Thurso Lifeboat Station

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Thurso Lifeboat Station
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RNLI Thurso, Ferry Pier, Scrabster, near Thurso - 2 - geograph.org.uk - 3646754.jpg
Thurso Lifeboat Station
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Thurso
General information
Type RNLI Lifeboat Station
LocationScrabster Harbour
AddressFerry Pier
Town or city Scrabster, Thurso, Caithness, KW14 7UJ
Country Scotland
Coordinates 58°36′43.4″N3°32′49.2″W / 58.612056°N 3.547000°W / 58.612056; -3.547000
Opened1860
Owner Flag of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution.svg Royal National Lifeboat Institution
Website
Thurso RNLI Lifeboat Station

Thurso Lifeboat Station is located at Scrabster Harbour, near the town of Thurso, in the administrative area of Highland, historically Caithness, in the north coast of mainland Scotland.

Contents

A lifeboat was first stationed at Thurso by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution in 1860. [1]

The station currently operates a Severn-class All-weather lifeboat, 17-42 The Taylors (ON 1273), on station since 2004. [2]

History

Between 1830 and 1856, the Royal National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck (RNIPLS), later the RNLI, had awarded no less than six silver medals for Gallantry to Coastguard, Fishermen and other locals, for rescues performed around Thurso. [3]

In 1859, it was decided to establish a station in Thurso. "The position of Thurso, on the south shore of the Pentland Firth, through which dangerous channel numberless vessels pass every year, makes it a very desirable station for a life-boat." [4] [5]

A boathouse was commissioned to be built at Scrabster Harbour, at a cost of £103. In October 1860, a new 30-foot self-righting 'Pulling and Sailing' (P&S) lifeboat, one with sails and (6) oars, arrived at Thurso, transported free of charge, initially to Granton, Edinburgh by the General Steam Navigation Company, and onwards to Thurso by the Aberdeen, Leith, and Clyde Steam Shipping Company. [1] [6]

The cost of the lifeboat was gifted to the Institution by A. W. Jaffray of London, who had also donated the cost of the St Andrews and Whitby lifeboats to the Institution. The lifeboat, costing £148-19s-0d, and built by Forrestt of Limehouse, London, was named Polly. [4] [5]

Polly was only called upon 6 times in her 11 years on service, but in that time managed to save 49 lives. She was replaced in 1871 by a slightly larger 10-oared boat, Charley Lloyd, which served for another 19 years, being called out 31 times, and rescuing 255 lives. [4] [7]

In 1890, the third lifeboat assigned to Thurso was also the third lifeboat funded by the Co-operative Union, named Co-operator No.3 (ON 282) at a ceremony on the River Clyde, to coincide with the Co-operative Congress meeting in Glasgow. [4]

1929 saw the arrival of Thurso's first motor-powered lifeboat. She was a 45ft 6in Watson-class lifeboat, named H. C. J. (ON 708) by the Duchess of Portland on 13 September 1929. She served Thurso for 27 years, being launched 102 times, and saving the lives of 138 people. [8]

On the 8 February 1944, the Thurso lifeboat H. C. J. was launched into a northerly gale at 14:30, when two dinghies were spotted 13 miles west of Thurso. On arrival on scene at 16:30, it was realised the two dinghies were in fact life-rafts, from the Norwegian vessel Freidig, which had foundered after the cargo shifted. Of the seven men aboard the rafts, there were only two survivors, who were landed at Wick at 19:10. For this service, Coxswain John McLeod was awarded the RNLI Bronze Medal.

RNLB Dunnet Head (Civil Service No.31) (ON 920) arrived on service at Thurso in January 1956. Funded by the Civil Service charity The Lifeboat Fund, she was a 47-foot Watson-class lifeboat, with two 60-hp Gardner 5LW engines, built by Wm. Osbourne of Littlehampton, and costing £35,000. She was named in a ceremony at Scrabster Harbour in August 1956 by HM Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother. [4]

On the night of 10 December 1956, Disaster struck, when both the boat and boathouse were fully consumed by fire. Fire crews from both Thurso and Wick attended, but the intensity was such that only one wall of the boathouse remained, along with the iron keel and engines of the boat. The destruction was so complete that no evidence was left as to the cause of the outbreak. [9]

The boat would be replaced by the Pentland (Civil Service No.31). This time fully funded by the RNLI, she still retained the Civil Service designation.

