History
A lifeboat station was first established at Pakefield in 1840, and along with a lifeboat at Lowestoft, was operated by the Suffolk Humane Society. A 45-foot Norfolk and Suffolk-class lifeboat was placed on station, constructed by Teasdel of Great Yarmouth. [5]
At the Annual General Meeting of the RNLI on 26 April 1855, it was announced that the Suffolk Humane Society, now with three stations at Lowestoft, Pakefield and Southwold, had voluntarily joined the Institution. [6]
Whilst the Southwold lifeboat was immediately replaced in 1855, it is assumed that the Pakefield lifeboat was in good condition, as it was retained, and served Pakefield for a further 17 years. In 1868, the Institution received a gift of £420 was Misses Sarah and Lydia Harris. The money was appropriated to the Pakefield lifeboat station, and the lifeboat was duly renamed Sisters. [7]
In 1871, an additional and smaller 30-foot lifeboat and transporting carriage was placed at Pakefield, designed for close shore work, and supplied at the request of the local beachmen. A No. 2 lifeboat house was constructed, at a cost of £50. At a ceremony on 18 January 1871, at the request of the anonymous benefactor "J. L.", the lifeboat was named Henry Burford, RN. [9]
In 1872, after 32-years service, the 46-foot lifeboat originally provided by the SHS, was declared unfit. Since 1855, when the RNLI took over, the boat and crew had saved 88 lives, and also saved five vessels from destruction. It was replaced with a lifeboat to the same design, again 46-feet long, and retained the name Sisters (ON 23). In 1876, the lifeboat was renamed The Two Sisters, Mary and Hannah, in accordance with the wishes of the late Mr Thomas Parkin, of Wigton, following his bequest of £550. [10] [11]
Coxswain George Warford was awarded the RNLI Silver Medal in 1886, in recognition of his long and valuable services in the lifeboat. [12]
Services include:
Also in 1886, the No.1 lifeboat The Two Sisters, Mary and Hannah (ON 23) was loaned to Lowestoft, to be their No.2 Lifeboat. No relief boat was provided, leaving just the No.2 lifeboat on station at Pakefield. The lifeboat was at Lowestoft for four years, returning in 1890. That same year, a new boathouse was constructed on Cliftonville Road. [18]
The No.2 lifeboat Henry Burford, RN (ON 24) was withdrawn in 1895, and the No.2 station closed.
Coxswain George Warford was awarded a bar (clasp) to his RNLI Silver Medal on his resignation in 1898, and for further rescues, including:
- Brigantine Kelpie, 9 January 1895, Saved seven, and vessel recovered. [20]
The two 46-foot lifeboats at Pakefield would cover an extraordinary period of 70 years service at Pakefield. The Two Sisters, Mary and Hannah was finally replaced in 1910, with a 42-foot lifeboat, funded from the bequest of £3049-6s-11d, for the provision of a lifeboat and equipment, from the late James Leath of Winchmore Hill, London. The James Leath (ON 607), would serve at Pakefield for just nine years, before being transferred to Caister and later Aldeburgh. [21]
The James Leith was sold from service in 1936, but was later acquired by the Bristol Lifeboat Museum, and transferred to the RNLI Heritage Collection at Chatham Historic Dockyard in 1996. [23]
A motor-powered lifeboat was placed at Lowestoft Lifeboat Station in 1921. As a result, Pakefield Lifeboat was withdrawn in 1922, and the station closed. It was agreed that the service boards would be placed in Pakefield Church. [24]
Nothing remains of any of the three lifeboat houses at Pakefield. The last lifeboat at Pakefield at the time of closure, Hugh Taylor (ON 629), went on to serve at Aldeburgh. The boat was last reported as a yacht in Dordrecht in 1987.
