Humber History
1810 Spurn lifeboat station was established by Hull Trinity House at the extreme remote tip of Spurn Point.
1819 The first houses for the lifeboat crew and their families were built. They live at the Point because of its remote location and are the RNLI’s only full-time lifeboat crew.
1839 A Silver Medal was awarded to James Norris for rescuing five men from the wrecked brigantine Manly.
1843 A Silver Medal was awarded to JM Williams for rescuing six men from the Andromache.
1853 A new boathouse was built.
1858 A new row of cottages was built and these were in use until 1975.
1877 A Silver Medal was awarded to Crew Member Edward Weldrake for saving the master of the wrecked sloop Grace Darling.
1911 The RNLI took over the lifeboat station and a new boathouse and slipway were built a year later.
1919 The station’s first motor lifeboat was placed on service.
1916 A Silver Medal was awarded to Coxswain Robert Cross for saving eight people from the steamer Florence, which had stranded on the middle banks.
1922 A Bronze Medal was awarded to Coxswain Robert Cross for his efforts to save the crews of a fishing smack and a steam trawler that had both sunk on the Binks at the mouth of the Humber.
1923 A new boathouse with a roller slipway was built.
1924 The station changed its name from Spurn to Humber lifeboat station.
1925 A Silver Medal was awarded to Coxswain Robert Cross for rescuing the crew of the steamship Whinstone by breeches buoy.
1931 A Centenary Vellum was awarded to the station.
1939 Coxswain Robert Cross was awarded a Silver Medal and Motor Mechanic John Major the Bronze Medal for rescuing seven crew from the steam trawler Saltaire.
1940 Coxswain Robert Cross was awarded the RNLI’s Gold Medal and the George Medal for one of the outstanding rescues of the War. The five lifeboat crew were each awarded a Silver Medal for rescuing the crew of the trawler Gurth after 20 attempts. It was carried out in complete darkness and the crew were repeatedly knocked down by seas and were only saved from being washed overboard by clinging to the handrails.
1941 A Bronze Medal was awarded to Coxswain Robert Cross for rescuing eight men from the air raid balloon ship Thora, aground on the edge of Trinity Sands where many mines had been dropped by enemy aircraft only a day or two before.
1943 A Gold Medal was awarded to Coxswain Robert Cross, Silver Medal to Reserve Mechanic George Richards and Bronze Medals to five other members of the crew for rescuing 19 people from HM trawler Almondine.
Coxswain Cross retired in November having been Coxswain of Humber lifeboat station for 31 years.
1960 A 150th Anniversary Vellum was awarded to the station.
1966 The Thanks of the Institution Inscribed on Vellum was awarded to Coxswain R Buchan for searching for possible survivors from the wreck of Anzio I in appalling weather conditions.
1975 Seven new houses were built to replace the 1858 cottages.
1976 A special doctor’s Vellum was awarded to Dr James Duncan Busfield for treating two injured men on the trawler Marbi.
1977 The lifeboat was placed at moorings in the River Humber.
1979 A Silver Medal was awarded to Superintendent Coxswain Brian Bevan when the lifeboat rescued six crew from the coaster Diana V in a violent storm on 30/31 December 1978. The six crew were each awarded the Thanks of the Institution Inscribed on Vellum.
14 February: A Gold Medal was awarded to Superintendent Coxswain Brian Bevan when the lifeboat rescued the four crew from the cargo vessel Revi in a violent storm. Bronze Medals were awarded to Second Coxswain Dennis Bailey, Mechanic Barry Sayers, Assistant Mechanic Ronald Sayers and Crew Members Michael B Storey, Peter Jordan, Sydney Rollinson and Dennis Bailey (Jnr).
15/16 February: A Bronze Medal was awarded to Superintendent Coxswain Brian Bevan when the lifeboat escorted the Rumanian cargo vessel Savinesti for over 15 hours in a hurricane with heavy snow, sub-zero temperatures and a very rough sea.
1980 Thanks of the Institution Inscribed on Vellum were awarded to Crew Members Peter Jordan and Dennis Bailey Jnr when they launched the Y class boat to a small boat aground on Foul Holme Sands in freezing conditions.
1982 A Bronze Medal was awarded to Superintendent Coxswain Brian Bevan for rescuing the crew of the motor vessel Harry Mitchell, whose cargo of timber had shifted on 13/14 December 1981.
1987 A collective Framed Letter of Thanks was awarded to Superintendent Coxswain Brian Bevan and five crew members after a seriously ill man was transferred to the lifeboat from the Greek tanker Kithnos.
Second Coxswain Dennis Bailey was awarded an individual Framed Letter of Thanks for boarding the tanker and administering morphine to the sick man.
1994 A collective Framed Letter of Thanks was awarded to Superintendent Coxswain Brian Bevan and six crew after they rescued four crew and saved the fishing vessel Eventide.
1999 Superintendent Coxswain Brian Bevan was awarded the MBE in the Birthday Honours List.
2001 Coxswain Superintendent Brian Bevan retired on 22 November after 35 years on the lifeboat.
2004 The Thanks of the Institution Inscribed on Vellum was awarded to Acting Superintendent Coxswain David Steenvoorden when the fishing vessel Dollard and her crew of two were saved. This was a joint service with the Cleethorpes D class lifeboat whose crew received one Silver and three Bronze Medals for their actions.
2005 A Framed Letter of Thanks was awarded to Superintendent Coxswain David Steenvoorden for saving three people from the fishing vessel Sorrento after a 16-hour service in force 9 winds.
2007 The Thanks of the Institution inscribed on Vellum was accorded to Staff Coxswain David Steenvoorden for his part in saving a yacht and one of her crew in poor sea and weather conditions. Assistant Mechanic Daniel Atkinson got a Framed Letter of Thanks signed by the Chairman for his part in the rescue.
Station honours
At Humber lifeboat station the following awards have been made:
Framed Letter of Thanks 5
Thanks of the Institution Inscribed on Vellum 11
Bronze Medal 17
Silver Medal 13
Gold Medal 3
