Name Reliance

Built By Richard "Dick" Peel of Gorran Haven, a renowned builder of fast boats, (mentioned as a forerunner of Percy Mitchell in Mitchell's book 'A Boat Builders Tale') for the Hunkin family of Mevagissey, The Hunkins are still working fishing boats out of Mevagissey to this day. She was first registered FY59 in 1903 skippered by Henry Hunkin Sr, with a motor fitted in 1912.

RELIANCE was registered as a Sailing Drift Net Lugger originally 14.38 Tonnage and formed part of the large fleet working out of the south and west Cornish ports. She remained with the Hunkins, Henry Jr being Skipper in 1918 until sold to Jo Chesterfield in 1939. Sold again in 1948 to Joshua Hendy of Porthleven she was transferred to the Penzance registry as PZ 290 and six months later sold to William Jewell, also of Porthleven. In 1956, she moved to Newlyn, still with PZ 290, with a new owner, Frank Hosking. He sold to his Skipper Richard Lampson in 1957, she came back to Frank Hosking again in 1959 with a new Skipper W. Pike and she carried on fishing out of Newlyn until December 1966 when she was sold out of the fishery and moved back to Mevagissey with a Mr Thompson. Eventually she fell into disrepair until she was found by Deena Russell of Penryn in 1999 in Gaffers and Luggers Yard with a tree growing through her and with the aid of a young Spike Davis and others restored her to a Dipping Lug rig with much of the original below the waterline structure surviving. Reliance sailed through the next 12 years as a engineless Dipping Lugger in Cornwall with a trip to France.

In 2014, she came to G Butler of Cawsand in South East Cornwall and after a major refit launched in 2018 and has been based there since then. RELAINCE has fine lines and was considered lightly built with some locals from Mevagissey declaring that would not go past the Dodman in her (the headland on the west side of St Austell Bay). Despite that the current owners have taken her to the Outer Hebrides twice with numerous trips across the Channel and at 120 years old, she is in fine shape still retaining original centreline structures and framing. Continuing to sail out of a Cornish port, RELIANCE is lovely example of the once numerous Lugger fleet of South East Cornwall.