Boats & Launchers
Unnamed boat 1828 - 1852
The lifeboat was a 26ft Palmer type, non-self-righting, rowed six oars and weighed 18 cwts and cost £56. This lifeboat served until the early 1850's.
Unnamed boat 1852 - 1867
The new boat was built by Forrestt of Limehouse and was a 27ft by 7ft 6ins self-righter, clench built of elm to a design by Mr Peake. The new boat weighed 32cwts and rowed eight oars. Any water taken on board quickly drained away through 6in diamter tubes. The boat cost £135 most of which was subscribed locally. The boat was not given a name as naming did not become common place until some years later.
Ellen 1867 - 1885
The new boat was a 34ft by 8ft 4ins self righter rowing 10 oars double banked.. She cost £300 10s 6d which was provided to the RNLI as a gift by an anonymous lady. At her request the boat was named "Ellen". In all she was launched a total of 25 times saving 29 lives.
Jones-Gibb 1885 - 1905
This was a 37ft self-righting lifeboat, rowing 12 oars double banked. The cost of the boat was £390 being the gift of Mrs Jones-Gibb of Tunbridge Wells.
Jones-Gibb 1904
Jones-Gibb 1928
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Lawrence Ardern Stockport 1939
Jones-Gibb 1905 - 1939
A second lifeboat name "Jones-Gibb" replaced the original "Jones-Gibb", staying on station until 1939. That lifeboat is pictured (above) in 1928. The cost of the new lifeboat was £1,032. The money was again given by Mrs F G Smart, formerly Mrs Jones-Gibb.
Since we last heard about her in early 2009, the Jones -Gibb (still named Thrift) was sold by the Maclachlans to Robert Ferguson in the Winter of 2009. From a sample of the many photographs kindly sent by Roberts son, we can see that a great deal of effort is being made to get the boat into top class condition.
Laurence Ardern Stockport 1939 - 1949
The lifeboat was a legacy from Mrs M.A. Ardern, Prestbury and pictured (above) are the attendees for the naming ceremony, where Lady Harlech named the boat. The Surf Class boats were 32ft long and were non-self-righting. They were light boats which could be launched from a carriage and work in very shallow water, ideal for crossing bar. The "Lawrence Ardern Stockport" was built at Groves & Guttridge at Cowes in 1938 and cost £3,492 provided out of a legacy from Mrs M A Ardern of Prestbury, Cheshire. She was powered by 2 x 12 hp Weyburn F2 Hotchkiss cones giving a maximum speed of 6.8 knots in calm weather with a range of 43 miles.
The Chieftain 1949 - 1982: by Norma Stockford, August 2020
Many lifeboats earn their place in the history of the station in the affections of the town and of the crew, but if I was asked which of Barmouth's lifeboats was my favourite, it would have to be The Chieftain. She served in Barmouth for 33 years and is the one that everyone remembers.
She arrived in Barmouth on 11 March 1949. A 35' 6” (10.6m) Liverpool class boat, with two 18hp petrol engines, built by Groves and Gutterage of Cowes at a cost of £9,943. Her top speed with her original engines was just 7.25 knots. She was named on 6 July the year she arrived, and just 3 weeks later, on 29 July, she was out on her first shout. An aircraft had crashed into the sea 6 miles off Barmouth and The Chieftain set out in strong onshore winds and a rough sea. The crew located the wreckage and found the pilot clinging to his inflatable dinghy, but there was no sign of the co-pilot. They searched the area and, sadly, eventually found his body which they recovered and brought ashore.
Many of her shouts were in heavy weather, and she was a wet boat in such conditions, providing very little shelter for her crew. Before even leaving harbour the bowman got a soaking, just from launching down the slip. One thing was certain, she had the full confidence of the men who took her to sea, and she did everything that they asked of her.
During her 33 year-long career in Barmouth, The Chieftain worked hard, when boating for pleasure was beginning to become a popular pastime and the fishing fleet was about to be at its busiest. She was called out 113 times during her working life, which is very nearly as many as all of her predecessors combined, and she has been credited with carrying her crew to save 132 lives, more than twice as many as any earlier boat.
During the 50s and 60s and well into the 70s, the lifeboat crews were summoned to a launch by the firing of maroons from the lifeboat house by the bridge. The sound of these maroons could be heard for miles and the whole town was alerted and dogs howled as the crew made their way to the boathouse. The Chieftain always had a good audience as crowds thronged the quayside to see her launch and return.
One thing that many with connections to the lifeboat remember is the distinctive drone of The Chieftain's engines, which could be heard and identified from miles away. Rescued sailors often commented that they knew help was on the way because they could hear the gradually increasing throb from the approaching lifeboat long before it was in sight. Family members of the crew would listen out for the sound of their returning relatives; children lying in bed, reassured that father would soon be safely home.
Both my father and my husband both served on The Chieftain, so she played a large part in my life. So much so that my husband even went out on my wedding day! Half way through the wedding reception in June 1968, the maroons went off and several of the guests, also lifeboat men, left to go to the aid of a local fishing boat in trouble. ‘Hang on lads wait for me!’ shouted my husband of a few hours and dashed to join them complete with top hat, tails and buttonhole!
