Lowestoft Lifeboat Station is located at the mouth of Lowestoft's outer harbour, on South Pier in

Lowestoft Lowestoft ( ) is a coastal town and civil parish in the East Suffolk (district), East Suffolk district of Suffolk, England.OS Explorer Map OL40: The Broads: (1:25 000) : . As the List of extreme points of the United Kingdom, most easterly UK se ...

, the most easterly settlement in the UK, and a port town on the coast of

Suffolk Suffolk ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and East Anglia. It is bordered by Norfolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Essex to the south, and Cambridgeshire to the west. Ipswich is the largest settlement and the county ...

. It is one of the oldest lifeboat stations in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, having been established in 1801, although it only operated for just one year. A lifeboat station was re-opened by the Suffolk Humane Society in 1807, with management passing to the

Royal National Lifeboat Institution The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is the largest of the lifeboat (rescue), lifeboat services operating around the coasts of the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man, as well as on s ...

(RNLI) in 1855. The station currently operates 13-05 ''Patsy Knight'' (ON 1312), a All-weather lifeboat, on station since 2014.

History

In 1801, a lifeboat built by

Henry Greathead Henry Francis Greathead (27 January 1757 – 1818) was an English pioneering rescue lifeboat builder from South Shields. Although Lionel Lukin had patented a lifeboat in 1785, Greathead successfully petitioned parliament in 1802 with the claim th ...

was placed at Lowestoft on a trial basis. Vessels wrecked in the area were usually some distance from the shore, and a rowing boat without sails quickly proved unsuccessful, due to the strength of the currents and tides encountered. At 12 noon on 19 November 1807, the first 'Pulling and Sailing' (P&S) lifeboat, the 39-foot ''Frances Anne'', was launched at Lowestoft, under the eye of designer

Lionel Lukin Lionel Lukin (18 May 1742 – 16 February 1834) was a British carriage builder and inventor, noted for the invention of the 'unimmergible' Lifeboat (rescue), lifeboat. Private and professional life Lukin was born in Great Dunmow, Essex, on ...

Long Acre Long Acre is a street in the City of Westminster in central London. It runs from St Martin's Lane, at its western end, to Drury Lane in the east. The street was completed in the early 17th century and was once known for its Coach_(carriage), co ...

, London. It had been constructed by R. Sparrow of

Worlingham Hall Worlingham Hall is a Grade I listed Georgian country house in Worlingham, to the east of Beccles in the English county of Suffolk. The hall was built in the 18th century, possibly based on an earlier 17th century house, and as of 2014 is a count ...

, and performed to high satisfaction, with 16 crew aboard. The station was managed by the Suffolk Humane Society (SHS), who would come to place lifeboats at , Sizewell, , , and Bawdsey. At the Annual General Meeting of the RNLI on 26 April 1855, it was announced that the SHS, now with just three stations at Lowestoft, Pakefield and Southwold, had voluntarily joined the Institution, thereby transferring all remaining stations to the management of the RNLI. RNLI lifeboat man statue at Lowestoft - geograph

RNLI lifeboat man statue at Lowestoft - geograph

The ''Frances Anne'' had been replaced in 1850, with a larger 42-foot lifeboat, built by Sparham of

, named ''Victoria''. Whilst the lifeboat was immediately replaced in 1855, it is assumed that the Lowestoft lifeboat was in good condition, as it was retained by the RNLI, and served at Lowestoft until 1876. On 1 November 1859, the Lowestoft lifeboat ''Victoria'' was launched to the aid of the

steamship A steamship, often referred to as a steamer, is a type of steam-powered vessel, typically ocean-faring and seaworthy, that is propelled by one or more steam engines that typically move (turn) propellers or paddlewheels. The first steamships ...

''Shamrock'' of

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, wrecked in a gale on Holm Sands. With seas breaking over the vessel's masthead, the lifeboat anchored, and veered down. Managing to get a line aboard, all 14 crew were pulled through the surf one at a time. Eight of the lifeboat crew were awarded the

RNLI Silver Medal A number of awards have been established by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) since its creation in 1824. None are approved by the Crown, and are therefore unofficial awards. As such, they do not appear in the official British order ...

