Index
 
19th Century - Preventive Service and Coast Guard, Lighthouse Keepers, etc..

Some Miscellaneous Notes

  1. 5 Feb 1829 with the Yealm Preventive Boat, the Harpy's galley crept up 120 casks of spirits off the Mewstone.
  2. 8 Mar 1829 the boat's crew from the Nothe Station, at Weymouth, seized 140 casks of spirits concealed in a cavern near the Boiling Rock.
  3. 30 Aug 1830 it is reported that a court of inquiry held upon Lieutenant McGladdery [of the Coastguard], at Islandmore, Co. Mayo, and Lieutenant Hudson of the Skylark, has honourably acquitted both officers.
  4. 6 Nov 1835 a few days ago hand-bills were circulated amongst the agricultural population of the Isle of Thanet, calling upon them to assemble in the neighbourhood of the new workhouse to take their prospects into consideration, and to determine upon the course to be adopted for their general benefit. The surplus men of the Preventive Service were collected from the coast, and stationed near the spot named for the meeting The labourers, however, did not obey the call, and the guard, after remaining in their hiding-place a considerable time, were dismissed to their stations. It was soon afterwards discovered that the whole was a ruse of the smugglers, who, in the temporary absence of the Preventive men contrived to "run" a very large cargo of valuable goods without detection. Maidstone Journal
  5. In 1846 Henry Baldwin, Rock Island Chief Officer, took government officials around in a Coast Guard boat with Alexander O'Driscoll, a "local middleman" to show the effect of the potato famine in the area. O'Driscoll asked the government to supply meal by steamer and have it distributed by the Coast Guards. The following year in February 1847, according to Captain Thomas, "bread-stuffs" were sent by the British Relief Association on board the H.M.S. Rhadamanthus to the Rock Island Coast Guard station but Baldwin was not allowed to distribute them. A few bags of flour were sent to Goleen(4). Later that same month, some 500 labourers from the local famine relief road works, carrying their shovels, went to Baldwin to demand food. The H.M.S. Protheroe had just arrived in the harbour with 109 tons of bread-stuffs donated by the British Relief Association. The captain of the ship was ordered by Captain Harston of the British Relief Association to leave for Schull. The local men attempted to prevent the ship's depart ure with the port pilot refusing to take the ship out of the harbour for fear of the crowd. Eventually it was towed to Schull by another government steamer where it discharged 364 sacks of food. According to Alexander O'Driscoll at the time 25 people a day were dying(5).
    (4)Hickey, Famine in West Cork, 179.
    (5)Hickey, Famine in West Cork, 188.
    [With many thanks to Aidan Power]
  6. Preventing smuggling - in November 1856 Lieut. T. Hungerford, the District Officer of the Coast Guard, wrote from Castletownsend "as the winter season draws on and it is also appearing that smuggling transactions are taking place upon the coast I have to desire that the utmost vigilance may be observed at the several stations and on board the Bantry".
    (6)Irish Coast Guard Order Book 1852-60, National Maritime Museum, London, MS85/106.
    [With many thanks to Aidan Power]
  7. 23rd of September 1867, James Doyle, Crookhaven lightkeeper, reported to the Secretary that a large outer pane of green glass was "broken from exercising of gun". For some reason it was not until the 30th of October that the Irish Lights' Board was informed. It was, according to Doyle, as a result of the Coast Guard exercising nearby in the gunboat Bruiser. When questioned about the incident, the Admiralty replied "on no occasion were the guns of HM Ship Bruiser fired in the vicinity of Crookhaven and on the 23rd inst. the day the glass was broke she was at anchor in Castletownsend but that HMS Blazer on that date was firing at a mark about a mile from the Lighthouse in the direction of the village of Glun [Goleen?]". The Admiralty however denied responsibility for breaking the glass. Later James Doyle wrote to say that J.S. Sloane, Superintendent of Works, told him the glass breakage was "caused by the heat of the sun"(1). Doyle reported in November that another pane of green glass was broken on the 5th. He added that the gunboat Bruiser was "practising on that day"(2).
    (1) Journal No.24, Commissioners of Irish Lights, p. 376.
    (2) Lighthouse Register 1867, Commissioners of Irish Lights, 8th November 1868.
    [With many thanks to Aidan Power]
  8. In February 1878 Isaac Notter's request to transfer the contract for provisioning the Fastnet to his brother Richard was approved by the Board. The Board noted a complaint from Mr. Notter in April 1879 that French luggers had prevented him leaving Crookhaven harbour to service Fastnet. To assist him he said that the Coast Guard had twice sent HMS Orwell. It was noted however that Notter had caused "the Admiral at Queenstown much trouble" and added "if Mr Notter's moorings were in a proper place and not in the fairway of the Harbour, no inconvenience would be caused"(3).
    (3) Journal No.31, Commissioners of Irish Lights, 18th April 1879.
    [With many thanks to Aidan Power]

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