On display on almost every wall in the boathouse is the history of Troon lifeboat station since its formation in 1871. From photographs of former lifeboats, to boards documenting every call out for the station, the stations history is on display for everyone to see and Ian is taking up the new post of curator to look after all these treasures.
Ian said: ‘The station is full of RNLI history that we are trying to preserve so that it can be enjoyed by the crew and the public for years to come. Many of these documents and photographs are the original articles so losing them would be a great loss to the station.
'There are over a hundred years of Troon lifeboat history in the boathouse but some aspects of that history are missing so I'm asking former crewmembers and their families to look out items such as awards or photographs that they may have stored away in the attic or in cupboards so that I can copy them to display and ultimately preserve the history of the station.
‘An example of this relates to the Thanks on Vellum awarded to Coxswain Arthur Pearce for a rescue he and his crew undertook in 1949 aboard the lifeboat
Sir David Richmond of Glasgow launching to the SS Christina Dawn which was at risk of exploding. As the award for rescuing her crew was presented to Coxswain Pearce directly we don’t have a copy of this in the station and we are looking to rectify this.’
Should you be able to help Ian in his new mission to preserve the lifeboat stations history, please e-mail us at [email protected] or contact the station directly on 01292314414 and Ian will get in touch with you.
The RNLI charity saves lives at sea. Its volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service around the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland coasts. The RNLI operates 238 lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland and more than 240 lifeguard units on beaches around the UK and Channel Islands. The RNLI is independent of Coastguard and government and depends on voluntary donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824, its lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved over 146,000 lives.
