Arklow Lifeboat Station is located at South Quay in Arklow, a harbour town at the mouth of the River Avoca, approximately south of Dublin in County Wicklow, on the east coast of Ireland.

A lifeboat was first placed at Arklow in 1826 by the Royal National Institution for the Preservation of Life from Shipwreck (RNIPLS). It was the first lifeboat station in Ireland, but lasted just 3½ years, and closed in 1830. The station was re-established by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) in 1857.

The station currently operates a lifeboat, 13-53 Roy Holloway (ON 1360), on station since 2025.

History Following a request from Capt. J. Dombrain, Dublin Inspector of Coastguard, who highlighted a number of shipwrecks in the area, a lifeboat was first placed at Arklow by the RNIPLS. A lifeboat, built by William Plenty of Newbury, Berkshire, and costing £130, arrived on 30 November 1826. She was stored in a boathouse, rented from the coastguard at £7 per annum. It would be the first lifeboat station in Ireland.

Only 3½ years later, having never been launched on service, and at the recommendation of Capt. Samuel Sparshott, Deputy Inspector General of Coastguard, the lifeboat was relocated in April 1930 to , County Down, and the station at Arklow was closed.

In 1857, Arklow Lifeboat Station was reopened by the RNLI, after a series of local maritime disasters. An order was placed with Forrestt of Limehouse for a self-righting 'pulling and sailing' (P&S) lifeboat, one with sails and (10) oars, and costing £158. A boathouse costing £120 was constructed with a slipway, for the boat to launch directly into the river. The lifeboat was transported from London free of charge by the British and Irish Steam Packet Company, arriving in Arklow on 7 June 1857.

The Arundel Venables replaced the 1857 lifeboat in 1863. The boat capsized on service on 19 March 1865, fortunately with no loss of life. On 26 December 1865, she was launched to the aid of the vessel Tenessarian, on passage from Liverpool to Calcutta, ashore on Blackwater Bank. Handled with great skill in dreadful conditions, the lifeboat rescued 34 men. Coxswain Peter Kavanagh was awarded the RNLI Silver Medal.

Just over two years later, a cholera outbreak in Arklow in 1868 claimed 60 lives. One of the victims was the silver medal winner, Coxswain Peter Kavanagh, who had served as coxswain since the station reopened in 1857. He left a widow and eight children.

In 1912, a motor-powered lifeboat was announced for Arklow, and modifications were made to the 1873 boathouse to accommodate the new boat However, it would by 1915 before the boat arrived. The new lifeboat was the John Taylor Cardwell (ON 642), a self-righting lifeboat, with a single 40-hp engine, delivering a speed of .

A case of rum was awarded to the crew of the Arklow lifeboat Inbhear Mor in 1956. The award was made by the Sugar Manufacturers Association (of Jamaica), "for the longest winter lifeboat service". The Arklow lifeboat had been on service to the MV Gansey of Castletown, Isle of Man for over 17 hours.

The 42-foot Watson-class lifeboat William Taylor of Oldham (ON 907) was launched to the aid of the trawler Jadestar Glory on 16 January 1974, ashore on Roney Rock. In extreme gale-force conditions, six men were rescued from two life-rafts. Coxswain Michael O'Brian was accorded 'The Thanks of the Institution inscribed on Vellum'.

In 2023, it was announced that the lifeboat 14-19 Ger Tigchelaar (ON 1223), on service at Arklow since 1997, was to be replaced with a new €2.85 million lifeboat. The new All-weather lifeboat 13-53 arrived on station at Arklow, at exactly 13:53, on Sunday 13 October 2024.

At a ceremony on Saturday 21 June 2025, the €3.1million lifeboat was formally accepted by RNLI chief executive Peter Sparkes. A service of dedication was held by Fr. Padraig O'Cochlain, Rev. Michael Anderson, Rev. Jack Kinkead and Pastor Soloman Aroboto. Music for the ceremony was provided by the Arklow Saint Colmcille’s Pipe Band, Arklow Revival Gospel Choir and the Arklow Shipping Silver Band.