Thurso Severn-class lifeboat 17-42 The Taylors (ON 1273) Thurso Lifeboat - geograph.org.uk - 1445570.jpg
Thurso Severn-class lifeboat 17-42 The Taylors (ON 1273)

The Thurso Arun-class 52-43 The Queen Mother (ON 1149) was launched at 03:55 on 19 March 1999, into gale-force 8–9 conditions, to the aid of the 102 m (335 ft) long chemical tanker Multitank Ascania, disabled, and drifting towards Dunnet Head, carrying 1750 tonnes of Vinyl acetate monomer. In a service involving rescue helicopters from Lossiemouth and Stromness, the Orkney Harbours tug Einar, and also the Longhope lifeboat, the Master and crew were rescued, and the vessel was brought away from the shore, at one point being just 400m away from the rocks, particularly due to the towing efforts of the Thurso lifeboat. For his skill and seamanship shown in averting an ecological disaster, Coxswain William Farquhar was awarded the RNLI Bronze Medal, with the rest of the crew accorded Medal Service Certificates and badges. [10]

In 1860, the first RNLI lifeboat at Thurso cost just £103. 144 years later, in 2004, Thurso received their latest All-weather lifeboat, a 25-knot Severn-class lifeboat, 17-42 The Taylors (ON 1273), costing £2 million. [11]

Station honours

The following are awards made at Thurso. [1] [3] [12]

John Morgan, Chief Boatman, H.M. Coastguard, Staxigoe – 1830
Benjamin Sinclair, Merchant – 1835
John Smith – 1840
James Wishart – 1847
Robert Williamson, fisherman – 1848
Donald Thompson – 1856
John Brims, Coxswain – 1886
John Brims, Coxswain – 1894 (Second-Service Clasp)
Angus McPhail, Coxswain – 1931
John McLeod, Coxswain – 1944
William Farquhar, Coxswain – 1999
William Munro, Second Coxswain – 1999
Duncan Munro, Assistant Mechanic – 1999
Donald Mackay – 1999
Gordon Munro – 1999
John Webster – 1999
James Brims – 1999
Kevin Oag – 1999
Scott Youngson – 1999
Angus McPhail, Coxswain – 1929
Angus McPhail, Coxswain – 1930
Adam McLeod, Second Coxswain – 1931
Angus Macintosh, Coxswain – 1953
John Manson, Second Coxswain – 1982
Ross Farquhar, Coxswain – 1982
William Donald Munro, Second Coxswain – 1997
Duncan (Dougie) Munro, Second Coxswain – 2004
William Miller, Acting Motor Mechanic – 1997
Duncan Munro, Assistant Mechanic – 1997
James Brims, crew member – 1997
Thomas Davidson, crew member – 1997
Donald McKenzie, crew member – 1997
Gordon Munro, crew member – 1997
Kevin Oag, crew member – 1997
John Webster, crew member – 1997
William Miller, Motor Mechanic – 2004
Gordon Munro, Deputy Second Coxswain – 2004
James Brims, Assistant Mechanic – 2004
Bruce Farquhar, Emergency Mechanic – 2004
Scott Youngson, crew member – 2004
Kevin Davidson, crew member – 2004
William Farquhar, Coxswain – 1999
Duncan (Dougie) Munro, Second Coxswain – 2004
Captain and crew of RAF helicopter Rescue 137 – 1999
Master and crew of the tug Einar – 1999
William Farquar, Coxswain – 2001
William Munro, Coxswain – 2002
Brian Williams, Honorary Secretary – 2001
William Miller, Motor Mechanic – 2001
Duncan Munro, Second Coxswain – 2001
Gordon Munro, Deputy Second Coxswain – 2001
James Brims, Assistant Mechanic – 2001
Bruce Farquhar, Emergency Mechanic – 2004
J. Webster, crew member – 2001
Scott Youngson, crew member – 2001
James Brims, crew member – 2001
Kevin Davidson, crew member – 2001
Gordon Munro, Deputy Second Coxswain – 2004
James Brims, Assistant Mechanic – 2004
Scott Youngson, crew member – 2004
Kevin Davidson, crew member – 2004
Coxswain, Second Coxswain and Bowman – 1928
Thurso Lifeboat Crew – 1928
John Miller, Honorary Secretary – 1948 [13]
John McLeod, Coxswain – 1944

