Name Valentine Wyndham Quin

VALENTINE WYNDHAM QUIN (ON 985), a 37’ Oakley-class lifeboat, was built between 1966 and 1967 by Herd & MacKenzie of Buckie, Moray. She was first stationed at Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, the sixth and last offshore lifeboat stationed there, replacing the larger Watson-class SIR GODFREY BARING. The change to the smaller class of lifeboat was due to the silting up at the base of the slipway, which caused occasional difficulties with launching for the larger lifeboat.

VALENTINE WYNDHAM QUIN was staitioned at Clacton until 1984, saving 61 lives in 179 launches there. Between 1984 and 1988, she was stationed at Clogher Head, Ireland, where she saved 5 lives in 9 launches. She was then removed from service, having saved a total of 66 lives.

Between 1988 and 1993, VALENTINE WYNDHAM QUIN was on display at Cromer, Norfolk. At this point, she was taken over by the Harwich Society, with plans to move her to Harwich, where she would be displayed in the old lifeboat house, built in 1876. With the support of local figures, Essex County Council agreed to lease the building to the Society, and in December 1993, VALENTINE WYNDHAM QUIN was moved into the lifeboat house. To achieve this, the wheelhouse and the mast of the vessel had to be removed.

Following that, two teams of volunteers – the House Team and the Boat Team – worked on their respective heritage elements to create a lifeboat museum in Harwich, centred around the VALENTINE WYNDHAM QUIN. The museum was opened in 1994, on the first day of that year’s Harwich Festival. She remains there to this day, providing visitors with close access to a historic lifeboat.