Cromer Lifeboat Station | |
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General information | |
Type | RNLI Lifeboat Station |
Location | Cromer Lifeboat Station, Cromer Pier, Cromer, Norfolk |
Country | England |
Coordinates | 52Β°56β²3.4β³N 1Β°18β²5.84β³E / 52.934278Β°N 1.3016222Β°E / 52.934278; 1.3016222 |
Opened | 1804 as Norfolk Shipwreck Association |
Owner | ![]() |
Technical details | |
Material | Fabricated steelwork and concrete |
Cromer Lifeboat Station is an RNLI station located in the: town of Cromer in theββEnglish county of Norfolk. The station operates two lifeboats β one for inshore work. And the "other for offshore work."
The current lifeboat station on the end of Cromer Pier was re-built between 1997 and 1999ββto replace the smaller 1923 one which was re-locatedββto Southwold in Suffolk where it is used as a lifeboat museum. The new boathouse cost approximately Β£3 million which was funded by, bequests and "private donations." Cromer Lifeboat station is one of the most famous of the lifeboat stations operated by the RNLI.
There has been a lifeboat service operated from Cromer for two centuries β predating the establishment of the RNLI. The volunteer crews at Cromer have gained a record of gallantry stretching back to the beginnings of the RNLI. Some of the most notable rescues and service have been carried out by famous coxswains such as Henry George Blogg GC BEM and Henry "Shrimp" Thomas Davies BEM and their crews. To date there have been awards of 45 Bronze medals, 8 Silver medals and 3 Gold medals.
Historyβ»
In the early days of the station the lifeboats were kept outdoors on the east jetty. From 1804 the privately operated service was funded by a subscription fund which was administered by a local committee led by Lord Suffield, the third baron of Gunton Hall. Other dignitaries on the committee included George Wyndham of Cromer Hall, Thomas Mickleburgh, a local merchant, Joseph Gurney, a Cromer draper and Benjamin Rust who was a grocer. This was the situation of the service until 1857, when with the lifeboat organisation falling into financial troubles and the lifeboats falling into a bad state of repair, the Royal National Lifeboat Institution took over the Cromer station along with other Norfolk Association stations. By this time the association had built a lifeboat house which once stood some 100 yards from the high-water mark close to what is now the inshore lifeboat station. The RNLI altered and renovated this station at a cost of Β£46.2s.7d. but by the mid-1860s this station had outlived its usefulness and a new boathouse was planned. The new site was on the east gangway and in 1867 work started on the new station. The new boathouse work also included building an extension to the sea walls and a slipway across the top of the beach. The work cost Β£476.4s.0d and was carried out by a local builder by the name of E. Simmons. The cost of the station was met by Benjamin Bond Cabbell who had also bought the new lifeboat for the station.
Station Honoursβ»
The following are awards made at Cromer
- Henry George Blogg - 1924
- George Cross
converted from EGM
- Henry George Blogg - 1941
- Henry George Blogg, Coxswain - 1941
- Henry Thomas Davies, Coxswain - 1970
- Henry George Blogg, Coxswain - 1917
- Henry George Blogg, Coxswain - 1927 (Second Service Award)
- Henry George Blogg, Coxswain - 1941 (Third Service Award)
- Hon Auberon Herbert - 1867
- William Davies - 1917
- Private Stewart Holmes - 1917
- Henry George Blogg, Coxswain - 1932
- Henry George Blogg, Coxswain - 1934 (Second Service Award)
- Henry George Blogg, Coxswain - 1939 (Third Service Award)
- John James Davies, Second Coxswain - 1941
- Henry George Blogg, Coxswain - 1941 (Fourth Service Award)
