This is a memorial to the men who of the Lifeboat Servce who died in 1886 attempting to rescue the crew of the German Barque, 'Mexico'. All the men from the St. Annes boat, and all but two from the Southport boat, 27 in total, died before the Lytham boat effected the rescue. In effect, this disaster led to the formation of the Royal National Lifeboat Institute, one of the mst successful charities in the UK today. For full details follow this link http://www.rnli.org.uk/who_we_are/media_centre/pressrelease_detail?articleid=157790