Thurso lifeboats

Pulling and Sailing (P&S) lifeboats

ON [a] NameOn Station [14] ClassComments
Pre-368Polly1860−1871 30-foot Self-righting Peake (P&S) [Note 1]
Pre-554Charley Lloyd1871−189033-foot Self-righting (P&S) [Note 2]
282Co-operator No.31890−190937-foot Self-righting (P&S) [Note 3]
585Sarah Austin1909−1929 40-foot Watson (P&S) [Note 4]
Pre ON numbers are unofficial numbers used by the Lifeboat Enthusiast Society to reference early lifeboats not included on the official RNLI list.

Motor lifeboats

ON [a] Op.No. [b] NameOn Station [14] ClassComments
708−H. C. J.1929−1956 45-foot 6in Watson
920−[[Civil Service lifeboats|Dunnet Head
(Civil Service No.31)]]		1956−1956 47-foot Watson Destroyed by fire on 10 December 1956.
711−James Macfee1956−1957 45-foot 6in Watson Relief lifeboat
940− Pentland
(Civil Service No.31) 		1957−1970 47-foot Watson
101448-011The Three Sisters1970−1988 Solent
105254-07City of Bradford IV1988−1989 Arun
114952-43The Queen Mother1989−2004 Arun
127317-42The Taylors2004− Severn
  1. 1 2 ON is the RNLI's Official Number of the boat.
  2. ↑ Op. No. is the RNLI's Operational Number of the boat carried on the hull.

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ 30-foot x 7-foot (6-oared) Peake-class self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, built by Forrestt of Limehouse, London, costing £148-19s-0d.
  2. ↑ 33-foot x 8-foot (10-oared) self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, built by Woolfe of Shadwell, costing £284-15s-0d
  3. ↑ 37-foot x 8-foot (12-oared) self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, built by Forrestt of Limehouse, London, costing £594
  4. ↑ 40-foot x 11-foot (12-oared) Watson-class non self-righting (P&S) lifeboat.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Thurso's Station history". RNLI. Retrieved 12 June 2025.
  2. ↑ Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2025). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2025. Lifeboat Enthusiasts Society. p. 70.
  3. 1 2 Cox, Barry (1998). Lifeboat Gallantry. Spink & Son Ltd. ISBN   0907605893.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Morris, Jeff (December 2005). The Story of the Thurso Lifeboats. LBES. pp. 1−62.
  5. 1 2 "Additional Stations and New Life-Boats". The Lifeboat. IV (41): 473. 1 July 1861. Retrieved 12 June 2025.
  6. ↑ "Summary of the Meetings of the Committee". The Lifeboat. IV (39): 375. 1 January 1861. Retrieved 12 June 2025.
  7. ↑ Leonard & Denton 2025, pp. 14–15.
  8. ↑ Leonard & Denton 2025, pp. 44–45.
  9. ↑ "Loss of Thurso Life-Boat and Boathouse". The Lifeboat. XXXIV (379). March 1957. Retrieved 1 March 2024.
  10. ↑ "The Chemical Tanker Multitank Ascania". The Lifeboat. 57 (549): 8–9. Autumn 1999. Retrieved 12 June 2025.
  11. ↑ Leonard & Denton 2025, pp. 70.
  12. ↑ "Journal". The Lifesaving Awards Research Society (110): 63. August 2024.
  13. ↑ "Ordinary Members of the Civil Division of the said Most Excellent Order of the British Empire". The Gazette. Retrieved 1 March 2024.
  14. 1 2 Leonard & Denton 2025, pp. 8–70.
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