James Stevens lifeboats

A small blue boat seen from the side. It has a mast at the front and a mast in the centre from which a white and red RNLI flag is flying.
RNLB James Stevens No. 10

The James Stevens lifeboats were a series of twenty lifeboats which were purchased by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) using a legacy received in 1894 from the estate of Mr James Stevens, the largest number of RNLI lifeboats funded from a single donation.

James Stevens' legacy

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The RNLI received a £50,000 legacy in 1894 (equivalent to £7,191,000 in 2023) from the estate of Mr James Stevens, a developer, from Edgbaston in Birmingham.[1][2] This donation provided more lifeboats than any other single donation received by the RNLI.[1]

The 20 lifeboats were built between 1896 and 1901, during which time they accounted for 22% of the 90 lifeboats built:[3]

Year James Stevens' legacy Other new lifeboats
1896 1 12
1897 0 10
1898 2 9
1899 8 7
1900 6 11
1901 3 21
Total 20 70

Lifeboats

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James Stevens No. 1 entered service in 1896, followed by the other 19 between 1898 and 1901. They were built to several different designs and sizes to suit the needs of their stations. James Stevens No. 4, James Stevens No. 5 and James Stevens No. 13 were all lost in service between 1900 and 1917, the remainder being withdrawn between 1917 and 1933.

As was usual at this time, most were 'pulling and sailing' lifeboats, provided with oars but also fitted with sails for when conditions allowed their use. James Stevens No. 3 and James Stevens No. 4 were both built with steam engines, while James Stevens No. 14 was fitted with a petrol engine in 1906.

Two of the lifeboats, James Stevens No. 10 and James Stevens No. 14 have been restored and are kept in the towns where they were stationed.

