Berwick Upon Tweed's station history

Silver Medal awarded to Lieut H Baillie RN, for the rescue by boat of L P Selstrom, Master of the Swedish schooner Cupido and five crewmen on 26 December 1833.  Three Coastguard men and 11 Spittal Pilots were given monetary rewards for their part in the rescue.

New boathouse was built on Spittal Beach.

New Palmer Class lifeboat, built at a cost of £64, was placed on service in January.

Gold Medal awarded to Lieut D Rymer RN for the rescue by lifeboat of six seamen from the schooner Margaret that ran aground near Spittal in heavy seas on 8 April 1838.

Silver Medal awarded to Lieut E B Nott RN, when with six other men he rescued with a fishing coble, the Master, four men, one woman, and three children from the schooner Diana, that was driven onto rocks and wrecked on 19 September 1838.

Lifeboat deemed as unfit for service and taken out of service.

Silver Medal awarded to Dr FS Cahill for a service on 17 June when a small boat was observed passing the entrance of the Tweed and running into a dangerous position, where her loss would have been certain.  Dr Cahill of Berwick persuaded the Master of a small steam tug to go to her rescue, in which he went himself with two other volunteers, in addition to the Master and two men forming the crew of the ferry boat.  The boat was reached just in time saving a seaman and his wife from destruction.  A heavy sea was on the bar at the time and the steamer was thrown on her broadside when running over it on her return.

A new Peake Class lifeboat, built at a cost of £156, was placed on service in October.

Member of crew washed out of lifeboat whilst on service on 22 March to Heinnick Gerdes of Rostock.  Fortunately he was recovered.

A new lifeboat house was built on Spittal Beach at a cost of £150.

Lifeboat capsized on exercise on 29 March without loss of life.

A new self-righting lifeboat, Albert Victor, built at a cost of £250, was placed on service.

Voted £10 for relief of family of Thomas Elliott, a member of the crew who died partly as a result of exposure on service on 1 January.

A new self-righting lifeboat, ON201 John and Janet, built at a cost of £496, was placed on service, replacing Albert and Victor.

Arrangements made for services of local tug at a cost of £1100 on each occasion used.

Owing to difficulty in obtaining a crew from Spittal, the lifeboat house was removed to the Berwick side of the river and the services of the tug were provided by the Harbour Board. Cost £3 0 0d each occasion used.

New lifeboat house constructed at Ferry Landing at a cost of £1,020. Old lifeboat house sold for £60.

A new self-righting lifeboat, ON512 Mathew Simpson, built at a cost of £928, was placed on service. ON201 John and Janet withdrawn from service.

Whilst on service to a fishing boat on 3 February, the lifeboat was thrown on her beam ends and crew washed overboard. Fortunately they were all recovered.

Silver Medal awarded to Alexander Aitchison for saving his comrade by getting him onto the keel of their fishing boat after it capsized on 11 February. Both men were rescued by a shore boat.

Committee of Management approved the owners of a tug being paid £10 per annum for keeping fires banked in thick and stormy weather.

Silver Medal awarded to Coxswain Robert Burgon for rescuing the crew of the Barque Jacob Rauers, wrecked in a very rough sea in Marshall Meadows Bay on 29/30 March. In black darkness the lifeboat reached the casualty to find the seas washing over the barque and the dangerous rocks. The lifeboat veered down to within 20 yards to pass a rope, which enabled the 11 men to be dragged through the heavy seas and debris to the safety of the lifeboat. The Swedish Government conferred Silver Medal on Robert Burgon and Second Coxswain James Jamieson for this service.

Silver Medal awarded to Second Coxswain James Jamieson for one of the finest services in 1915. The lifeboat was launched about 0400 to the motor boat Redhead on 10 November with a scratch crew, including the Honorary Secretary and a soldier, in a biting northerly gale. At the second attempt the lifeboat managed to get alongside the casualty enabling the six crew to jump in. The return journey, after standing by all night, was one of the bitterest experiences that any man in the boat had ever endured and it was with the help of six fishermen who put off in a boat from Spittal bringing a line from the pier that the lifeboat was hauled in. When they landed the condition of every man was pitiable to see.

ON512 Matthew Simpson was withdrawn from service and replaced with the self-righting lifeboat, ON640 Proctor, which had previously been on service at Hayling Island.

A new motor driven lifeboat, ON727 Westmorland, built at a cost of £4,597, was placed on service in February and the Proctor withdrawn to the relief fleet.

A Centenary Vellum awarded to station.

ON727 Westmorland was relocated to Cullercoats.

A new station and roller slipway constructed farther up river to house a larger boat.

A Watson class lifeboat ON722 J. and W., which had previously been in service at Portpatrick, was placed into service in February.

A new Watson class lifeboat ON941 William and Mary Durham, built at a cost of £29,500, was placed in service in May. ON722 J. and W. withdrawn.

A D class lifeboat, D-111, sent to station in April.

Bronze Medal awarded to Helm William Shearer and the Thanks of the Institution inscribed on Vellum accorded to crew member Norman Jackson for the rescue by the inshore lifeboat of two women, one of whom was trapped inside the hull of a capsized trimaran on 31 May.

Watson class lifeboat withdrawn from station on 17 September and relocated to Girvan. D class lifeboat, D-111, relocated to Aldeburgh and replaced by an Atlantic 21, B-535 R.A.O.B, on 17 September.

A celebration 150th Anniversary Vellum awarded to station.

To allow modifications to the boathouse to be carried out, the Atlantic 21 B-535 R.A.O.B. was withdrawn from service and replaced by a relief Atlantic 21 lifeboat, B-541 Elizabeth Bestwick, which had been modified to allow her to lie afloat.

Atlantic 21 lifeboat, B-541 Elizabeth Bestwick, withdrawn and replaced by a Mersey class lifeboat on 5 February, establishing an all-weather lifeboat station.

Boathouse and slipway adapted to accommodate the station’s new Mersey class lifeboat. HRH The Duchess of Kent named the station’s new lifeboat, the ON1191 Joy and Charles Beeby, in a special ceremony at Carr Rock Pier on Tuesday 

D class lifeboat, D-433 Marjorie, placed on station as of 9 May.

New D class lifeboat D-494 Sunrise was placed on service on 30 March. D-433 Marjorie was withdrawn to the relief fleet.

The new class of lifeboat, D-639 Howard and Mary Broadfield was placed on service on Monday 18 July. D-494 Sunrise has been withdrawn to the relief fleet.

Royal Humane Society awarded their Testimonial on Parchment to Helm William ‘Billy’ Johnson for saving a man who had fallen into a dock on 7 June 2005.

The new station D-Class D-777 Vi and Charles Hogbin was placed on service 28 January 2015. This lifeboat was funded by the generous bequest of Mrs Violet Lillian Hogbin in memory of herself and her husband Mr Charles Hogbin. D-639 Howard and Mary Broadfield withdrawn.