John Bermingham, Lifeboat Operations Manager, formally received the lifeboat on behalf of the station, noting that the lifeboat had already been called on 10 occasions since formally entering service in February 2025. The lifeboat was named 13-53 Roy Holloway (ON 1360), in memory of a quietly spoken music teacher from Kingswinford, the primary donor of the vessel, with a £1.4m bequest to the Institution.

Station honours The following are awards made at Arklow. RNIPLS Silver Medal James Dillon, Boatman, H.M. Coastguard, Arklow – 1848 RNLI Silver Medal Peter Kavanagh, Coxswain – 1866 Capt. Edward Kearon – 1867 John Cummings, Coxswain – 1870 William Manifold, Second Coxswain – 1877 'The Thanks of the Institution inscribed on Vellum' Michael O'Brien, Coxswain – 1974 'A Framed Letter of Thanks signed by the Chairman of the Institution' Edward Dillon, Coxswain – 1997 A case of Rum from the Sugar Manufacturers Association (of Jamaica) Arklow lifeboat crew – 1956

Roll of honour In memory of those lost whilst serving Arklow lifeboat. Died in the lifeboat on its return from exercise, 30 December 1902 John Dunne

Arklow lifeboats Pulling and Sailing (P&S) lifeboats ON Name Built Class Comments 1826 1830–1833 24-foot Plenty x (8-oared) Plenty-class non-self-righting lifeboat, funded by the RNIPLS, built by William Plenty of Newbury, Berkshire, costing £130.Transferred to . Pre-310 1857 1857–1863 30-foot Peake self-righting (P&S) x (10-oared) Peake-class self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, funded by the RNLI, built by Forrestt of Limehouse, London, costing £158.Lengthened in 1864, and transferred to . Pre-294 Arundel Venables 1855 1863–1873 36-foot Peake self-righting (P&S) Modified x (12-oared) Peake-class self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, legacy of Mr T. A. Venables of Whistones, York, built by Forrestt of Limehouse, London. x (10-oared) and costing £156 when new.Previously Eleanor Cecily at . Capsized 19 March 1865. Broken up in 1873. Pre-580 Out Pensioner 1873 1873–1890 x (12-oared) self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, gift of Maj. J. A. Brookman of Manchester, built by Woolfe & Son of Shadwell, London, costing £403.Sold in 1890. 281 1890 1890–1915 39-foot self-righting (P&S) x (12-oared) self-righting (P&S) lifeboat, legacy of the Misses English, of Clifton, Bristol, built by Watkins of Blackwall, London, costing £610.Sold in March 1915. Pre ON numbers are unofficial numbers used by the Lifeboat Enthusiasts' Society to reference early lifeboats not included on the official RNLI list.

Motor lifeboats ON Op. No. Name Built Class Comments 642 – John Taylor Cardwell 1914 1915–1938 40-foot self-righting (motor) x self-righting (motor) lifeboat, legacy of Mr J. T. Cardwell, with a single 40-hp 'Tylor' petrol engine, built by Thames Ironworks, of Blackwall, London, completed by S. E. Saunders of Cowes, costing £3,599, Sold in 1938. Renamed Arklow, later Bridget. At Port Dinorwic Marina, May 2025. 807 – Inbhear Mor 1938 1938–1968 41-foot Watson 897 – St Andrew(Civil Service No.10) 1951 1968–1973 41-foot Watson Previously at and . 907 – 1954 1973–1986 Previously at . 1006 Connel Elizabeth Cargill 1967 1986–1990 Previously at . Transferred to the Relief fleet. Later at . 1029 44-011 Augustine Courtauld 1974 1990–1997 Initially placed at . 1223 14-19 Ger Tigchelaar 1996 1997–2025 Transferred to the Relief fleet. 1360 13-53 Roy Holloway 2024 2025– More post-service details can be found on the respective lifeboat class pages.

See also List of RNLI stations List of former RNLI stations Royal National Lifeboat Institution lifeboats

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External links Arklow RNLI Lifeboat Station Arklow Maritime Museum