page_title: Ramsgate tug
hierarchical_section_title: Ramsgate tug
caption_attribution_description: English: Identifier: truetalesoftrave00macarich (find matches) Title: True tales of travel and adventure, valour and virtue Year: 1884 (1880s) Authors: Macaulay, James, 1817-1902 Subjects: Voyages and travels Adventure and adventurers Publisher: London, Hodder and Stoughton Contributing Library: University of California Libraries Digitizing Sponsor: MSN View Book Page: Book Viewer About This Book: Catalog Entry View All Images: All Images From Book Click here to view book online to see this illustration in context in a browseable online version of this book. Text Appearing Before Image: Bradford.This report seems to have been chiefly gathered from the mateof the wrecked ship, and from the coxswain of the Life-boat, bythe correspondent of the Daily Telegraphy who visited the placesoon after the events narrated. It is not the first time that thegallant services of the Ramsgate boatmen have been con-spicuous. Their station is one of the most important on allour coasts, and the wreck-chart shows how often help isneeded in that region of the northern seas. In a letter fromMr. Braine, the harbour-master, special testimony is borne totheir services on the present occasion. He says&#160;:— Of all the meritorious services performed by the Ramsgatetug and life-boat, I consider this one of the best. Thedecision the coxswain and crew arrived at to remain till day-light, which was in eftect to continue for fourteen hours cruisingabout with the sea continually breaking over them in a heavygale and tremendous sea, proves, I consider, their gallantry anddetermination to do their duty. Text Appearing After Image: CO On &lt; &lt; oaa a Q&lt; X■_) 2 &lt; 3 2 Wreck of tjie Indian Chiefr 199 The coxswain and crew of the life-boat speak in the highestterms of her good qualities&#160;; they state that when sailing acrossthe Long Sand/ after leaving the wreck, the seas weretremendous, and the boat behaved most admirably. Some ofthe shipwrecked crew have since stated that they were fearful,on seeing the frightful-looking seas they were passing through,that they were in more danger in the life-boat than whenlashed to the mast of their sunken ship, as they thought itimpossible for any boat to live through such a sea. It was during the night of the 5th January, 1881, that the tid-ings reached Ramsgate that a large ship had gone ashore on theLong Sand. From Aldborough, in Suffolk, from Clacton andfrom Harwich in Essex, where signals or messages had alsoreached, the life-boats put off to the scene of danger, but noneof these succeeded in reaching the wreck. Happily theBradford ho2it, of Ramsgate, Note About Images Please note that these images are extracted from scanned page images that may have been digitally enhanced for readability - coloration and appearance of these illustrations may not perfectly resemble the original work.
context_page_description: The Ramsgate tugs were a series of tugboats used at Ramsgate harbour since the 19th century. The harbour's development coincided with the growing use of the steam tugs that were then being built for the shipping industry.
  During this era a considerable amount of the work undertaken by the local boatmen was carried out by these tugs. The benefits of this in regard to the heavier ships in distress was inestimable, but nevertheless the salvage of wrecks soon became an intense and contested undertaking, offering substantial monetary rewards to the boatmen and the tugmen, who were otherwise ill-paid.
  Ramsgate's tugs became a regular feature in the harbour; unlike the lifeboats they were able haul ships out into open waters against an unfavourable wind or in dead calm conditions. In the 19th century the tugs were kept with "crew on board and steam up, ready to put to sea at a moment's notice".
  The first Ramsgate tug, built of wood and measuring 90 tons, with a 50 horsepower engine, was built at South Shields by Woodhouse in 1843, and named the Samson.
context_section_description: The Ramsgate tugs were a series of tugboats used at Ramsgate harbour since the 19th century. The harbour's development coincided with the growing use of the steam tugs that were then being built for the shipping industry. 
  During this era a considerable amount of the work undertaken by the local boatmen was carried out by these tugs. The benefits of this in regard to the heavier ships in distress was inestimable, but nevertheless the salvage of wrecks soon became an intense and contested undertaking, offering substantial monetary rewards to the boatmen and the tugmen, who were otherwise ill-paid. 
  Ramsgate's tugs became a regular feature in the harbour; unlike the lifeboats they were able haul ships out into open waters against an unfavourable wind or in dead calm conditions. In the 19th century the tugs were kept with "crew on board and steam up, ready to put to sea at a moment's notice".
  The first Ramsgate tug, built of wood and measuring 90 tons (91 t), with a 50 horsepower (37 kW)  engine, was built at South Shields by Woodhouse in 1843, and named the Samson.
  The Samson and her successors—Aide, a wooden paddle steamer of 112 gross tons (114 t) built at Blackwall on the Thames and in use by 1855, Vulcan, an iron steam paddle tug of 140 tons (142 t), also built at Blackwall and delivered to Ramsgate in 1858, and Fabia, which was in service in World War II—participated in many rescues alongside the local lifeboatmen, receiving several rewards from the RNLI and grateful foreign governments. Another Ramsgate tug was Sun Swale.
  In January 1881 the Ramsgate tugs Vulcan and Aide participated with the lifeboat Bradford in the rescue of the Indian Chief, in response to which the Ramsgate harbour-master, Captain Braine, wrote the commendation, "Of all the meritorious services performed by the Ramsgate Tug and Life-boat, I consider this one of the best. The decision the coxswain and crew arrived at to remain till daylight, which was in effect to continue for fourteen hours cruising about with the sea continually breaking over them in a heavy gale and tremendous sea, proves, I consider, their gallantry and determination to do their duty."
caption: Wreck of the Indian Chief, and services of the Ramsgate Lifeboat
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