Moelfre_Lifeboat_Station
Moelfre Lifeboat Station is located in the village of Moelfre, Anglesey. A lifeboat was first stationed here in 1848 by the Anglesey Association for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck.
The current station has been operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) since 1855. There are 2 lifeboats, the slipway launched All-weather Tamar-class lifeboat 16-25 Kiwi (ON 1305), named in appreciation of the major sponsor of the boat, a native of New Zealand, which normally carries a crew of 6 or 7. The Inshore boat is a D-class (IB1) named Enfys 2 (D-825). with 3 crew.
The Anglesey Association for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck was founded by the Rev. James and Mrs Frances Williams in 1828.They had witnessed the loss of 140 lives from the wreck of the vessel Alert in 1923, and spent the following five years raising funds and gaining support.[1]
By 1846, the Anglesey Association had already started stations at Cemlyn, Holyhead, Rhoscolyn, Penmon, and Llanddwyn (Niwbwrch), and it was decided that the next station (Station No.6) would be at Moelfre. In 1848, Penmon got a new boat, and their old lifeboat was transferred to Moelfre, where a new stone-built boathouse had been constructed. Roland Hughes was appointed Coxswain in 1849.[2]
In 1855, the Anglesey Association's six lifeboat stations were formally handed over to the RNLI. A new boat had been constructed for Moelfre in 1854, and she would remain on service for the next 20 years. In 1866 and 1867, the "London Sunday-School Lifeboat-Fund" raised over £700. In recognition of this, and the Hon. Secretary of the fund, the Moelfre lifeboat was renamed London Sunday Schools and Charles Seare in 1867.[2]
A new boathouse, costing £158-18s-0d, and later a slipway, was constructed at Porth Nigwyl in 1875. This boathouse can still be seen today.
However, a bigger lifeboat house with deep-water slipway was constructed in 1909 to house Charles and Eliza Laura (ON 605) and is still the site of the current lifeboat house. This was modified several times between 1930 and 1993 to accommodate larger boats; its slipway had been commensurately lengthened as well. This station was stone-built with rendered walls and a slate roof, on a rectangular base of coursed, squared limestone.[3]
A new boathouse to house the Tamar-class lifeboat was required, built on the site of the 1909 boathouse, and became operational in March 2015.[4]
At 3:30pm on the 28 October 1927, at the height of a storm with gale force winds gusting up to 85 mph, Second Coxswain William Roberts launched the Charles and Eliza Laura (ON 605) to the aid of the vessel Excel of Poole. Also onboard was Capt. Owen Jones, an experience seaman, but not part of the regular crew due to his work, After battling the conditions for over 2 hours, they finally reached the Excel. Realising it was about to sink, they sailed the lifeboat onto the deck of the vessel, rescuing the three crew, before a wave washed the lifeboat off, and the vessel sinking minutes later. The lifeboat, badly damaged, and unable to return to Moelfre due to the weather, made for Puffin Island. Sadly, two lives were lost, one of the vessel crew had been badly injured during the rescue and died, whilst lifeboat crewman William Roberts collapsed and died of exhaustion.
At 10 pm, the Beaumaris motor lifeboat was sent out to find the Moelfre boat. Finding the lifeboat in the shelter of Puffin Island, and assuming they were just waiting for a break in the weather, the Beaumaris lifeboat returned to station.
The Moelfre crew remained with their battered lifeboat for the rest of the night, and it was only at dawn that the Beaumaris lifeboat was again despatched, this time towing the Moelfre boat, landing the exhausted crew back at Beaumaris Pier at 8:30am.
For their outstanding service, Acting Coxswain William Roberts, and Capt. Owen Jones were each awarded the RNLI Gold Medal.
Each of the remaining crew were awarded the RNLI Bronze Medal, including a very rare posthumous Bronze Medal for William Roberts.[2][5]
postscript: Three years later in 1930, Moelfre received their first motor-powered lifeboat, a 40ft 6in Watson-class lifeboat, with a single 50 hp petrol engine, giving just over 7kts. She cost £5,886, and was named G. W. (ON 724), following two separate bequests, in memory of George Staley and Wade Richards, the funds combined to cover the cost. On 27 July 1932, G. W. was launched to find a missing fishing boat, but neither the person or boat was ever found. The missing person was Capt. Owen Jones, recipient of the RNLI Gold Medal.[6]
Richard Matthew (Dic) Evans, BEM (1905 - 2001) served as a crewmen and Coxswain at the station for 50 years and was credited with saving 281 lives. On 23 November 2004, a bronze statue in his memory, situated adjacent to the Moelfre lifeboat station, was unveiled by Prince Charles, the Prince of Wales.[7] The statue stands 7ft high on a granite plinth and was created by Sam Holland.[8]
The following are awards made to the crew of Moelfre Lifeboat Station. [6][5]
- William Roberts, Second Coxswain - 1927
- Captain Owen Jones, crew member - 1927
