Ryde Lifeboat Station

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Ryde Lifeboat Station
Flag of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.svg
Ryde Pier (geograph 7001628).jpg
Location of former Lifeboat House, Ryde Pier
Isle of Wight UK relief location map.jpg
Red pog.svg
Ryde, Isle of Wight
General information
StatusClosed
Type RNLI Lifeboat Station
LocationThe Pier, Ryde, Isle of Wight, England
Coordinates 50°44′15.8″N1°09′40.3″W / 50.737722°N 1.161194°W / 50.737722; -1.161194
Opened1858
Closed1923

Ryde Lifeboat Station, was located at Ryde Pier, in the town of Ryde, on the Isle of Wight, England. [1]

Contents

A lifeboat was first placed at Ryde in 1869. Management of the station was transferred to the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) in 1894. [2]

Ryde Lifeboat Station was closed in 1923, following the placement of a motor-lifeboat at Bembridge in 1922. [3]

A new Independent Rescue service, Ryde Inshore Rescue Service, was established after a double drowning incident in 1956. [4]

History

The first rescue service in the town started in 1858 and was run on a voluntary basis. [5]

On 8 May 1869, the town's rescue volunteers service were supplied with a new lifeboat. The lifeboat was built by J. Samuel White at Cowes on the Isle of Wight. She was 28 ft 8 in (8.74 m) in length, 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) across the beam and had a depth of 2 ft 4 in (0.71 m). The lifeboat had 8 oars and she was fitted with two sailing masts. She was steered with a galvanised iron tiller. The lifeboat had its own carriage for launching, or for transportation to alternate locations if the situation required. The lifeboat was the gift of Hans Busk DL , one of the originators of the Volunteer Force, and was named Captain Hans Busk (ON 376). [6] [7]

A boathouse was constructed on the west side of Ryde pier in 1870, from where the lifeboat could be launched down a slipway. [6]

In 1894, at the invitation of the Ryde lifeboat committee, management of the station was transferred to the RNLI. The lifeboat on station, Captain Hans Busk (ON 376) was given a complete overhaul. [8]

The November 1905 edition of the RNLI journal 'The Lifeboat' reported the replacement of the Ryde lifeboat, with a similar 'Whale-boat' design lifeboat, slightly longer than the earlier boat, at 30 ft (9.1 m) in length, built by Thames Ironworks of Blackwall, London, and costing £605. The boat was provided from legacy of Mrs Selina Edwards of Cannock, Staffordshire, and was duly named Selina (ON 551). [9]

Tragedy

Early on the afternoon of Tuesday, 1 January 1907, Augustus Jarrett, master of the 56-ton barge Jane, reported that their small boat had been stolen. This boat was later seen drifting out to sea with a single occupant. The water was rough and the weather was squally. [10] [11]

Around 17:30 that evening, the Ryde lifeboat Selina was launched to assist, with nine crew, including coxswain William John Bartlett at the helm. By this time it had become dark. Selina was a 30 ft (9 m) wooden whaleboat design non-self-righting lifeboat. The lifeboat searched the area but was unable to locate the small boat. [10] [11]

Weather conditions deteriorated, and around 19:45, a sudden heavy squall capsized the Selina, throwing the crew into cold water, without any way of signalling for help. The lifeboat drifted across the Solent to Southsea on the south coast of the English mainland. Two of the nine crew, Frank Haynes and Henry Heward, died from exposure. [10] [11] [12]

Meanwhile, the small boat belonging to the Jane had managed to row across the Solent, landing opposite Eastney Barracks at Southsea at around 7:00 PM, prior to the capsizing of the Selina. Its occupant turned out to be Augustus Jarrett. Jarrett maintained that the small boat had been stolen and he had later recovered it at the Dover Street Slipway, although later inquiry suggested it may simply have floated away after being poorly secured. An inquest into the accident was held on 4 January 1907. The jury's verdict was that the deaths had been accidental and not the result of negligence. [10] [11]

Closure

Ryde Lifeboat Station was closed in 1923, following the placement of a motor-lifeboat at Bembridge the previous year. Little evidence of the boathouse remains, just a few iron pilings standing next to the Pier. The lifeboat Selina (ON 551) was sold in 1923, but still survives, and in 2024 was being stored on the Isle of Wight awaiting restoration. [13]

Ryde Inshore Rescue Service

A double drowning incident at the end of Ryde Pier in 1956, prompted the reformation of a rescue organisation to serve the town, and the creation of Ryde Inshore Rescue Service. [4]

For further information, please see:–

Roll of honour

In memory of those lost whilst serving Ryde lifeboat. [12]

Frank Haynes (38)
Henry Heward (51)

Ryde lifeboats

ON [a] NameBuiltOn station [14] ClassComments [15]
376Captain Hans Busk18691869−190528-foot 8in Whaleboat [Note 1]
551Selina19051905−192330-foot Whaleboat [Note 2]
Capsized 1 January 1907.
Sold 1923, now stored on the Isle of Wight pending restoration (December 2024).
  1. ↑ ON is the RNLI's Official Number of the boat.

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ 28 ft 8 in (8.74 m) x 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) (8-oared) non-self-righting 'Whale-boat', gift of the Capt. Hans Busk LB fund, built by J. Samuel White of Cowes.
  2. ↑ 30 ft (9.1 m) x 7 ft 3 in (2.21 m) (8-oared) non-self-righting 'Whale-boat', legacy of Mrs S. Edwards of Cannock, built by Thames Ironworks of Blackwall, London, costing £605.

References

  1. ↑ "Hampshire and Isle of Wight XCI.10". Maps. National Library of Scotland. Retrieved 31 December 2025.
  2. ↑ Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2025). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2025. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. p. 118.
  3. ↑ Leonard & Denton 2025, pp. 42, 118.
  4. 1 2 "Ryde Inshore Rescue". Ryde Inshore Rescue. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
  5. ↑ Leach, Nicholas (1999). "Appendix 7: Closed Lifeboat Stations". For Those in Peril: the Lifeboat Service of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, Station by Station. Kettering: Silver Link. p. 252. ISBN   1857941292. OCLC   40754667.
  6. 1 2 "The Ryde lifeboat – Hans Busk". Originally from "Isle of Wight Observer". 1 May 1869. Retrieved 25 November 2021– via Historic Ryde Society.
  7. ↑ Farr & Morris 1992, p. 18.
  8. ↑ "Additional Stations and New Life-Boats". The Lifeboat. XVI (175): 7. 1 February 1895. Retrieved 31 December 2025.
  9. ↑ "Additional Stations and New Life-Boats". The Lifeboat. XIX (218): 556. 1 November 1905. Retrieved 31 December 2025.
  10. 1 2 3 4 "Ryde Lifeboat Disaster 1 January 1907". Ryde Social History Group. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
  11. 1 2 3 4 "Ryde Lifeboat Disaster, 1st/2nd January 1907". Wootton Bridge Historical Society. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
  12. 1 2 Whitmore, Warren (7 January 2023). "116 Years Ago, 2 Brave Lifeboatmen Were Laid To Rest After Ryde Lifeboat Tragedy". Island Echo. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
  13. ↑ Leonard & Denton 2025, pp. 38, 42.
  14. ↑ Leonard & Denton 2025, pp. 30, 38.
  15. ↑ Farr, Grahame; Morris, Jeff (1992). List of British Lifeboats Part 1 & 2 (Second ed.). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. pp. 1–88.
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