Barmouth Lifeboat Station | |
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General information | |
Type | RNLI Lifeboat Station |
Location | Promenade, Barmouth, Gwynedd, LL42 1NF |
Country | Wales, United Kingdom |
Coordinates | 52°43′15″N 4°03′21″W / 52.720955°N 4.055815°W |
Opening | 1820s |
Owner | Royal National Lifeboat Institution |
Barmouth Lifeboat Station is located in Barmouth, a town at the mouth of the Afon Mawddach river in Gwynedd, Wales. A lifeboat was first stationed here by the Royal National Institute for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck (RNIPLS) in 1828.[1]
The Royal National Lifeboat Institution currently operate a Shannon-class All-weather lifeboat and a D-class (IB1) inshore lifeboat.[2]
Following a request by the Rev. Frederick Ricketts, a lifeboat was provided to the town in 1828. Local funding provided the first boathouse, reported to be a stone building measuring 30' x 9', with a doorway 6' 6" x 6', and costing £95. This building is now the Harbour Master's office.[3]
The first lifeboat was a six-oar 26 ft Palmer type, which served until the early 1850s. This was replaced in 1852 by an 8-oar boat, which was lengthened in 1859 and converted to 12 oars.[3]
The third lifeboat at Barmouth was the Ellen, a double banked 10-oar vessel. In 1885, the Jones-Gibb (ON 64), with 12 oars double-banked, was placed at Barmouth, remaining in service until 1905. She was followed by a second Jones-Gibb (ON 538) in service until 1939.[4]
A new boathouse was constructed in 1859, located 1/4-mile south east of the town. A slipway was built, so the lifeboat could be launched directly into the river. However, in 1864, the Aberystwith and Welsh Coast Railway began work on the Pwllheli to Aberystwyth Railway line, which required the construction of a bridge across the Afon Mawddach. As a result, the line was bridged right over the top of the slipway, creating a unique situation where the boathouse was located to the north of the railway line, and the lifeboats launching underneath the railway line to the river on the south side.[3]
On 20 March 1982, Barmouth received a new All-weather lifeboat. A Rother-class lifeboat, built by Wm. Osborne of Littlehampton, costing £240,000, and the first lifeboat to be fitted with Radar. A naming ceremony was planned for later in the year, to coincide with a Royal Visit to Barmouth, and on a cold wet 25 November 1982, Diana, Princess of Wales, named the boat Princess of Wales (ON 1063).[3]
A new lifeboat station was constructed on the promenade, to the west of the town in 2004. Costing £1.23 million, it provided up to date facilities for the crew, and able to house both the All-weather lifeboat, and the D-class (IB1) Inshore lifeboat. A new Shannon-class all-weather lifeboat arrived in March 2019, and was named 13-30 Ella Larsen (ON 1337) later in that year.[4]
Barmouth is an RNLI "Explore" category station whereby, subject to operational requirements and availability of staff, visitors can look around the station. An RNLI Visitors' Centre and gift shop is also housed within the building.
During the lifetime of the station thirteen awards for bravery have been presented.
The following are awards made at Barmouth[1][5]
ON[a] | Op.No.[b] | Name | In service[4] | Class | Comments |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
– | – | Unnamed | 1828–1853 | 26 ft Palmer-type | [Note 1] [3] |
– | – | Unnamed | 1853–1867 | 27 ft Peake | [Note 2] [3][1] |
– | – | Ellen | 1867–1885 | 34ft Self-Righting (P&S) | [4] |
64 | – | Jones-Gibb | 1885–1905 | 37-foot Self-Righting (P&S) | |
538 | – | Jones-Gibb | 1905–1939 | 38-foot Watson (P&S) | |
817 | – | Laurence Ardern, Stockport | 1939–1949 | Surf | |
864 | – | Chieftain | 1949–1982 | Liverpool | |
1063 | 37-38 | Princess of Wales | 1982–1992 | Rother | |
1185 | 12-26 | Moira Barrie | 1992–2019 | Mersey | |
1337 | 13-30 | Ella Larsen | 2019– | Shannon | [7] |
Op.No.[b] | Name | In service[8] | Class | Comments |
---|---|---|---|---|
D-137 | Unnamed | 1967–1978 | D-class (RFD PB16) | |
D-268 | Unnamed | 1979–1988 | D-class (RFD PB16) | |
D-374 | Unnamed | 1988–1997 | D-class (EA16) | |
D-524 | Pilgrim | 1997–2007 | D-class (EA16) | |
D-514 | Lord Kitchener | 2007 | D-class (EA16) | |
D-678 | Rotarian Clive Tanner | 2007–2017 | D-class (IB1) | |
D-814 | Craig Steadman | 2017– | D-class (IB1) | [9] |