William George Fleming | |
|---|---|
 William Fleming GC   | |
| Born | 1865 (1865) |
| Died | 1954 (aged 88–89) |
| Occupations | Seaman Coxswain of the Gorleston lifeboat (1922-1934) |
William George Fleming[1]GC (1865–1954) was alifeboatman fromGorleston-on-Sea on the east coast ofNorfolk,England. His service with theRoyal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) spanned nearly fifty years, in which time he won theGeorge Cross and theRNLI Medal in Gold and in Silver, and the Bronze Medal three times.[1]
William "Billy" Fleming was born inGorleston-on-Sea in 1865.[1] As a young man, he worked as an ordinary seaman, working on small sailing vessels on the east coast of England. He is recorded on the1881 census as a seaman working on theCharlotte Cole. He lived for most of his life in Pavilion Road,[2] Gorleston, just a small distance from the Lifeboat station. He joined the crew of theGreat Yarmouth and Gorleston lifeboat in the mid-1880s.[1]
Billy Fleming served on the Gorleston lifeboat through the latter years of the 19th century, and the first four decades of the 20th century.[1] He was in his late 50s when he becamecoxswain in 1922, a post he held until 1934.[1] Over his 49 years of service he helped to rescue 1,188 people.[1]
During his lifeboat career Billy had been involved in many services of note.
In 1922 Fleming's lifeboat, the un-motorised rowing craftKentwell, went to the rescue of the collierHopelyn, which had run aground onScroby Sands in a severe gale.Kentwell was unsuccessful in her efforts to get the crew of 24 fromHopelyn to safety, after the lifeboat was damaged against the hull ofHopelyn. After returning to shore Fleming and some of his crew, although exhausted, volunteered to join the Lowestoft motor-powered lifeboatAgnes Cross as she launched to continue the rescue, aware that their expert knowledge of conditions on Scroby Sands and the surrounding waters could be invaluable. The whole crew ofHopelyn, and the ship's cat, were eventually rescued byAgnes Cross.[1][3]
Fleming's 49 years with the lifeboat service were marked by courageous acts that placed him second only toHenry Blogg ofCromer in the list of Norfolk's most decorated lifeboat men. Over the space of five years, Fleming attained a full set of theRNLI's awards for gallantry. He was awarded a RNLI Gold Medal for his part in the rescue ofHopelyn, with fifteen Bronze Medals presented to other lifeboatmen.[1] In 1926 he was awarded a bronze medal for the rescue of four seamen from theketchHenrietta.[1] In 1927[1] he received a silver medal for the part the lifeboat played in the rescue of theDutchoil tankerGeorgia, when she was stranded onHaisborough Sands. He was also awarded a silver watch by theQueen of the Netherlands for standing byGeorgia.[4]
In addition, in 1924 Fleming was awarded theEmpire Gallantry Medal[5] for theHopelyn rescue,[3] which he exchanged for the newly createdGeorge Cross in 1941.[6] As a George Cross recipient he received theQueen Elizabeth II Coronation Medal in 1953.
A blue "heritage" plaque to commemorate William G. Fleming GC was unveiled on Monday, 23 October 2017 at 11 Pavilion Road, Gorleston, where he lived whilst serving as coxswain.[3]
In December 2019 the Finance Shop, a local firm offering independent financial advice, relocated to custom-built premises on Morton Peto Road on the Harfrey's Industrial Estate inGreat Yarmouth. This new building, William Fleming House, was named in honour of Coxswain William "Billy" Fleming.[7]