. At the meeting of the RNLI committee of management on 7 May 1868, it was reported that the Institution was in receipt of £620 from an anonymous lady, to defray the costs of a lifeboat station. The gift was appropriated to Lowestoft, and the ''Victoria'' was renamed ''Laetitia'', in accordance with the donor's wishes. An additional lifeboat arrived in February 1870, having been transported to Great Yarmouth, and then sailed to Lowestoft. A 32-foot lifeboat, it was designed for close shore work. This No.2 lifeboat was funded from Miss Leicester of London, and was named ''George'' after her late brother. Miss Leicester had previously funded a lifeboat for . A new boathouse was constructed. In 1921, Lowestoft received their first motor-powered lifeboat. She was renamed ''Agnes Cross'', after the donor, who gifted £3,500 to the Institution in 1919, followed by a further gift of £1,500, for the provision of a lifeboat for Lowestoft. For reasons unknown, the lifeboat had served briefly at Gorleston No.1 as the ''John and Mary Meiklam of Gladswood'' (ON 663) in 1921, before being transferred to Lowestoft. The serving Lowestoft lifeboat, ''Kentwell'' (ON 543), was relocated to Gorleston No.1. Tyne class lifeboat at Lowestoft

The 46-foot Watson-class lifeboat ''Michael Stephens'' (ON 838) was placed on service in 1939. Just one year later, she took part in the

Dunkirk evacuation The Dunkirk evacuation, codenamed Operation Dynamo and also known as the Miracle of Dunkirk, or just Dunkirk, was the evacuation of more than 338,000 Allied soldiers during the Second World War from the beaches and harbour of Dunkirk, in the ...

in 1940. With a Royal Navy crew instead of lifeboat men, the boat was initially used to ferry troops from the harbour and beaches, to larger vessels. It is not known how many men were rescued, but she did eventually return to

Dover Dover ( ) is a town and major ferry port in Kent, southeast England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies southeast of Canterbury and east of Maidstone. ...

with 52 soldiers on board. South Broads Lifeboat Station, an Inshore lifeboat station, was established on the outskirts of Lowestoft in 2001. It operated at

Oulton Broad Oulton Broad refers to both the lake and the suburb of Lowestoft, Suffolk, England. The suburb is located west of the centre of Lowestoft. It became a civil parish in 2017. It had an estimated population of 10,338 at the 2011 United Kingdom cen ...

until 2011, when a coastal review decided better coverage for the area was better served from .RNLI closes South Broads lifeboat station at Oulton Broad
BBC news website, 2011-11-15. Retrieved 2014-03-15.

S.S. ''Hopelyn''

After 21:00 on 19 November 1922, the

'' Hopelyn'' of

Newcastle-upon-Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle ( , Received Pronunciation, RP: ), is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located o ...

was wrecked in a north-east gale on North Scroby Sands, near

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. The lifeboat was called, but was unable to launch. The Gorleston No.1 lifeboat ''Kentwell'' (ON 543) was launched at 23:00, and towed to the vessel by the

tugboat A tugboat or tug is a marine vessel that manoeuvres other vessels by pushing or pulling them, with direct contact or a tow line. These boats typically tug ships in circumstances where they cannot or should not move under their own power, suc ...

''George Jewson''. The lifeboat stood by until daybreak, but after two hours, and no onboard activity, concluded there were no survivors, and returned home at 09:00.At 10:00 on 20 November, a flag was spotted on the wreck. The Gorlston lifeboat launched again, but couldn't get close, due to the conditions and an old wreck nearby. The motor-powered Lowestoft lifeboat ''Agnes Cross'' was called at 15:45, calling first at Gorleston to collect Cmdr. Edward Carver, District Inspector of Lifeboats, before heading to the wreck. On arrival, it was decided too dangerous to attempt any rescue in the dark, so the lifeboat returned to Gorleston, launching again at 04:30. Still in gale-force conditions, the lifeboat veered down to the vessel, 24 men, and a black kitten were rescued, and all were landed at Gorleston at 07:00 on the 21 October, some 32 hours after the first launch. For this service, 27 RNLI medals for gallantry were awarded to the Lowestoft and Gorleston crews.

