Coastguard Records

In 1809 the Government established a Preventive Water Guard to operate in coastal waters, to tackle any smugglers who had managed to evade the Revenue cruisers which were operating further out to sea. The PWG was also responsible for giving assistance when a ship was wrecked. In 1816 the PWG was placed under the control of the Treasury and all but a few of the Revenue cruisers passed to the Admiralty, while the Officers remained under the Board of Customs. In the same year a new shore-based service, the Coast Blockade Service, was established by the Admiralty to complement the existing forces. This new service consisted initially of 92 officers and men and was stationed along the coast between the North Foreland and Dungeness to capture smugglers as they came ashore. Later the CBS was extended to cover the southern coast of England from Kent to the Hamble River in Hampshire.

The existence of so many different preventive services resulted in much overlapping of function and duplication of effort. In 1821 a committee set up to enquire into the operation of the Customs recommended the combination of all the preventive services, under a single authority, namely the Board of Customs, though the officers of the newly amalgamated service were to be nominated by the Admiralty. The Coast Blockade Service was an exception and would not come under Customs control but remain with the Admiralty.

The proposal was accepted, and in 1822 the Preventive Water Guard, the Revenue cruisers and their officers united to form the Coastguard. In 1831 the Coast Blockade Service was also absorbed into the Coastguard. These four preventive forces employed nearly 6,700 men at the time of amalgamation. At each station the chief officer, chief boatman and boatman were usually experienced naval seamen and the records of their earlier careers are sometimes available in other Class Lists.

As Civil Registration did not begin till 1st July 1837 in England and Wales, (1855 in Scotland and Ireland), Coastguard records can be invaluable in locating a family who otherwise seem to be untraceable.

Bob O'Hara and Roy Noble

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interviewed by Roy Noble on BBC2 Wales (2.9 Mb).
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For more information read National Archives leaflets on Coastguard

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Bob
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