Yes, The Chieftain was certainly a part of the town – a character in her own right until in 1982 when, after 33 years of service we bade her a fond farewell, and she was retired with honour.
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Naming Ceremony 1949
June 1979
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Launching in the 70s
Down the Slip June 1980
June 1981
The Chieftain was to have been part of a proposed lifeboat museum further up the coast, but this idea did not take off and she was found some years later lying in a state of disrepair on the east coast. Her new owner Tony Gatt, restored to her former glory and, in June 2011 he proudly brought her back to visit Barmouth, to the delight of many of her crew and friends. And The Chieftain became something of a minor celebrity when she was one of the boats chosen to take part in the Queen's Jubilee Pageant on the Thames in 2012.
And what is more, she is still very much alive. She was put up for sale again in 2019 but it wasn’t long before the Barmouth crew were contacted by the new owner, Richard Judge, to let us know that The Chieftain had relocated to the Kent coast. Richard had just retired after 38 years on the crew of Whitstable RNLI, his son is on the present crew, and his brother is LOM. So he is still very much connected to the lifeboat service. Richard put a lot of hard work into ensuring that the boat is looking as good as ever, and is now, beautifully restored once more to her original condition, she is successfully operating out of Whitstable, offering trips along the coast in The Chieftain from July 2020.
Those of us here in Barmouth who remember The Chieftain are so glad she has gone to a good home. Aberdyfi Harbourmaster Wil Stockford, who is also helm of the Aberdyfi boat remembers his father serving on The Chieftain and has fond childhood memories of being taken on board her. Wil took a trip down to Kent in late 2019 and met Richard, who made him very welcome, offering him the opportunity to take her for a spin. But Wil also had another reason for visiting.
Since the very early days of the service it was RNLI practice to issue each lifeboat with a supply of brandy to be used to revive survivors when necessary. This continued until the 1980s and Wil’s father, John Stockford, had kept the very last bottle of cognac from The Chieftain presented by Martell & Co in 1981. Although the bottle was sadly now empty, Richard was delighted to receive it!
They say that you can’t keep a good lifeboatman down and that goes for lifeboats too. When The Chieftain was out on a trip with passengers on 2 August 2020, Richard picked up a father and son who had capsized their canoe off Whitstable and could not make it back to the shore. The young boy was taken aboard and kept warm while they towed the father and his canoe back to the beach. ‘We might be old but we’ve still got it!’ said Richard.
One thing is certain; The Chieftain will always be welcome should she ever pay another visit to her old home in Barmouth.
Princess of Wales 1982 - 1992
The "Princess of Wales" was built in 1981 at William Osbornes of Littlehampton. At the time of building her cost was £239,197 and her displacement was 13.6 tons. She was powered by twin 52hp Ford Mermaid Melody diesel engines, had a maximum speed of 8 knots and a range of 180 nautical miles. The Rother class was the first lifeboat at Barmouth to incorporate Radar which was fitted to the aft end of the wheelhouse.
Princess of Wales Aug 1982
Naming Ceremony 1982
Princess of Wales Sept 1992
Moira Barrie 1992 - 2019
The arrival of the RNLB Moira Barrie 12-26 at Barmouth on 24th September 1992.
The Moira Barrie is a Mersey Fast Carriage boat (FCB) and was built by Green Marine and William Osborne in 1992. She is powered by twin Caterpillar 3208Tdiesels with a hull of Fibre reinforced composites(FRC). The Hull is subdivided by four watertight bulkheads into five compartments, the forepeak cable locker, a survivors cabin with seating for 10, a machinery space, tank space and an after peak steering gear compartment. She is 12 metres long and the 26th boat of this class to be built, hence the 12-26 designation.The design was given the name Mersey in line with the RNLI policy of naming lifeboat classes after rivers. Mersey was chosen to maintain a link with the Liverpool class, to reaffirm the Institutions link with the area and its maritime traditions. Stations on the approaches to the river Mersey itself received boats of this class.
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Moira Barrie Arrival 1992
Naming Ceremony 1993
On exercise 2005
Pilgrim 1997 - 2007
A new D class lifeboat, Pilgrim D-466, was placed on service on 13 August 1997
The Rotarian Clive Tanner 2007 - 2017
A new D-Class lifeboat, 'The Rotarian Clive Tanner' D-678, was placed on service. Launched 196 times to maritime emergencies, rescued 164 people and saved 12 lives.
Craig Steadman 2017 - date
A new D-Class lifeboat D-814, 'Craig Steadman', was placed on service as D-678 'The Rotarian Clive Tanner' was stood down.
With over 50 years’ service since its introduction in 1963, the D class lifeboat has helped the RNLI to save thousands of lives at sea and continues to be the workhorse of the charity’s fleet today.With a top speed of 25 knots, she can spend three hours at sea at this speed on search and rescue missions. She is highly manoeuvrable and usually operates closer to shore than all-weather lifeboats. She comes into her own for searches and rescues in the surf, shallow water and confined locations - often close to cliffs, among rocks and even inside caves.
