Official Number:
Donor:
Station	Sheringham Sheringham Sheringham is a seaside town in Norfolk, England, west of Cromer.The motto of the town, granted in 1953 to the Sheringham Urban District Council, is Mare Ditat Pinusque Decorat, Latin for "The sea enriches and the pine adorns"....

The Augusta was a private lifeboat which was stationed in the town of Sheringham

Sheringham

Sheringham is a seaside town in Norfolk, England, west of Cromer.The motto of the town, granted in 1953 to the Sheringham Urban District Council, is Mare Ditat Pinusque Decorat, Latin for "The sea enriches and the pine adorns"....

 in the English

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 county of Norfolk

Norfolk

Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...

  She was launched on 14 November 1838 and stayed on station for 56 years until she was retired from service in 1894 after an inspection declared her to be unseaworthy.

Beginnings

Before The Augusta was commissioned the fishermen of Sheringham would use their fishing boats to rescue vessels in distress, in particular a large fishing boat called Upcher which was owned by a man by the name of Harry West. Mr West had had been lent the money for his boat by Charlotte Upcher who, along with her husband had always had shown interest in the lives and welfare of the local fishermen and their families.

Charlotte Upcher had been, for sometime, concerned with the appalling loss of life in the local fishing industry. During one particularly severe gale along the East coast on 29 November 1826, seven Sheringham fishermen lost their lives when their two boats overturned just offshore. Then, in January 1838, a large Sheringham fishing boat known locally as a "twenty footer" was damaged and sunk on Sheringham Shoal. These incidents prompted Charlotte to fund the establishment of a lifeboat service in Sheringham.

Design and construction

The new lifeboat was built a local man known as ‘Old Newlyn’, who is thought to have been a member of the Lown boat building family. The boat was built in the style of the local herring fishing boats. The Augusta was 33 feet 6 inches long and 10 foot 3 inches wide. The power for the boat was provide by 16 oars. She was equipped with a dipping lug mainsail, mizzen sail and had fittings for a rudder

Rudder

A rudder is a device used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, aircraft or other conveyance that moves through a medium . On an aircraft the rudder is used primarily to counter adverse yaw and p-factor and is not the primary control used to turn the airplane...

 at either end to avoid turning her in heavy seas. The boat was constructed within Sheringham Park using local timber.

Name and launching

The lifeboat was launched on 14 November 1838 with coxswain Robert Long at the helm. She was named The Augusta after the Augusta Elizabeth, the youngest daughter of Abbot and Charlotte Upcher. Augusta had been much loved around the village of Sheringham but unfortunately she had died of consumption at the age of 20 some two years before the lifeboat's launch.

Service

The first records of a launch of the The Augusta took place on 7 June 1839 when she was launched to assist the brig

Brig

A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...

 Request of South Shields

South Shields

South Shields is a coastal town in Tyne and Wear, England, located at the mouth of the River Tyne to Tyne Dock, and about downstream from Newcastle upon Tyne...

. There was a strong heavy on-shore swell with a strong east by north wind. When the lifeboat came across the distressed brig some of the vessels nine crewmen wanted to abandon ship. The captain was not to desert his ship and asked the lifeboat Augusta to take the Request in to tow. A line was thrown and the brig was towed astern for the rest of the night until it was safe.

Dygden

The first records of a launch of The Augusta where lives were saved, happened on 5 February 1841. The Dygden was a 600 ton barque

Barque

A barque, barc, or bark is a type of sailing vessel with three or more masts.- History of the term :The word barque appears to have come from the Greek word baris, a term for an Egyptian boat. This entered Latin as barca, which gave rise to the Italian barca, Spanish barco, and the French barge and...

 from the Baltic

Baltic Sea

The Baltic Sea is a brackish mediterranean sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and...

 port of Åbo

Turku

Turku is a city situated on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River. It is located in the region of Finland Proper. It is believed that Turku came into existence during the end of the 13th century which makes it the oldest city in Finland...

 (now the city of Turku in Finland

Finland

Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...

). The Dygden, which was carrying a cargo of timber, had been struggling in the stormy seas of the North Sea

North Sea

In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...

 for fourteen days and had become so completely lost that the barques captain had mistaken St Nicholas Church

St Nicholas, Blakeney

St Nicholas is the Anglican parish church of Blakeney, Norfolk in the deanery of Holt and the Diocese of Norwich. It stands just inland of and about 30 m above the small port. Of the original 13th-century building only the chancel remains, the rest having been rebuilt in the prosperous 15th...

 in Blakeney

Blakeney, Norfolk

Blakeney is a coastal village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. Blakeney lies within the Norfolk Coast AONB and the North Norfolk Heritage Coast. The North Norfolk Coastal Path passes through the village...

 for Dover Castle

Dover Castle

Dover Castle is a medieval castle in the town of the same name in the English county of Kent. It was founded in the 12th century and has been described as the "Key to England" due to its defensive significance throughout history...

 and so had thought his ship had reached the English Channel

English Channel

The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...

