Clogherhead Lifeboat Station

Clogherhead Lifeboat Station is situated at Clogherhead, a village 7.5 miles (12.1 km) north east of Drogheda, in County Louth, Ireland. A lifeboat was first stationed at Clogherhead in 1899 by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI), when operations were moved from Drogheda No.1. Since 2019, the station has operated the All-weather Shannon-class lifeboat, 13-31 Michael O'Brien (ON 1338). History In 1899, with the number of calls on the lifeboat in decline, due to fewer sailing vessels being at the mercy of the weather, it was decided to close one of the two Drogheda lifeboat stations located on the River Boyne estuary. Drogheda No.1 was closed, and operations were transferred to a new station at Clogherhead village, on the Clogher Head peninsular. A galvanised-iron boathouse was constructed on a concrete base on the south side of the headland, and a 35-foot self-righting 'Pulling and Sailing' (P&S) lifeboat, one with sails and (10) oars, was built by Hollwey, of Windmill Lane, Dublin, costing £582. The boat was funded, as was the previous Drogheda No.1 lifeboat, from the legacy of £1,898-14s-8d from the late Mr. C.R. Whitton of Wimbledon, London, and was similarly named Charles Whitton (ON 428). The first service for the lifeboat would come on 24 January 1900, when six men and the fishing boat Irish Girl were saved. The lifeboat would then not be required again until 1914, when four men were rescued from the fishing boat Cecilia of Balbriggan. On 1 May 1916, Charles Whitton (ON 428) was launched to the steamship Isle of Arran of Glasgow. All 18 crewmen were rescued. In 1927, the 35-foot self-righting (P&S) lifeboat John Dunn (ON 638) was transferred to Clogherhead, following the closure of the Drogheda lifeboat station in 1926. In four years at Clogherhead, the boat was never called. Clogherhead would see the arrival of their first motor-powered lifeboat in 1931. A 35-foot 6in Self-righting lifeboat, built by J. Samuel White of Cowes, costing £3,791, she was funded from the legacy of Dr. Vernon Blunt of Birmingham, and named Mary Ann Blunt (ON 748). In her 19 years at the station, the lifeboat would be launched 20 times, and save nine lives. Mrs Maire C. Hoy was appointed Honorary Secretary for Clogherhead Lifeboat Station in 1961, following the death of her husband, who had held the position since 1953. She would be the first female to hold this role in the RNLI, and carried out her duties for the next 20 years, until her retirement in December 1981. In 1993, the Mersey-class All-Weather lifeboat (ALB), 12-31 Doris Bleasdale (ON 1190) was assigned to Clogherhead, and the boathouse was rebuilt to accommodate the new boat and tractor. Clogherhead lifeboat was launched at 20:35 into south-east gale force 7 conditions on 28 November 2000, to the aid of the fishing trawler March Sod, which had lost power, and was drifting in Dundalk Bay. By the time the lifeboat arrived, the trawler had been driven onto the rocks, and holed. With extreme care in the rough conditions, using his local knowledge, the coxswain managed to navigate the rocky shore, and bring the lifeboat alongside. Two lifeboat crew boarded the vessel with a salvage pump, but it was quickly realised that efforts to pump out the water were futile. The vessel was abandoned, and the fishermen landed at Port Oriel at 21:24. By the following morning, the vessel had vanished, destroyed by the sea. For this service, Coxswain Noel Sharkey was accorded "The Thanks of the Institution inscribed on Vellum", with "Vellum Service Certificates" awarded to the crew. On 1 June 2019, Clogherhead lifeboat station welcomed the arrival of a new €2.5 million Shannon-class lifeboat 13-31 Michael O'Brien (ON 1338), timed to arrive exactly at 13:31. Station honours The following are awards made at Clogherhead. RNIPLS Gold Medal Robert Kirkpatrick Thompson, Chief Officer, H.M. Coastguard, Clogher Head – 1839 RNIPLS Silver Medal Thomas Lamb Wood, Chief Officer, H.M.Coastguard, Dunany – 1826 Robert Kirkpatrick Thompson, Chief Officer, H.M. Coastguard, Clogher Head – 1837 Addeley Barnard, Chief Officer, H.M. Coastguard, Clogher Head – 1852 Addeley Barnard, Chief Officer, H.M. Coastguard, Clogher Head – 1852 (Second Service Clasp) The Thanks of the Institution inscribed on Vellum Noel Sharkey, Coxswain – 2001 Vellum Service Certificates Padraig Rath, Deputy Second Coxswain/Mechanic – 2001 Barry Faulkner, Second Coxswain – 2001 Sean Reilly, Second Mechanic – 2001 Gerald Sharkey, crew member – 2001 Ronan Faulkner, crew member – 2001 Lisa Levins, crew member – 2001 James Byrne, crew member – 2001 Clogherhead lifeboats Pulling and Sailing (P&S) lifeboats All-weather lifeboats Launch and recovery tractors See also List of RNLI stations List of former RNLI stations Royal National Lifeboat Institution lifeboats Notes References External links Clogherhead Lifeboat Station Website (RNLI)