D-466 Pilgrim
D-678 The Rotarian Clive Tanner
D-814 Craig Steadman
Ella Larsen 2019 - date
The new Shannon “Ella Larsen” arrives on Barmouth Beach having been sailed from Poole by some of the crew. The Passage went from Poole to Brixham, to Newlyn, to Kilmore Quay, to Pwllheli before arriving to a large crowd and landing on Barmouth Beach in a storm force 10
Arrival of Ella Larsen March 2019
Departure of Moira Barrie accompanied by Ella Larsen and Craig Steadman June 2019
Talus MB-H Crawler 1992 - 2019
Launching a lifeboat is a vital link in saving lives at sea. Operators of launch and recovery equipment often have to push the lifeboat out in raging seas and the dark - so their role is important to the safety of the crew and those they are trying to save.
The training covers every aspect of launching a lifeboat safely and drivers are trained how to safely operate three main launch tractors. At Barmouth you will see only two of these in operation.
The 19 tonne Talus MB-H Crawler launches the Mersey class lifeboat - seen here taking the Barmouth boat Moira Barrie out for a practise launch.
The Talus MB-H was specifically designed for the RNLI, to launch and recover lifeboats from beaches. The Talus MB-H launches and recovers lifeboats, up to 15 tonnes in weight, from beaches, in a safer and faster manner than previously available. It is capable of towing lifeboats, on specially designed carriages, at speeds of up to 12.0 kph over varying beach conditions. It has the ability to work at full power in up to 2.44m of calm water, and can drive and winch simultaneously in order to recover the lifeboat.
The driver has a waterproof, protective cockpit, and duplicated controls, to allow operation of the vehicle whilst facing in either direction. The hydraulic control and drive system utilises a single 'joystick' controller for all transmission functions; this is protected by a 'dead man' pedal. The engine is a Caterpillar 3208 V8 diesel, a feature this machine has in common with some lifeboats. It has, in the event of mechanical failure, the ability to be 'battened down' and abandoned on the sea bed in up to 9.0m of water, without the ingress of sea water. Extensive corrosion protection is employed, to reduce maintenance whilst continuously working in the very hostile environment of sea water and beach conditions. 30 Talus MB-H machines are currently in service with the RNLI at locations around the coastline of the British Isle and Eire.
The Talus MB-H is made by Clayton engineering.
Talus MB-H Crawler
SLARS
Both Launchers
SLARS - Shannon Launch and Recovery system 2019 - date
Launching a lifeboat is a vital link in saving lives at sea. Operators of launch and recovery equipment often have to launch the lifeboat out in raging seas and the dark - so their role is important to the safety of the crew and those they are trying to save.
The training covers every aspect of launching a lifeboat safely and drivers are trained how to safely operate the main launch vehicles. At Barmouth you will see two of these types in operation.
The Shannon launch and recovery system launches the Shannon class lifeboat - seen here on the beach at the Barmouth.
This is our latest innovation in launch and recovery tractors. It was designed specifically for the Shannon – our newest and most agile class of all-weather lifeboat – and together they are revolutionising the way we save lives at sea.
The launch and recovery system acts like a mobile slipway for the Shannon, which can be driven directly onto the beach for recovery, making both ideal for our lifeboat stations without harbours, slipways or davit systems.
Weighing in at 37 tonnes, this impressive piece of kit can carry an 18-tonne Shannon over all kinds of beach terrain, from steep shelving shingle to wet, sticky sand. It can drive straight into big surf and safely launch the lifeboat in up to 2.4m of water. Not only that, in the event of breakdown with an incoming tide, the watertight tractor can be completely submerged in depths of up to 9m before being retrieved once the tide has receded.
In calm conditions, the tractor doesn’t even have to get wet. Its hydraulic carriage tilts 7 degrees downwards, allowing the lifeboat to run down the slope into the water. The lifeboat is launched at the touch of a button and the whole system requires less manual handling by shore crew volunteers, making for a safer and more efficient launch and recovery. When it’s time to recover the beached lifeboat bow first onto the tractor’s unique turntable cradle, it can rotate the lifeboat 180º, ready to be launched again within 10 minutes.
This is 150% faster than its predecessor – the launch and recovery system for our Mersey class all-weather lifeboat – which takes an average of 25 minutes. With its 450hp engine, it can tow the lifeboat to the tideline 43% faster too – at 10mph compared to 7mph. Every second can mean the difference between life and death when there’s an emergency at sea. And RNLI engineers worked closely with Supacat Ltd in the bespoke design of this state-of-the-art launch and recovery system to shave every second they could.
Bigger windows and CCTV give our volunteer tractor drivers much better visibility.
The driver can face forwards or backwards on a 180º rotating seat. A second seat in the cab makes training easier and safer. And hydraulic motors mean the height of the whole rig can be reduced to fit inside boathouses, negating the need for extensive building works.