Cromer Lifeboat H F Bailey III ON 777
| HF Bailey III in Cromer Henry Blogg Museum | |
| Career | British RNLI Flag |
|---|---|
| Owner: | Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) |
| Builder: | Groves and Guttridge Ltd, Isle of Wight |
| Official Number: | ON 777 |
| Donor: | Legacy of Henry Francis Bailey, Brockenhurst, Surrey. |
| Station | Cromer |
| Cost: | £7,307 14s 0d |
| Christened: | 27th August 1937 |
| In service: | 1935 |
| Fate: | On display at the Henry Blogg Museum in Cromer |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Watson Cabin motor |
| Tonnage: | 18.78 gross tonnage |
| Length: | 31 feet 9 inches (9.68 m) overall |
| Draught: | 9 feet 5 inches (2.87 m) |
| Installed power: | Two Weyburn CE4 four-cylinder Diesel engines of 40 BHP (30 kW) |
| Speed: | 8 knots (15 km/h) |
| Complement: | 12 crew plus 95 rescues |
H F Bailey III (ON. 777) is the most famous Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) lifeboat to have served from Cromer, because she was used by Coxswain Henry Blogg to perform many of his most famous lifesaving exploits. The lifeboat was on station for the ten years between 1935 and 1945.[1] She is now on the British National Register of Historic Ships[2] and has been preserved in the RNLI Henry Blogg Lifeboat Museum in Cromer [3].
From 1923 to the end of the Second World War in 1945 the Cromer station had four motor-powered lifeboats all called H F Bailey after the donor, Mr Henry Francis Bailey a London merchant who had been born in Brockenhurst, Norfolk and had died in 1916.[4]
Construction
H F Bailey was built at the yard of Groves and Guttridge Ltd on the Isle of Wight. Her hull is constructed using double diagonal planking of Honduras Mahogany on a framework of Teak ribs and beams with the stem and stern posts and her keel of English Oak. The stern and stem posts are grown to the required shape to give the lifeboat its strength and sturdiness. She is 46 feet (14 m) long and 12 feet 9 inches (3.89 m) wide. The hull is divided into seven watertight compartments, of which the engine room is one. The hull is fitted with 142 mahogany air cases, all individually made to fit into its allocated position in the hull. Her equipment included the latest innovations of the time which included a line throwing gun and an electrically powered searchlight.[5]
Rescues and service
| Rescues by H F Bailey III (ON 777) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Date | Casualty | Lives Saved |
| 1936 | ||
| March 26 | Steamship BOREE of Caen, landed 7 from steamship CADUCEUS | |
| April 2 | Fishing boat LITTLE MADGE of Sheringham, in tow of Lifeboat J C MADGE of Sheringham and fishing boats JOHN ROBERTS and WHITE ROSE of Cromer, stood by boats | |
| April 20 | Barge WILL EVERAAD of London, stood by vessel | |
| August 7-11 | Steamship SAN FRANCISCO of Le Havre, rendered assistance | |
| November 16-18 | Steamship NESTTUN of Tvedestrand, rendered assistance | |
| November 18 | Steam drifter PITAGAVENY of Banff, saved | 10 |
| November 19 | Steamship YEW FOREST of Glasgow, took out a doctor | |
| November 19 | Steamship LINDISFARNE of Newcastle on Tyne, rendered assistance | |
| 1937 | ||
| November 9 | Spritsail barge SB Hibernia of London | 3 |
| 1938 | ||
| February 10 | Fishing boat URGENT of Cromer, stood by boat | |
| May 30 | Fishing boat G V H of Great Yarmouth, saved boat | 2 |
| August 7 | Motor vessel JOHN M of London, stood by vessel | |
| November 2 | Steamship CANTABRIA of Santander, saved | 5 |
| December 27 | Steamship OTTO H of Pori, rendered assistance | |
| 1939 | ||
| June 18 | Rowing boat of Cromer, Landed 5 | |
| October 9 | Steamship MOUNT IDA of Piraeus, saved | 29 |
| December 1 | Steamship REALF of Moss, Landed 32 and 10 navel ratings fron SANTA GATA | |