Station honours

Crews from Lowestoft have received 45 awards for gallantry, including 39 medals. The

RNLI Gold Medal A number of awards have been established by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) since its creation in 1824. None are approved by the Crown, and are therefore unofficial awards. As such, they do not appear in the official British order ...

has been awarded twice. The first award was to Lieutenant R. B. Matthews, RN, in October 1827. Coxswain John Swan was the second recipient, for his actions during the rescue of the crew of the merchant ship , wrecked on North Scroby Sands in October 1922. The following are awards made at Lowestoft. * Medal of the Order of the British Empire for Gallantry (EGM) ::John Thompson Swan – 1924 * RNIPLS Gold Medal ::Lt. Robert Bates Matthews, RN, H.M. Coastguard Lowestoft – 1827 *

::John Thompson Swan, Coxswain – 1922 * RNIPLS Silver Medal ::Lt. John Crouchley Evison, RN, H.M. Coastguard Lowestoft – 1834 ::Lt. Richard Joachim, RN, H.M. Coastguard Lowestoft – 1836 ::Francis Stannard, Master of the sloop ''Glenmoriston'' – 1853 *

::Lt. Richard Joachim, RN, H.M. Coastguard Lowestoft – 1855 (Second-Service clasp) ::Cpt. Richard Joachim, RN, H.M. Coastguard Lowestoft – 1857 (Third-Service clasp) ::Robert Hook, Coxswain – 1859 ::James Butcher, crew member – 1859 ::Richard Butcher crew member – 1859 ::Nathaniel Colby, crew member – 1859 ::Thomas Liffen, crew member – 1859 ::Alfred Mewse, crew member – 1859 ::William Rose, crew member – 1859 ::Francis Smith, crew member – 1859 ::Cpt. Richard Joachim, RN, H.M. Coastguard Lowestoft – 1861 (Fourth-Service clasp) ::Robert Hook, Coxswain – 1873 (Second-Service clasp) ::George Edward Hall, Master of the fishing boat ''Trial'' – 1882 ::John Thompson Swan, Coxswain – 1914 ::John Thompson Swan, Coxswain – 1918 (Second-Service clasp) ::Ralph A. W. Scott, Motor Mechanic – 1922 ::Albert Spurgeon, Coxswain – 1927 *Silver Medals, awarded by the Austrian Government ::Crew of 1866 Lowestoft Lifeboat – 1893 *

RNLI Bronze Medal A number of awards have been established by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) since its creation in 1824. None are approved by the Crown, and are therefore unofficial awards. As such, they do not appear in the official British order ...

::George William Ayers, Second Coxswain – 1918 ::George William Ayers, Second Coxswain – 1922 (Second-Service clasp) ::John Rose, Bowman – 1922 ::H. Allerton, crew member – 1922 ::J. Ayers, crew member – 1922 ::W. Butcher, crew member – 1922 ::C. Mewse, crew member – 1922 ::Albert Spurgeon, crew member – 1922 ::F. Swan, crew member – 1922 ::Albert Spurgeon, Coxswain – 1943 (Second-Service clasp) ::Thomas Victor Knott, Coxswain/Mechanic – 1974 ::Peter Gibbons, Second Coxswain – 1974 ::Thomas Victor Knott, Coxswain/Mechanic – 1976 (Second-Service clasp) ::John William Catchpole, Coxswain – 1988 ::Shane Gordon Coleman, Coxswain, and sole crew member of the Lowestoft Pilot boat,
(also Second Coxswain/Mechanic of the Lowestoft lifeboat) – 1990 ::John William Catchpole, Coxswain – 1996 (Second-Service clasp) *The Maud Smith Award 1988
::John William Catchpole, Coxswain – 1988 *The Thanks of the Institution inscribed on Vellum ::Each of the crew of the Lowestoft lifeboat – 1922 ::Shane Gordon Coleman, Second Coxswain/Mechanic – 1996 ::John Fox, Coxswain/Mechanic – 2010 *A Framed Letter of Thanks signed by the Chairman of the Institution ::Michael Knott – 1976 ::John William Catchpole, Second Coxswain – 1981 ::John William Catchpole, Coxswain – 1989 ::Shane Gordon Coleman, Second Coxswain/Mechanic – 1990 *Letter of Thanks signed by the Chairman of the Institution ::Shane Gordon Coleman, Second Coxswain/Mechanic – 1989

Lowestoft lifeboats

Lowestoft / Lowestoft No.1 Station

Lowestoft No.2 Station

:Station closed, 1912

Motor lifeboats

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lowestoft Lifeboat Station Lowestoft Lifeboat stations in Suffolk 1801 establishments in England