42ft Watson-class lifeboat

Dorothy and Phillip Constant
Class overview
Name	42ft Watson-class
Builders	William Osborne, Littlehampton Groves & Guttridge, Cowes J. Samuel White, Cowes
Operators	Royal National Lifeboat Institution
Preceded by	41ft Watson
Succeeded by	various
Cost	£26,000-£36,000
Built	1954-1962
In service	1954-1987
Completed	10
Retired	10
General characteristics
Class and type	42ft Watson
Displacement	17 tons
Length	42 ft (13 m)
Beam	12 ft (3.7 m)
Draught	3 ft 7 in (1.09 m)
Propulsion	2 × 48bhp Gardner 4LW 4-cyl. diesel
Speed	8 knots
Range	235 nm
Crew	7

The 42ft Watson-class was a class of non self-righting displacement hull lifeboat built between 1954 and 1962 and operated by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) around the coasts of the United Kingdom and Ireland between 1954 and 1987.

History

The 42ft Watson was the final example of the medium-sized Watson type lifeboat built primarily for slipway launching at those stations where physical boathouse constraints and/or slipway strength precluded the use of the longer and heavier types. They were historically significant in being the first RNLI boats to be fitted with commercially available engines rather than the RNLI designed types previously used. The prototype, William Taylor of Oldham (ON 907) went on station at Coverack in Cornwall in July 1954 and served there until May 1972 as the final all-weather lifeboat at the station. In 1957 a version was developed suitable for beach launching. This had a widened (beam 12ft 3in) and strengthened hull to take the rigours of launching over skids.

Description

The wooden hulled 42ft Watson featured a long tapering aluminium superstructure running forward from the aft cockpit. The forward part of this, ahead of the engine room, was a survivor cabin. A major departure from previous RNLI practice was the use of commercially available engines, in the form of two Gardner 4LW 4-cylinder marine diesels producing 48bhp each. The exhaust from the engines was taken up the forward mast, as with the later 46ft 9in Watson-class boats. With the exception of the last boat, ON 967, which came four years after the previous example, all of the boats originally had open cockpits. In 1965, the first boat, ON 907, was given an enclosed wheelhouse and ON 937 followed in 1967. The others, with the exception of the Aldeburgh boat, had the wheelhouse enclosed in 1971. Aldeburgh's ON 946 was the only boat fitted with a mizzen mast, at the request of the crew, for a steadying sail in rough weather and was the only boat to retain an open cockpit to the end. The last boat built had an enclosed wheelhouse from the start. During the course of their service, the boats were fitted with radar and the original aerial rigging was replaced by a long pole aerial.

Fleet

ON	Name	Built	Builder	In Service	Stations	Comments
907	William Taylor of Oldham	1954	William Osborne	1954–1972	Coverack	Sold August 1986. Renamed Gypsy Moth. By February 1995 was a fishing boat at Petite Martinique, Grenada.
				1972–1973	Relief fleet
				1973–1986	Arklow
909	James and Barbara Aitken	1955	William Osborne	1955–1968	Troon	Withdrawn after it was damaged on service, 15 October 1976. Sold 1977. Reported in December 2021 as being stored on the River Yonne at Migennes in France.
				1968–1976	Girvan
922	Watkin Williams	1956	William Osborne	1956–1977	Moelfre	Sold May 1983. As at December 2022 it was stored at Museum Wales' National Collections Centre in Nantgarw.
				1978–1981	Oban
				1981–1983	Relief fleet
933	J.W. Archer	1956	William Osborne	1956–1987	Wicklow	This was the last 42ft Watson on station. Sold March 1989. By December 2022 it was working as a pleasure boat at Port Penrhyn, Bangor, Wales.
934	The Duke of Montrose	1956	Groves & Guttridge	1956–1982	Arbroath	Sold 1984 to ADES Uruguay, in service at Montevideo as ADES II.
				1982–1984	Relief fleet
937	Mabel E. Holland	1957	William Osborne	1957–1978	Dungeness	Beach version. Sold 1983. Reported in August 2019 as stored on a trailer on farm near Blaenffos, Pembrokeshire.
				1979–1983	Relief fleet
941	William and Mary Durham	1957	William Osborne	1957–1976	Berwick-upon-Tweed	Sold October 1983. Renamed RonMeadhonach. By December 2018 it was stored at Portree on the Isle of Skye.
				1977–1983	Girvan
946	Alfred and Patience Gottwald	1958	J. Samuel White	1959–1979	Aldeburgh	Beach version. Sold 1980 then renamed Alfie. In August 2021 it was reported to be a houseboat at South Dock Marina in Rotherhithe.
				1979–1980	Relief fleet
948	Charles Dibdin (Civil Service No.32)	1958	William Osborne	1959–1975	Walmer	Beach version. Sold 1988. Renamed Charlie D. Last seen at Brighton Marina but sold in 2014.
				1975–1977	Relief fleet
				1977–1979	Eastbourne
				1979–1982	Aldeburgh
				1982–1988	Relief fleet
967	Dorothy and Philip Constant	1962	Groves & Guttridge	1963–1981	Shoreham Harbour	Sold April 1988. Reported in May 2022 to be a workboat at the R.W. Davis boatyard at Saul Junction on the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal.
				1981–1982	Oban
				1982–1987	Relief fleet

Other Fleets

Uruguay

ADES Uruguay is an Honorary Lifesaving Institution founded in 1955. All our volunteers are honorary, people who train weekly to go to sea with the sole purpose of helping whoever requests help. The rescues have no cost to the beneficiaries. At the national level ADES Uruguay is part of the National Emergency Committee and at the international level it is part of the IMRF (International Maritime Rescue Federation)[9]

ON	Name	In Service	Stations	Comments
934	ADES II	1984–2004	Montevideo	Sold 2004. Renamed Sudelmar. December 2022, Tourist trip boat, Carmelo, Uruguay

External links

• RNLI