| December 8 | Steamship COREA of Goole, saved | 7 |
| December 12 | Steamship CORBROOK of London, stood by vessel | |
| December 21 | Motor vessel DOSINIA of London, assisted to save vessel | 51 |
| 1940 | ||
| January 9 | Steamship UPMINSTER of London, stood by vessel | |
| January 11 | Steamship TRAVIATA of Genoa, landed 30 and saved | 1 |
| January 11 | H M Trawler HOLYROOD, gave help | |
| January 12 | Light vessel No 58, saved a ships boat | 3 |
| January 18 | Steamship ASTERIA of Piraeus, saved | 11 |
| January 18 | Light vessel No 58, saved a ships boat | 4 |
| January 30 | Steam trawler PELTON of Grimsby, gave help | |
| August 27 | Aircraft, Salvaged wreckage and gear | |
| October 3 | Motor vessel ACTUOSITY of London, saved | 8 |
| November 15 | H M Trawler DUNGENESS, saved | 11 |
| November 25 | H M Trawler DUNGENESS, salvaged gear | |
| December 7 | Steamship ROYSTON of Newcastle on Tyne, stood by | |
| December 12 | Steamship ROYSTON of Newcastle on Tyne, gave help | |
| 1941 | ||
| January 15 | Steamship LIEUTENANT ROBERT MORY of Belfast, landed 19 and gave help | |
| January 25 | Steamship MERIONES of Liverpool, saved | 101 |
| March 8 | Boat from steamship CORDUFF of London, saved | 13 |
| March 8 | Steamship KENTON of Newcastle, saved two boats | |
| March 13 | Steamship ESSEX LANCE of London, gave help | |
| March 14 | Steamship ESSEX LANCE of London, gave help | |
| March 26 | Steamship KENTWOOD of London, stood by | |
| July 24 | Aircraft, saved dinghy and picked up a body | |
| August 6 | (CONVOY 559) Steamship OXSHOTT of London, saved | 16 |
| August 6 | (CONVOY 559) Steamship GALLOIS of Rouen, saved | 31 |
| August 6 | (CONVOY 559) Steamship DEERWOOD of London, saved | 19 |
| August 6 | (CONVOY 559) Steamship BETTY HINDLEY , saved | 22 |
| September 15 | Motor vessel PONTFIELD of Newcastle, gave help | |
| September 23 | Steamship J B PADDON of London, landed an injured man | |
| Between Sept 17 – Nov 6 | Steamship TEDDINGTON of London, gave help on 22 occasions | |
| October 16 | British aircraft, landed a body | |
| October 26 | Steamship ENGLISH TRADER of London, saved | 44 |
| 1942 | ||
| January 29 | Aeroplane dinghy seven miles north of Cley next the Sea, saved | 1 |
| February 2 | Motor vessel SEDULITY of London, landed an injured man | |
| March 15 | HMS VORTIGERN, picked up 11 bodies after Torpedo attack | |
| April 11 | British aeroplane, landed 6 | |
| May 25 | Yacht BETTY of Gorleston, gave help | |
| July 20 | Aeroplane, gave help | |
| November 18 | Motor fishing boat SILVER QUEEN of Lowestoft, saved vessel | 2 |
| 1943 | ||
| March 12 | Barrage balloon, salvaged balloon | |
| July 26 | Wellington Bomber aeroplane, saved | 5 |
| 1944 | ||
| June 20 | Aeroplane, salvaged wreckage | |
| July 29 | Aeroplane, salvaged gear | |
| December 7-10 | Steamship SAMNETHY of London, saved | |
| 1945 | ||
| February 4 | Motor vessel VALDER of Hartlepool, gave help | |
Gallery
- Comer Lifeboat H F Bailey.JPG
The H F Bailey at sea
- Cromer Lifeboat H F Bailey 1 Feb 2008 (2).JPG
The wheel house
See also
References
- ↑ Cromer Lifeboats 1804–2004, Appendix 1 Lifeboat Summary.
- ↑ http://nationalhistoricships.org.uk/index.cfm/event/getVessel/vref/1446
- ↑ http://www.cromerlifeboats.org.uk/07/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=142&Itemid=46
- ↑ Cromer Lifeboats 1804–2004, page 54.
- ↑ Cromer Lifeboats 1804–2004, Two New Lifeboats, page 73.
- Cromer Lifeboats 1804–2004, Leach, Nicholas & Russell, Paul, Pub: Tempus Publishing, 2004, ISBN 0-7524-3197-8.
Further reading
- The History of Cromer Lifeboats and Crew; H.F. Bailey 777 1935 - 1945 Cromer, Kitty Lee, 1991, ISBN 0951853007
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