Barmouth lifeboat station

link_to_french_translationBarmouth lifeboat station

barmouth_lifeboat_chieftain_1949The RNLI lifeboat station at Barmouth opened in 1828, operating from a new boathouse built at a cost of £95. The need for life-saving equipment and volunteers had been underlined by many shipwrecks along this part of the coast.

The photos (courtesy of the RNLI) show the station’s new lifeboat, The Chieftain, in 1949 and the Mersey-class boat Moira Barrie, which arrived at the station in 1992.

In 1825 the RNLI awarded one of its first ever silver medals to local man Edmond Lewis for single-handedly rescuing seven men from a ship, called Neptune, which had previously been abandoned in a storm. Seven men from Barmouth boarded the deserted ship in a rescue attempt, but the vessel was wrecked on the rocks and the men were presumed dead. Attached to a rope, Mr Lewis descended a cliff, boarded the wreck and provided ropes for the men to reach safety.

barmouth_lifeboat_moira_barrieIn 1859 a new boathouse was built, with a slipway installed in 1885 for easier launching. The current boathouse was completed in 2004. Tragedy struck in April that year, after cox Keith Allday and helm Alan Massey went out in a boat in poor weather to lay moorings (they were Barmouth's harbour master and assistant harbour master). Their boat capsized and their bodies were found later.

An inshore lifeboat station was established in 1967, with a D-class lifeboat.

In 1957 the Thanks of the Institution Inscribed on Vellum were awarded to William Morris and George Berridge for rescuing four children who were in trouble off the beach. Five other children died that day. In the same year, William Morris was also awarded the Maud Smith Award for the bravest act of lifesaving during the year by a member of a lifeboat crew.

The lifeboat service in the UK is provided not by government but by the RNLI, a charity which relies on donations from the public. Since it was established in 1824, the RNLI is estimated to have saved c.140,000 lives. It employs some crew members but most, 40,000 in total, are volunteers who leave their work, families or beds whenever their lifeboat is needed.

Postcode: LL42 1NF    View Location Map

Other SHIPWRECK HiPoints in this region:
New York shipwreck – ship belonged to Macy family and carried apples, still reputedly growing locally
Aberdyfi lifeboat – shipwrecked Norwegian crew cheered by a crowd as they reached Aberdyfi in 1897

RNLI on HistoryPoints.org

RNLI website

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FOOTNOTES: More Barmouth rescues

1938 - Letter of Appreciation to Coxswain Morris and crew after a search for a small steamer in Mochras Bay which lasted nearly 6½ hours

1971 - Silver Medals to ILB crew members John Henry Stockford, Colin Pugh and Dr Robert Airdrie Haworth for rescuing a woman who had fallen over a cliff. The Ralph Glister Award was also awarded to all three for the most meritorious service of the year performed by the crew of an ILB. A Thanks of the Institution Inscribed on Vellum was awarded to each of the five shore crew.

1979 - Bronze Medal to Coxswain Evan Jones for the rescue of two men from a fishing boat’s liferaft

1980 - The Royal Humane Society’s testimonial on parchment to crew member John Henry Stockford, for rescuing a man who had jumped from Barmouth Bridge

1982 - Thanks of the Institution Inscribed on Vellum to Acting Coxswain Edward Leonard Vaughan, for rescuing the three crew and saving the trawler Gardelwen