41ft Watson-class lifeboat
 RNLB Edmund and Mary Robison (ON812), 6th of 13 in the Watson 41 Class. Off Princes Dock, Liverpool, on the occasion of her naming ceremony.
| |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name | 41ft Watson-class |
| Builders |
|
| Operators |  Royal National Lifeboat Institution |
| Preceded by | Various |
| Succeeded by | 42ft Watson |
| Cost | £5,600-£20,700 |
| Built | 1933-1939, 1948-1952 |
| In service | 1933-1982 |
| Completed | 13 |
| Lost | 2 |
| Retired | 11 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | 41ft Watson-class motor lifeboat |
| Displacement | 14-15 tons |
| Length | 41 ft (12 m) |
| Beam | 11 ft 8 in (3.56 m) - 12 ft 3 in (3.73 m) |
| Draught | 3 ft 8 in (1.12 m) |
| Propulsion | (As built) 2x35bhp Weyburn AE6 6-cylinder petrol |
| Speed | 71⁄2 knots |
| Crew | 8 |
The 41 ft Watson-class was a non self-righting displacement hull lifeboat built between 1931 and 1952 and operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution between 1931 and 1981.
History
The 41 ft Watson was designed for service at stations which required a larger and more powerful boat than the standard carriage launched types, but which could not accommodate the larger Watson types through boathouse or slipway constraints. This is not to be confused with the earlier 41ft 'Aldeburgh' Beach Motor lifeboat, which was developed from the Norfolk and Suffolk type boat. Production ran from 1933 to 1939 and thirteen boats were completed. Between 1948 and 1952 a further four boats were built before attention turned to the much modified 42ft Watson type which appeared in 1954.
Description
The 41 ft Watson had an aft cockpit with a cabin ahead of it containing the engine controls. There was a separate forward shelter and there was room in the two for sixteen people. The boats carried two sails as an auxiliary to the twin Weyburn AE6 6-cylinder petrol engines. The type was put back into production in 1948, nine years after the last had been built, in a revised version with an enlarged cabin which replaced the forward shelter. From 1963 eight of the boats were re-engined with 47 bhp Ford-based Parsons Porbeagle 4-cylinder diesel engines.
Fleet
| ON[a] | Name | Built | Builder | In service | Stations | Re-engined | Comments[1] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 758 | Rosa Woodd and Phyllis Lunn | 1933 | Groves & Guttridge | 1933–1963 | Shoreham Harbour | 1963 Parsons Porbeagle | Sold in 1973. Renamed Dowager. In October 2019 it was reported to be at Allington Lock in Maidstone. |
| 1963–1973 | Relief fleet | ||||||
| 769 | Duke of York | 1933 | Groves & Guttridge | 1934–1961 | The Lizard | No | Sold in 1961. Reported in September 2021 at Castlebridge, Ireland. |
| 806 | Rachel and Mary Evans | 1936 | Groves & Guttridge | 1937–1968 | Barry Dock | No | Wrecked 12 April 1969 after breaking moorings at Weston-Super-Mare. |
| 1969 | Weston-super-Mare | ||||||
| 807 | Inbhear Mor | 1938 | Groves & Guttridge | 1938–1968 | Arklow | 1963 Parsons Porbeagle | Sold in 1974. December 2013 reported as broken up at Ynyslas Boatyard in Borth. |
| 1968–1973 | Relief fleet | ||||||
| 808 | Mary Ann Hepworth | 1938 | Groves & Guttridge | 1938–1974 | Whitby | 1963 Parsons Porbeagle | Sold in 1975. Purchased 1988, was fully restored as a trip boat in Whitby but by October 2022 was at Port Penrhyn. |
| 812 | Edmund and Mary Robinson | 1938 | Groves & Guttridge | 1938–1950 | New Brighton No.2 | No | Sold March 1964. In February 2016 it was reported broken up near Bromsgrove. |
| 1950–1964 | Relief fleet | ||||||
| 813 | Ann Letitia Russell | 1938 | Groves & Guttridge | 1939–1976 | Fleetwood | 1963 Parsons Porbeagle | Sold April 1977. Under restoration from August 2015 at ABP Marine yard, Fleetwood Dock, and still there in December 2022.[2][3] |
| 823 | Matthew Simpson | 1939 | Groves & Guttridge | 1939–1972 | Port Erin | 1963 Parsons Porbeagle | Sold in 1976. Renamed Penros. In May 2022 it was reported to be unaltered but used as a pleasure boat by the Hayling Island Yacht Company. |
| 1972–1976 | Relief fleet | ||||||
| 824 | John Pyremont | 1939 | Groves & Guttridge | 1939–1941 | Tynemouth | No | Destroyed in air raid 9 April 1941. |
| 856 | Susan Ashley | 1948 | Groves & Guttridge | 1948–1972 | Sennen Cove | 1963 Parsons Porbeagle | Used as an RNLI boarding boat at Tynemouth 1979-1981. On display at Chatham Historic Dockyard from April 1996. |
| 1973–1979 | Barry Dock No.2 | ||||||
| 857 | Glencoe-Glasgow | 1949 | Morgan Giles | 1949–1960 | Buckie | 1963 Parsons Porbeagle | Sold in 1979. Renamed Vagrant. In September 2019 it was reported being used as a pleasure boat at Burghead Harbour. |
| 1960–1961 | Girvan | ||||||
| 1961–1965 | Relief fleet | ||||||
| 1965–1978 | Portavogie | ||||||
| 858 | R.L.P. | 1949 | Sussex Yacht Co. | 1949–1975 | Swanage | 1963 Parsons Porbeagle | Sold August 1981. Renamed Beya. Was a workboat at Millport, Great Cumbrae in June 1989, now believed to have been given to a Sea Cadet group. |
| 1975–1981 | Relief fleet | ||||||
| 897 | St. Andrew (Civil Service No.10) |
1952 | William Osborne | 1952–1959 | Whitehills | 1963 Parsons Porbeagle | Sold in 1982. By April 2022 it had been restored as pleasure boat based at New Ross Boatyard, County Wexford. |
| 1959–1961 | Relief fleet | ||||||
| 1961–1968 | Girvan | ||||||
| 1968–1973 | Arklow | ||||||
| 1973–1976 | Relief fleet | ||||||
| 1976–1977 | Girvan | ||||||
| 1977–1982 | Relief fleet |
- ^ ON is the RNLI's Official Number of the boat.
References
- ^ Leonard, Richie; Denton, Tony (2023). Lifeboat Enthusiasts Handbook 2023. Lifeboats Enthusiasts Society.
- ^ "Ann Letitia Russell". National Historic Ships.
- ^ "Ann Letitia Russell Lifeboat". Visit Fleetwood. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
External links
- RNLI