RNLI, Mumbles Lifeboat Station, Wales
N 51° 34.148 W 003° 58.650
30U E 432252 N 5713570
The Iconic & World Famous Mumbles All Weather RNLI Lifeboat Station, Swansea, Wales.
Waymark Code: WMCWF9
Location: South Wales, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 10/19/2011
Views: 3
The Mumbles lifeboat station has a remarkable history of bravery for over 170 years and its crews have been presented with 33 awards for gallantry. The station has also witnessed tragedy with 18 lifeboat crew losing their lives saving others at sea.
The Current lifeboat since 1985, Ethel Anne Measures 47 foot, a Tyne class lifeboat capable of 18 knots and a radius of action of 120 nautical miles. Since her dedication by the Duke of Kent on the 3rd of July 1985 she has undergone many refits and now boasts state of the art navigational, radio and radar equipment.
HISTORY 1800-1900
In September 1835, JH Vivian, the local MP, liased with the Institution for the provision of a lifeboat in Mumbles. This lifeboat was controlled and funded by Swansea Harbour Trustees. It was taken over and funded by the Institution in 1863. Lifeboats have always been stationed at Mumbles but the station was known as Swansea until 1904. The branch continued to be called Swansea, Mumbles and Port Eynon until 1910.
In the early days the lifeboat was kept close to the cliffs in Mumbles and was launched and re-housed along a stone slipway, which still exists today.
After the First World War, a boathouse with slipway was erected alongside Mumbles pier to make the launching of the lifeboat a more simple process. For 4 years 1814 – 1818 the wooden slipway (which is used today) had no boathouse, merely the lifeboat retained at the top of the slip ready for launch.
On 27 January 1883 four of her crew lost their lives when the lifeboat whilst on service got thrown violently against the side of the German barque Admiral Prinz Adalbert. The coxswain Jenkin Jenkins lost two of his sons who were on board that day.
It was 1866 before The Mumbles had a permanent lifeboat station although moves to found one began in 1832 when Silvanus Padley, son of the clerk of the Swansea Harbour Trustees, led a rescue of the crew of the Ilfracombe Packet which went aground near the harbour entrance. The trustees decided to obtain plans and costs for a lifeboat which could be used in similar circumstances.
It wasn't until 1835 when the MP for Swansea, John H. Vivian, approached the Lifeboat Institution to supply a lifeboat which would be maintained by the Harbour Trust, but placed at The Mumbles. On the 17th of October a 26 foot, six oared lifeboat was ordered from Taylor of Blackwall and would have been delivered soon after its completion in December 1835.
The boat was initially kept at The Mumbles but saw no service, then in the summer of 1841 she was repaired and moved to Swansea and then converted to pull 12 oars in 1850. In 1855 she was deemed to be unserviceable "she has never been thought a good boat for which reason the Trustees have refused to spend much money on her". At this time the Trustees ordered a new boat to be built by Forrestt & Co of Limehouse, she carried a crew of thirteen pulling ten oars. This boat made only one known service to the brig Success which had stranded in gales on Neath Bar.
Although the lifeboats had made only one rescue, local pilots and others had performed rescues on their own initiative and had been rewarded by the Lifeboat Institution.
In March 1863 a group of men formed the Swansea Branch of the R.N.L.I. and the Harbour Trust boat was replaced with and identical pattern which was named Martha and Anne after the daughters of Michael Steel of Oxford who's legacy had paid for her.
Because of the lack of service at Swansea where a story in the town was that a large glass case was to be built "to stow away the lifeboat in front of the Town Hall". The editor of the local paper, "The Cambrian" commented that "Not Swansea but The Mumbles should be the lifeboat's station, and not the pilots, but the coastguard or the hardy fishermen of the village should be her crew".
In 1866 the Martha & Anne was moved to The Mumbles where she was housed on the shore under the shadow of Mumbles Hill and was launched and re-housed along a stone slipway by means of block and tackle.
Subsequent lifeboats at the station have been:
Wolverhampton 1866 to 1883
Where she was lost, with four crew, on service to the barque Admiral Prinz Adalbert of Danzig on the 27th of January which was the inspiration for Clement Scott's stirring poem "The Women of Mumbles Head".
Wolverhampton (O.N.229) 1883 to 1898
The replacement for her namesake was larger and so the existing boathouse was demolished to make way for a larger one which still stands in front of the inshore lifeboat house.
No.5 Reserve (O.N.173) 1898 to 1900
A reserve lifeboat brought to the station when the Wolverhampton's planking was deemed to be decaying.
James Stevens No.12 1900 to 1903
Capsized with the loss of six crew while standing by the re-float of the Waterford steamer Christina which went aground when attempting to enter Port Talbot harbour.
No.4 Reserve, Richard and No.3A Reserve, Quiver (O.N.265) 1903 to 1905.
Charlie Medland (O.N.535) 1905 to 1924
43 foot Watson class sailing lifeboat, she was kept on a mooring at The Mumbles and the stripped out No.4 Reserve, Richard was used as a boarding boat to her.
The Edward, Prince of Wales (O.N.678) 1924 to 1947
Lost with all hands while on service to the liberty ship Samtamper wrecked at Sker Point. She was a 45 foot Watson class powered by a single 80 horse power petrol engine, built by J.S.White of Cowes at a cost of £12,800. The loss of coxswain William Gammon and his crew is remembered in "The Lifeboat Window" at All Saints Church in the village.
William Gammon - Manchester and District (O.N.849) 1947 to 1974.