- Richard Matthew Evans, Coxswain - 1967 (Second Service Award)
- Rowland Hughes, Coxswain - 1884
- Richard Owen, Second Coxswain - 1901
- Thomas Owen, Coxswain - 1902
- John Matthews, Coxswain - 1940
- John Matthews, Coxswain - 1943 (Second Service Award)
- Evan Owens, Motor Mechanic - 1959
- Evan Owens, Motor Mechanic - 1967 (Second Service Award)
- William Williams, Bowman - 1927
- Robert Francis, crew member - 1927
- Owen Jones, crew member - 1927
- Thomas Jones, crew member - 1927
- Hugh Matthews, crew member - 1927
- Hugh Owen, crew member - 1927
- John Owen, crew member - 1927
- Robert Owen, crew member - 1927
- Owen Owens, crew member - 1927
- Hugh Thomas, crew member - 1927
- Richard Thomas, crew member - 1927
- Thomas Williams, crew member - 1927
- William Roberts, crew member, (posthumously) - 1927
- John Matthews, Coxswain - 1937
- Robert Williams, Motor Mechanic - 1940
- Richard Matthew Evans, Coxswain, Second Coxswain - 1943
- Robert Williams, Motor Mechanic - 1943
- Donald Murphy Francis, crew member - 1959
- Hugh Owen, crew member - 1959 (Second Service Award)
- Hugh Jones, crew member - 1959
- Donald Murphy Francis, Second Coxswain - 1967 (Second Service Award)
- Hugh Owen, Acting Bowman - 1967 (Third Service Award)
- Hugh Jones, crew member - 1967 (Second Service Award)
- William Maynard Davies, Assistant Mechanic - 1967
- David T Evans, crew member - 1967
- Capt Jocelyn David Jeavons, crew member - 1967
- The Thanks of the Institution inscribed on Vellum
- William Roberts, Coxswain - 1975
- William Roberts, Coxswain - 1982
- Rodney Pace, Second Coxswain - 2002
- A Framed Letter of Thanks signed by the Chairman of the Institution
- John Thomas, Second Coxswain - 1978
- Kenneth Roberts, crew member -1978
- William Roberts, Coxswain - 1980
- John Thomas, Second Coxswain - 1980
- R Pace, Helmsman - 1990
- A Barclay, crew member - 1990
- Rod Pace, crew member - 1995
- David Massey, crew member - 1995
- Anthony Barclay, Coxswain - 2002
All-weather lifeboats
| ON[lower-alpha 1] | Op. No.[lower-alpha 2] | Name | In service [10] | Class | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| – | – | Unnamed (No.4) | 1848–1853 | 26' Norfolk and Suffolk (P&S) | [Note 1][11] |
| – | – | Unnamed, London Sunday Schools and Charles Seare |
1854–1874 | 28' 'Whale Boat' | [Note 2][11] |
| – | – | Lady Vivian | 1874–1884 | 32' Self-Righting (P&S) | [11] |
| 68 | – | Star of Hope | 1884–1892 | 34' Self-Righting (P&S) | |
| 325 | – | Star of Hope | 1892–1910 | 39' Self-Righting (P&S) | |
| 605 | – | Charles and Eliza Laura | 1910–1929 | 40' Watson (P&S) | |
| 462 | – | Thomas Fielden | 1929 | 40' Watson (P&S) | |
| 581 | – | Reserve No.7D | 1929–1930 | 38' Watson (P&S) | Previously Maria Stephenson at Buckie |
| 724 | – | G.W. | 1930–1956 | 40ft 6in Watson | |
| 922 | – | Watkin Williams | 1956–1977 | 42ft Watson | |
| 1047 | 37-34 | Horace Clarkson | 1977–1986 | Rother | |
| 932 | – | Howard Marryat | 1986–1988 | 46ft 9in Watson | |
| 1116 | 47-013 | Robert and Violet | 1988–2013 | Tyne | |
| 1305 | 16-25 | Kiwi | 2013– | Tamar | [12] |
Inshore lifeboats
| Op No | Name | In service [10] | Class | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| D-67 | Unnamed | 1965 | D-class (Dunlop) | |
| D-62 | Unnamed | 1965–1966 | D-class (Dunlop) | |
| D-102 | Unnamed | 1966–1969 | D-class (RFD PB16) | |
| D-54 | Unnamed | 1969 | D-class (RFD PB16) | |
| D-133 | Unnamed | 1970–1974 | D-class (RFD PB16) | |
| D-225 | Unnamed | 1975–1976 | D-class (Zodiac III) | |
| D-144 | Unnamed | 1977–1980 | D-class (RFD PB16) | |
| D-276 | Gillian Powell | 1980–1988 | D-class (RFD PB16) | |
| D-381 | Douglas | 1989–1998 | D-class (EA16) | |
| D-532 | Kingsand | 1998–2008 | D-class (EA16) | |
| D-689 | Enfys | 2008–2018 | D-class (IB1) | |
| D-825 | Enfys II | 2018– | D-class (IB1) | |
- "The Lifeboats of Holyhead and Anglesey". People's Collection Wales. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
- Morris, Jeff (January 2003). The Story of the Moelfre Lifeboats. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 1–50.
- "Lifeboat Station, Molfre". www.cofiadurcahcymru.org.uk. Gwynedd Archaeological Trust. Retrieved 5 June 2016.
- Cox, Barry (1998). Lifeboat Gallantry. Spink & Son Ltd. ISBN 0-907605-89-3.
- "Moelfre's station history". RNLI. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
- "HRH unveils a memorial statue of Dic Evans outside the Seawatch Heritage Centre, a heroic lifeboatman, during a visit to Wales". Prince of Wales & The Duchess of Cornwall. 23 November 2004. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
- Holland, Sam. "Dic Evans Memorial Sculpture". Sam Holland. Archived from the original on 26 October 2016. Retrieved 2 May 2017.
- "British Empire Medal (Civil Division)". The Gazette. Retrieved 9 February 2024.
- Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2023). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2023. Lifeboats Enthusiasts Society.
- Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2021). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2021 (2021 ed.). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 2–18.
- "Moelfre lifeboat RNLB Kiwi unveiled after £2.2m bequest". BBC. Retrieved 4 March 2013.