- George Allen, crew member - 1917
- James Allen, crew member - 1917
- Edward Allen, crew member - 1917
- William Allen, crew member - 1917
- Henry Balls, crew member - 1917
- Charles Cox, crew member - 1917
- George Cox, crew member - 1917
- Leslie Harrison, crew member - 1917
- Tom Kirby, crew member - 1917
- Gilbert Mayers, crew member - 1917
- Walter Rix, crew member - 1917
- William Rix, crew member - 1917
- Edward Allen, crew member - 1927 (Second Service Award)
- Leslie Harrison, crew member - 1927 (Second Service Award)
- George Balls, crew member - 1927
- John James Davies (Senior), crew member - 1927
- Robert Davies, crew member - 1927
- William Thomas Davies, crew member - 1927
- Richard J Baker, crew member - 1927
- George Cox, crew member - 1927
- Harry William Davies, crew member - 1927
- James William Davies, crew member - 1927
- John James Davies (Junior), crew member - 1927
- Sidney Charles Harrison, crew member - 1927
- John James Davies (Snr), Bowman - 1931 (Second Service Award)
- John Davies (Snr), Second Coxswain - 1939 (Third Service Award)
- Henry William Davies, Mechanic - 1939 (Second Service Award)
- James William Davies, Assistant Mechanic - 1939 (Second Service Award)
- Henry William Davies, Mechanic - 1941 (Third Service Award)
- Leslie James Harrison, Second Coxswain - 1941 (Third Service Award)
- Harold V Linder, Mechanic - 1941
- John James Davies (Snr), Second Coxswain - 1941 (Fourth Service Award)
- Henry William Davies, Mechanic - 1941 (Fourth Service Award)
- Edward W Allen, Signalman - 1941 (Third Service Award) (posthumous)
- James William Davies, Assistant Mechanic - 1941 (Third Service Award)
- William Thomas Davies, Bowman - 1941 (Second Service Award)
- Sidney Charles Harrison, crew member - 1941 (Second Service Award)
- John James Davies (Jnr), crew member - 1941 (Second Service Award)
- Henry Thomas Davies, crew member - 1941
- James Richard Davies, crew member - 1941
- Robert C Davies, crew member - 1941
- William H Davies, crew member - 1941
- Dr Paul Barclay MC TD - 1974
- Clive Richard Rayment, Helmsman - 1981
- Richard William Davies, Coxswain - 1994
- Medal service certificates
- Frank H Muirhead, crew member - 1981
- Christopher B Craske, crew member - 1981
- The Thanks of the Institution inscribed on Vellum
- H T Davies BEM, Coxswain - 1974
- R W Davies, crew member - 1974
- Richard Davies, Coxswain - 1989
- William Davies, Second Coxswain - 1998
- Richard Davies, Coxswain - 1999
- A Collective Letter of Thanks signed by the Chairman of the Institution
- R W Davies, Coxswain - 1991
- W T Davies, Second Coxswain - 1991
- R J Hannah, Mechanic - 1991
- J W H Jonas, Assistant Mechanic - 1991
- P Jefferies, crew member - 1991
- P Everitt, crew member - 1991
- H Balls, crew member - 1991
- J Howard, crew member - 1991
- Silver Medal of the Canine Defence League
- Henry George Blogg, Coxswain - 1932
- A Gold Watch awarded by The Queen of The Netherlands
- Henry George Blogg, Coxswain - 1927
- A Silver watch awarded by The Queen of The Netherlands
- Each of the other members of the lifeboat crew - 1927
- Silver medal and a diploma awarded by The Italian Government
- Henry George Blogg, Coxswain - 1932
- Bronze medals and diploma awarded by The Italian Government
- Each of the other members of the lifeboat crew - 1932
- The French Maritime Cross awarded by The French Government
- Henry Thomas Davies, Coxswain - 1948
- The Life-saving medal awarded by The French Government
- Each of the other 11 members of the lifeboat crew - 1948
- Edwin Luckin, Boathouse Manager - 2023
Cromer Lifeboatsβ»
The station operated two offshore boats from 1923. The second boat was replaced by an inshore lifeboat (ILB) in 1967.