. The Augusta was launched in raging seas with waves crashing over her to go to the assistance of the Dygden which had now got into difficulties of west of Blakeney. When the lifeboat reached the barque the captain and crew were taken aboard, however the Captain wanted to leave a cabin boy aboard the ship to prevent salvage claims being made by others. Eventually the coxswain of the Augusta persuaded the Captain that all 17 members of the crew should be taken of the ship and the Captain and crew were saved and landed at Brancaster

Brancaster

Brancaster is a village and civil parish on the north coast of the English county of Norfolk. The civil parish of Brancaster comprises Brancaster itself, together with Brancaster Staithe and Burnham Deepdale...

.
Augusta's services were not recorded at the time although tradition credits her with 200 launches and over 1,000 lives saved, however research so far has established more realistic figures of just over 200 lives saved in 16 launches with 4 further unconfirmed services. During the 56 years of Augusta's service, not one lifeboatman was lost, this may well be attributed to the skill of the Coxswain and crews and their local knowledge of this part of the coast and not least of all because they always wore their lifejacket

Lifejacket

A lifejacket is a type of personal flotation device designed to keep your airway clear of the water whether the wearer is conscious or unconscious...

s.

Recorded service and rescues

Date	Casualty	Lives saved
1839
June 7	Request of South Shields South Shields South Shields is a coastal town in Tyne and Wear, England, located at the mouth of the River Tyne to Tyne Dock, and about downstream from Newcastle upon Tyne... , on Sheringham Shoals, rendered assistance.
1841
February 5	The barque Dygden of Abo, Russia Russia Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects... , assistance required of Blakeney/Thornham,	17
1842
September 9	The Schooner Schooner A schooner is a type of sailing vessel characterized by the use of fore-and-aft sails on two or more masts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts....  Hamburgh of Dundee Dundee Dundee is the fourth-largest city in Scotland and the 39th most populous settlement in the United Kingdom. It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firth of Tay, which feeds into the North Sea... , Rescued, Old Hythe	8
1845
April 15	The Brig Brig A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...  Nautilus of Aberdeen Aberdeen Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of .... , Rescued of the coast of Skelding Hill	8
May	The Brig Brig A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...  Alpha of South Shields South Shields South Shields is a coastal town in Tyne and Wear, England, located at the mouth of the River Tyne to Tyne Dock, and about downstream from Newcastle upon Tyne... , Rescued, Sheringham Shoals,	10
May	The Brig Brig A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...  Gallena , rescued of Salthouse Salthouse Salthouse is a village and a civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. It is situated on the salt marshes of North Norfolk. It is north of Holt, west of Sheringham and north of Norwich. The village is on the A149 coast road between King's Lynn and Great Yarmouth. The nearest railway station... .	8
1846
October 13	Fishing Boats	81
1852
April 4	Crab Boats, Stood By
1855
May 30	The Sloop Sloop A sloop is a sail boat with a fore-and-aft rig and a single mast farther forward than the mast of a cutter....  Reformation Rescued of the Old Point	Crew
1864
March 7	The Lugger Lugger A lugger is a class of boats, widely used as traditional fishing boats, particularly off the coasts of France, Scotland and England. It is a small sailing vessel with lugsails set on two or more masts and perhaps lug topsails.-Defining the rig:...   Chasseur from France France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France... , Rescued	5
1865
January 1	Amphion, Rescued of Sheringham	Crew
1869
October 10	The packet Packet ship A "packet ship" was originally a vessel employed to carry post office mail packets to and from British embassies, colonies and outposts. In sea transport, a packet service is a regular, scheduled service, carrying freight and passengers...  Immigrant Ship William Frothingham of the USA, rendered assistance.
1879
October 13	The barque Villa Franca, wrecked off Old Hythe.	60
1881
January 6	brig Alert, wrecked off Cley next the Sea Cley next the Sea Cley next the Sea is a village on the River Glaven in Norfolk, England, 4 miles north-west of Holt and east of Blakeney. The main A149 coast road runs through the centre of the village, causing congestion in the summer months due to the tight, narrow streets. It lies within the Norfolk Coast AONB...	7
1882
December 6	The barque Carolina of Norway Norway Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million... , Rescued	Crew
1892
September 20	fishing boat, Rescued	Crew
1894
August 16	fishing boat Margaret Thompson of Sheringham, rendered assistance
August 16	barque from Austria–Hungary, lost rudder on Sheringham Shoal, rendered assistance
16 August 1894	vessel Balaclava, lost mast off Blakeney Blakeney, Norfolk Blakeney is a coastal village and civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. Blakeney lies within the Norfolk Coast AONB and the North Norfolk Heritage Coast. The North Norfolk Coastal Path passes through the village... , rendered assistance

Fate

By 1838 the Augusta was declared unseaworthy. In the late 1940s she was being used by the Norfolk Sea Scouts on the Norfolk Broads. By 1953 the now derelict lifeboat was found, cut in half and being used as a shelter at the Broads village of Ranworth

Ranworth

Ranworth is a village in Norfolk, England in The Broads, adjacent to Malthouse Broad and Ranworth Broad.-Church of St Helen:The 14th century St. Helen's church has a fine 15th century painted rood screen and a rare Antiphoner. It is a Grade I listed building From the top of Ranworth church's 100...

. In recent years some of the Augusta’s original planking has been preserved in a tank in Sheringham by a local businessman.