honours

The following are awards made to the crew of Holyhead Lifeboat Station [7]
Holyhead have been awarded 49 medals. 4 Gold, 32 Silver and 13 Bronze

Rev James Williams - 1835
Captain William Owen - 1835
William Owen, Coxswain - 1908
Lieut Commander H H Harvey VRD,
RNR, Inspector of Lifeboats for the North West area - 1967
Thomas Hughes - 1929
Robert Stables, Coxswain - 1833
Captain William Owen - 1833
Oliver Anthony, Master Mariner - 1833
Richard Morris, Coxswain - 1835
Henry Parry, Coxswain - 1840
William Rowlands, Coxswain - 1866
William Rowlands, Coxswain - 1867 (Second Service Award)
Thomas Roberts, Coxswain - 1833
(This service was carried out in the Rhosneigr lifeboat).
Coxswain Roberts - 1886 (Second Service Award)
Edward Jones, Coxswain - 1887
J O Williams, Honorary Secretary - 1888
Edward Jones, Coxswain - 1889 (Second Service Award)
Robert Jones, Second Coxswain - 1889
Mr William Owen - 1890
Mr George Jones - 1890
Mr John Roberts - 1890
Mr John Morris - 1890
Mr J O Williams, Chief Officer of HM Coastguard - 1890 (Second Service Award)
Thomas W Brooke, crewman - 1908
George Jones, crewman - 1908
Lewis Jones, crewman - 1908
Richard Jones, crewman - 1908
Samuel Jones, crewman - 1908
James Lee, crewman - 1908
William McLaughlin, crewman - 1908
Charles H Marshall, crewman - 1908
William Owen Jnr, crewman - 1908
Lewis Roberts, crewman - 1908
Thomas Alcock, Coxswain - 1967
E S Jones, Motor Mechanic - 1967
William Jones, Coxswain - 1977
Richard Jones, Coxswain - 1943
John Jones, Motor Mechanic - 1943
Richard Jones, Coxswain - 1949 (Second Service Award)
W J Jones, Second Coxswain - 1967
F Ward, Acting Bowman - 1967
J Sharpe, Acting Assistant Mechanic - 1967
J Hughes, crew member - 1967
D Drinkwater, crew member - 1967
B Stewart, crew member - 1967
D Forrest, Mechanic - 1971
Gareth Ogwen-Jones, crewmember - 1971
John Hughes, crew member - 1971 (Second Service Award)
William Jones, Coxswain, - 1977 (Second Service Award)
  • The Thanks of the Institution on Vellum
Awarded to each of the 15 crew - 1883
(This service was carried out in the Rhosneigr lifeboat).
All the lifeboat crew - 1978
Brian Thomson, Coxswain - 2007
  • The Sugar Manufacturer’s Association (of Jamaica) Ltd Case of Rum 1954
For the longest continuous service during the winter months of 1953/54
Holyhead lifeboat crew - 1954

See also

References

  1. ↑ "About". Holyhead Lifeboat Station. Archived from the original on 11 March 2016. Retrieved 11 March 2016.
  2. 1 2 "Holyhead lifeboat station". History Points. Archived from the original on 11 March 2016. Retrieved 11 March 2016.
  3. ↑ "Thieves steal lead from Holyhead lifeboat station". North Wales Chronicle. 17 June 2011. Archived from the original on 11 March 2016. Retrieved 11 March 2016.
  4. ↑ Wyn-Williams, Gareth (19 February 2015). "Holyhead RNLI gets its first female helm in almost 200 years". Daily Post. Archived from the original on 19 January 2016. Retrieved 11 March 2016.
  5. 1 2 Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2023). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2023. Lifeboats Enthusiasts Society. pp. 2–128.
  6. 1 2 Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2021). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2021. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 2–18.
  7. ↑ "Holyhead's station history". RNLI. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
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