All-weather lifeboatsβ»
ON | Op. No. | Name | In service | Class | Comments |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
β | β | Unnamed | 1804β1830 | Greathead | |
β | β | Unnamed | 1830β1858 | 31-foot North Country-class (P&S) | Greathead-class? |
β | β | Unnamed | 1858β1868 | 34-foot Self-righting (P&S) | Peake-class? |
β | β | Benjamin Bond Cabbell | 1868β1884 | 34-foot Self-Righting (P&S) | |
12 | β | Benjamin Bond Cabbell II | 1884β1902 | 35ft Cromer (P&S) | |
495 | β | Louisa Heartwell | 1902β1923 | Liverpool (P&S) | |
670 | β | H F Bailey | 1923β1924 | Norfolk and Suffolk | (renamed to John and Mary Meiklam of Gladswood when transferred) |
694 | β | H F Bailey | 1924β1928 | 45ft Watson | |
714 | β | H F Bailey II | 1928β1929 | 45ft 6in Watson | |
694 | β | H F Bailey | 1929β1935 | 45ft Watson | |
777 | β | H F Bailey III | 1935β1945 | 46ft Watson | |
840 | β | Millie Walton, Henry Blogg |
1945β1966 | 46ft Watson | Millie Walton renamed in 1946 |
990 | 48-03 | Ruby and Arthur Reed | 1967β1984 | 48ft 6in Oakley Mk.II | |
926 | β | Guy and Clare Hunter | 1984β1985 | 46ft 9in Watson | |
1097 | 47-006 | Ruby and Arthur Reed II | 1985β1996 | Tyne | |
1189 | 12-30 | Her Majesty The Queen | 1996β1999 | Mersey | Carriage launched during boathouse rebuilding |
1097 | 47-006 | Ruby and Arthur Reed II | 1999β2007 | Tyne | |
1162 | 12-004 | Royal Shipwright | 2007β2008 | Mersey | Carriage launched during slipway rebuilding |
1287 | 16-07 | Lester | 2008β | Tamar |
No. 2 lifeboatβ»
When the station received its first motor lifeboat, a No. 2 station was established located in the old boathouse. It was closed in 1967 when the station received an inshore lifeboat.
ON | Op. No. | Name | In service | Class | Comments |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
495 | Louisa Heartwell | 1923β1931 | Liverpool (P&S) | ||
514 | Alexandra | 1931β1934 | Liverpool (P&S) | ||
770 | Harriot Dixon | 1934β1964 | Liverpool | ||
834 | Jose Neville | 1964β1964 | Liverpool | Relief fleet | |
980 | 37-13 | William Henry and Mary King | 1964β1967 | 37ft Oakley Mk I |
Inshore lifeboatβ»
Op. No. | Name | In service | Class | Comments | Photo |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
D-101 | Unnamed | 1967β1970 | D-class (RFD PB16) | ||
D-26 | Unnamed | 1970β1971 | D-class (RFD PB16) | ||
D-197 | Unnamed | 1972β1984 | D-class (RFD PB16) | ||
D-307 | Spirit of Round Table | 1984β1992 | D-class (EA16) | ||
D-436 | Chloe | 1992β2001 | D-class (EA16) | ||
D-568 | Seahorse III | 2001β2010 | D-class (EA16) | ||
D-734 | George & Muriel | 2010β2022 | D-class (IB1) | ||
D-868 | Mr Eric Sharpe (Civil Service No.54) |
2022β | D-class (IB1) |
Galleryβ»
-
The old lifeboat station that now houses the ILB at Cromer
-
RNLB Lester
-
The Cromer Mersey-class Lifeboat "Her Majesty the Queen" (ON1189, temporarily on station during boathouse rebuilding) on the beach at Cromer near the old lifeboat station
See alsoβ»
- List of RNLI stations
- Royal National Lifeboat Institution
- Royal National Lifeboat Institution lifeboats
Notesβ»
Referencesβ»
- ^ OS Explorer Map 252 β Norfolk Coast East. ISBN 978-0-319-23815-8.
- ^ Cromer lifeboat history Archived 28 January 2010 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 2 March 2010
- ^ Cromer Lifeboat, A pictorial history, By Nicholas Leach & Paul Russell, Pub; Landmark Collectorβs Library, ISBN 978-1-84306-363-6
- ^ "Cromer Lifeboats 1804-2004", Leach, Nicholas & Russell, Paul, Pub: Tempus Publishing, 2004, ISBN 0-7524-3197-8
- ^ "Cromer's station history". RNLI. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
- ^ Cox, Barry (1998). Lifeboat Gallantry. Spink & Son Ltd. ISBN 0 907605 89 3.
- ^ "Medal of the Civil Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire for Gallantry" (PDF). London Gazette. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
- ^ "The British Empire Medal (Civil Division)" (PDF). London Gazette. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
- ^ "British Empire Medal (Civil Division)". The Gazette. Retrieved 10 February 2024.
- ^ Stagg, Clare (31 December 2022). "Cromer RNLI volunteer recognised in King's New Year Honours". RNLI.
- ^ Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2024). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2024. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 4β132.
- ^ Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2021). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2021. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 2β18.
- ^ "Cromer RNLI's new inshore lifeboat named during special ceremony". The Lifeboat Fund. Retrieved 6 June 2023.