Save Sundowner: The historic boat used by Chorley's Titanic officer Charles Lightoller in Dunkirk evacuation needs urgent restoration

Lightoller was born in 1874 in Chorley to a family of cotton mill owners and went on to serve as the second officer aboard the Titanic. At age 38 in April 1912, he was the senior surviving officer of the ill-fated maiden voyage of the ship and played an important role evacuating passengers. He was the last one rescued by the ship RMS Carpathia. That night 1,503 people died, 50 of them children, and just 706 survived.

In the late 1920s, Charles – by then retired - purchased Sundowner, a small yacht that would become instrumental when war consumed Britain again in the 1940s. On May 31, 1940, Lightoller, son Roger and 18-year-old Sea Scout named Gerald Ashcroft, crossed the English Channel in Sundowner to assist in the Dunkirk evacuation in company with five other ships. While making the way to France they rescued the crew of a boat ‘Westerly’ which had broken down and was on fire. Then on arrival in Dunkirk they saved 127 British service members, cramming them on the yacht’s cabin and deck, despite the boat having a licensed capacity of just 21.

Despite being targeted by enemy aircraft and swerving the wash from fast-moving destroyers, all servicemen on Sundowner returned to British shores safely. During the rescue Charles was unaware his middle son Trevor, a Lieutenant in the Royal Signals, had been one of the soldiers rescued from Dunkirk two days before Sundowner sailed. Roger, with him on Sundowner, was killed in the last month of the war, in command of a motor torpedo boat.

The efforts of Lightoller and his crew aboard Sundowner have even been replicated on the big screen, with Mark Rylance's character in the Christopher Nolan film 'Dunkirk' being based on this story. Operation Dynamo, the evacuation of the British Expeditionary Forces from the beaches of Dunkirk in May 1940, remains one of the most critical moments of the Second World War.

After Lightoller died in 1952 his wife Sylvia continued to cruise in Sundowner, taking the helm when she led the Armada of Little Ships on the 25th Anniversary return to Dunkirk in 1965. The boat was restored for the 50th anniversary of Dunkirk in 1990 and it also took in the 60th anniversary flotilla in 2000, sailing again to Dunkirk. In June 2012, Sundowner participated in the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant with other ‘Dunkirk Little Ships’.

Sundowner last resided at the Ramsgate Maritime Museum as an exhibit, and is currently in the hands of Michael Dennett Shipbuilders awaiting refit. A campaign has been launched to restore Sundowner by John Moolenschot, who said: “The Sundowner has fallen into disrepair and is no longer seaworthy. She is in the loving hands of the Michael Dennett Shipbuilders and must be re-planked. Donations will be used directly to help restore and save this piece of history and to honor not only Cmdr. Lightoller, but the brave men of the British Expeditionary Forces and the Free French Forces.”

If you wish to donate to the fund-raiser, it can be found on the GoFundMe website under 'Save Sundowner'.