At a cost of nearly £17,000 built by Groves and Gutteridge of Cowes, she was a Watson cabin class powered by twin diesel engines capable of 9 knots. After a long and memorable career with coxswains William Garner (1947-55) and Derek Scott, she was retired to the reserve fleet and has subsequently been purchased by Swansea Maritime Museum where she lays in pride of place.
1874 On 12th August The Board of Trade forwarded binoculars which had been received by them through the Foreign Office from H.M. The Emperor of Germany for presentation to the coxswain of the lifeboat in recognition of the services rendered by the boat when the German ship Triton of Eckernford was wrecked on the Mixon Sands on the 29th August 1987. The German Consul General was also instructed to pay £4 to the crew of the lifeboat.
1883 On the 27th of January, when trying to rescue the crew of the German barque "Admiral Prinz Adalbert" from the windward side, the lifeboat was thrown violently against her and swept over successive ridges of rocks by heavy seas. Four of the crew, John and William Jenkins, William Mack and William Rogers lost their lives, and the remainder were seriously injured, Coxswain Jenkin Jenkins lost two out of the four of his sons and his son-in-law (William Mack) who were in the boat and a third son received a broken leg. The Institution granted £800 towards the fund raised for the widows and orphans. The Silver Medal was awarded to the coxswain. The carpenter of the German barque also lost his life.
On 1 February 1903 the lifeboat was capsized on service to SS Christina of Waterford at the entrance to Port Talbot harbour. This capsize resulted in a loss of 6 out 14 of her crew. In 1941, a Bronze Medal was awarded to Coxswain William J Gammon and to Mechanic Robert T Williams for the rescue of 10 crew of the steamer Cornish Rose of Liverpool.
1944 saw the presentation of a Gold medal to Coxswain Gammon, Mechanic W G Davies and Bowman Thomas J Ace for the rescue of 42 crew from the Canadian frigate Chebouque.
Yet again, tragedy struck the station when on April 23, 1947; the Edward Prince of Wales was capsized and wrecked in heavy seas with total loss of her eight crew. She had gone to help the SS Samtampa with a crew of 39 off Sker Point. The death toll that night was no less than 47. As a mark of respect following the loss during the Samtampa disaster the new lifeboat was named after the Coxswain; the William Gammon serviced the coast until 1974 and was then donated to Swansea Museum.
capsized off the entrance with the loss of six out of fourteen of her crew. The Institution granted £1,200 towards the fund raised locally for the dependants. One of the rescued, Tom Michael, was a survivor of the 1883 accident. Those lost were Coxswain Thomas Rogers, Second Coxswain Daniel Claypit, D.J.Morgan, George Michael, James Gammon and Robert Smith. The lifeboat was damaged beyond repair.
1941 Bronze Medal awarded to Coxswain William Gammon and to Mechanic Robert T Williams for the rescue of the crew of ten of the steam ship Cornish Rose of Liverpool which was dragging her anchors in Swansea Bay on the 20th January 1941. It was pitch dark, which was exacerbated by mist and rain squalls. A whole south gale was blowing and there was a heavy breaking sea. The vessel was very close to the shore and rolling heavily and the ordinary perils of the sea were greatly increased by the coastal defences consisting of iron rails driven into the foreshore and sticking out of it. It was a bold and skilful rescue.
1944 Gold medal awarded to Coxswain William Gammon and a Bronze Medals to Mechanic WG Davies and Bowman Thomas J Ace for the rescue of the crew of 42 of a Canadian frigate Cherboque smothered in heavy seas on Port Talbot bar on the 11th of October 1944. Twelve times in the darkness and in heavy squalls of hail, the coxswain circled round though the surf and brought the lifeboat along side the frigate for her men to jump. The rescued Canadians spoke afterwards of the work of their rescuers as "magnificent" and "almost miraculous". Two of the lifeboat men were over seventy years old while another two were in their sixties, the average age of the crew was 55. The Maud Smith award for the bravest act of life-saving in 1944 was awarded to Coxswain WJ Gammon for his service.
1947 On the 23rd of April the Edward Prince of Wales was capsized and wrecked with the loss of her crew of eight after she had gone to the aid of the SS Samtamper with a crew of 39 off Sker Point. The Institution made a grant of £500 to the local fund and pays service scale pensions to the dependants. The death toll that night was 47. The names of those lifeboat men lost were Coxswain William J Gammon, Second Coxswain William Noel, Mechanics William G Davies and E Griffin, WRS Thomas, WL Howell, WR Thomas and R Smith.
1948 The Royal Humane Society awarded a Bronze Medal and thanks certificate to Mechanic RJ Gammon for his efforts on the 18th of November when a frogman engaged on renovation work lost his life.
.
Name of the Lifeboat or station: RNLI Mumbles Lifeboat Station
Number of the Lifeboat: RNLI 47-005
Adress:
Mumbles Lifeboat Station,
Pier Road
Mumbles, Swansea Wales
SA3 4EN
Callsign Marifoon: Not listed
|
Visit Instructions:
Necessary:
Upload with your visit at leat one (1) photo on which the owner of this waymark can see that you have been there. That is easy done by a photo of de surroundings on which also the lifeboat or lifestation is present.
Upload samen met "visit" minstens (1) foto waarop de eigenaar van dit waymark kan zien dat je er geweest bent. Dit kan eenvoudig met een foto van de omgeving waarop ook de reddingsboot of het reddingsstation staat afgebeeld.