| Torquay Lifeboat Station | |
|---|---|
 Flag of the RNLI | |
  Map of Devon showing Torquay | |
| General information | |
| Type | Lifeboat station |
| Location | Beacon Cove |
| Country | England |
| Coordinates | 50°27′27″N3°31′23″W / 50.4576°N 3.5231°W |
| Opened | 1876 |
| Closed | 1923 |
| Demolished | 1975 |
| Owner | RNLI |
Torquay Lifeboat Station was the base for Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) search and rescue operations at Torquay, Devon in England from 1876 until 1923. A second lifeboat was kept at the harbour from 1917 until 1928.
The RNLI had stationed a lifeboat at Brixham in 1866 but ten years later they opened a second station on Torbay. The boathouse was built at the Ladies Bathing Cove (Beacon Cove) on a site donated by Sir Lawrence Palk and the lifeboat arrived on 22 May 1876. Brixham was equipped with a motor lifeboat in 1922 which could cover a larger sea area in more extreme conditions. Changes in the shape of the beach at the Ladies Bathing Cove were also making it difficult to launch the lifeboat, so on 31 March 1923 the station was closed [1] The boathouse was later used as a café but was demolished in 1975. [2]
The managing director of local shipping company Whiteways and Ball presented the Torquay Harbour Lifesaving Boat to the RNLI in 1917 on the understanding that it would be kept operational even if the lifeboat station at the Ladies Bathing Cove closed. For the first year it of its operation it was kept on davits on Beacon Quay but from 1918 it was kept afloat in the harbour until 1928. [2]
The boathouse was built in a decorative style at the back of the Ladies Bathing Cove under the cliff. Above the double opening doors was a bay window that give views of operations. On the long side of the building nearest the sea was a large shelter with three dormer windows above.
| AT Torquay | ON | Name | Class | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1876–1889 | — | Mary Brundrett | Self-Righter | [1] |
| 1889–1902 | 269 | James and Eliza Woodall | Self-Righter | [1] [3] |
| 1902–1923 | 487 | Wighton | Watson | Sold and later used as yacht Cavalla, reported in 2019 to be in a derelict condition at Wilburton, Cambridgeshire. [1] [4] |
| 1918–1928 | — | — | — | 'Torquay Harbour Lifesaving Boat' kept at the harbour. [2] |
Torquay is a seaside town in Devon, England, part of the unitary authority area of Torbay. It lies 18 miles (29 km) south of the county town of Exeter and 28 miles (45 km) east-north-east of Plymouth, on the north of Tor Bay, adjoining the neighbouring town of Paignton on the west of the bay and across from the fishing port of Brixham.
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