Name ON[a] Class In service[3] Station Comments
James Stevens No. 1 401 Peake 1896–1917 Port St Mary A ten-oared lifeboat that cost £463, launched on 22 services saving 55 lives.[4]
James Stevens No. 2 413 Liverpool 1898–1912 Campbeltown Costing £538. In 1900 it was accidentally dropped 14 ft (4.3 m) into the water. It was badly damaged when it was washed onto a ship that it was trying to rescue on 28 December 1908.[5]
1912–1914 Reserve fleet
1914–1924 Hilbre Island
James Stevens No. 3 420 Steam 1898–1903 Grimsby Built by J. Samuel White.[6] This was one of the RNLI's six steam lifeboats and the first to have only one propeller.[7]
1903–1908 Gorleston
1908–1915 Angle
1915–1919 Totland Bay
1919–1922 Dover
1922–1928 Holyhead
James Stevens No. 4 421 Steam 1899–1900 Padstow Built by J Samuel White.[6] Wrecked while on service on 11 April 1900; eight of her crew of eleven were drowned.[7][8]
James Stevens No. 5 426 Peake 1899–1917 Newquay Capsized during a practice launch in March 1908 with the loss of one life. It was launched on 17 December 1917 to help the SS Ostenbut was wrecked although the crew managed to get ashore.[9][10] The remains were found submerged near the Towan Head slipway in 2004.[3]
James Stevens No. 6 427 Peake 1898–1924 Eastbourne Cost £612. Withdrawn from service in 1924 but retained as an exhibition until it was sold in 1936. It was broken up at Eastbourne in 1948.[11]
James Stevens No. 7 429 Watson 1899–1926 Howth
James Stevens No. 8 425 Liverpool 1899–1913 Ardrossan Into service at Ardrossan in 1899, replacing the Charles Skirrow.[12]
1913–1916 Wells-next-the-Sea
1916–1920 Reserve fleet
James Stevens No. 9 430 Norfolk and Suffolk 1899–1923 Southend-on-Sea Fifty-two lives saved from eleven craft[13][14]
James Stevens No. 10 435 Peake 1900–1933 St Ives Now used for boat-trips at St Ives but was sunk in the Hayle Estuary on 30 December 2015 before being salvaged and restored.[15][16][3]
James Stevens No. 11 438 Peake 1900-1912 New Romney
1912–1914 Reserve fleet
1915–1919 Angle
1919–1920 Reserve fleet
1920–1928 Johnshaven
James Stevens No. 12 436 Peake 1900–1903 The Mumbles Capsized with the loss of six crew in 1903.[17]
James Stevens No. 13 439 Peake 1900–1925 Arbroath
James Stevens No. 14 432 Norfolk and Suffolk 1900–1928 Walton and Frinton Fitted with a petrol engine in 1906. Launched 126 times, rescued 227 people. Sold for further use in 1928, by the late 1970s it had lost its engine and become a houseboat. It was returned to Walton-on-the Naze for preservation in 1998.[18]
James Stevens No. 15 442 Watson 1900–1921 Wexford
James Stevens No. 16 445 Watson 1900–1930 Helvick Head Sold in 1930, by 1972 it was in use as a yacht.[3]
James Stevens No. 17 451 Liverpool 1900–1922 Porthoustock
James Stevens No. 18 452 Liverpool 1901–1931 Girvan
James Stevens No. 19 459 Rubie 1901–1926 Newburgh 15 November 1923, launched to rescue the Aberdeen trawler Imperial Prince, resulting in the crew being awarded two silver and a bronze RNLI medal for bravery.[19] Sold in 1928, by 1970 it had been converted to a yacht.[3]
1926–1928 Reserve fleet
James Stevens No. 20 457 Watson 1901–1920 Queenstown Sold in 1928, by the 1970s it had been converted to a yacht.[3]
1920–1923 Reserve fleet
1923–1928 Fenit
  1. ^ ON is the RNLI's Official Number of the boat.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Pride of RNLI heads for new berth". Birmingham Post & Mail. 14 July 1998. Retrieved 6 September 2012.
  2. ^ "The History of the Eastbourne Lifeboat Station". Eastbourne Lifeboat. RLNI. Retrieved 31 July 2012.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Denton, Tony (2010). Handbook 2010. Lifeboat Enthusiasts' Society. pp. 7–11.
  4. ^ "RNLB James Stevens history". History of Port St Mary Lifeboat Station. RNLI. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 30 July 2012.
  5. ^ "Campbeltown's station history". RNLI. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
  6. ^ a b Barton, Antony. "Lifeboats produced by J. Samuel White's". Bartie's World. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
  7. ^ a b Leach, Nicholas (2012). Padstow Lifeboats. The History Press. pp. 31–38. ISBN 978-0-7524-6540-1.
  8. ^ John, Castle. "Wreck Report for 'James Stevens', No. 4, 1900" (PDF). PortCities Southampton. Plimsoll. Archived from the original on 11 December 2014. Retrieved 31 July 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  9. ^ "Newquay station history". RNLI. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  10. ^ Larn, Richard; Larn, Bridget (2006). Wreck & Rescue round the Cornish coast. Redruth: Tor Mark Press. p. 48. ISBN 978-0-85025-406-8.
  11. ^ "Eastbourne's station history". RNLI. Retrieved 1 February 2024.
  12. ^ "Non-Football Stories 1899". Ardrossan and Saltcoats Herald. 29 September 1899. Ardrossan's new lifeboat. Retrieved 6 September 2012.
  13. ^ Burrows, John (1909). Southend-on-sea and district: Historical Notes. Southend-on-sea: John H Burrows & Sons. p. 246.
  14. ^ Southend Standard, 21 September 1899
  15. ^ "James Stevens No. 10". St Ives Boat trips. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
  16. ^ "James Stevens No 10 lifeboat sinks in Hayle Estuary". BBC News. 31 December 2015. Retrieved 31 December 2015.
  17. ^ "The Mumbles' Station History". RNLI. Retrieved 3 February 2024.
  18. ^ "Historic Ships Register". Retrieved 3 February 2024.
  19. ^ Lifeboat Gallantry: The Complete Record of Royal National Lifeboat Institution Gallantry Medals and How They Were Won (1st ed.). Spink & Son Ltd. 10 May 1998. ISBN 978-0907605898.
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