Captain Matthew Webb (19 January 1848 – 24 July 1883) was an English seaman, swimmer and stuntman who became the first person to swim the English Channel without the use of artificial aids. Webb increased the popularity of swimming in England at a time when few people knew how to swim.
Born in Dawley, Shropshire, Webb developed his swimming skills as a child while playing in the River Severn. At twelve, he began his career in the Merchant Navy after training at HMS Conway. After graduating, he began a three-year apprenticeship with the Rathbone Brothers of Liverpool, during which he sailed internationally across various trade routes to countries including China, India, Hong Kong, Singapore and Yemen.
After completing his second mate training in 1865, Webb worked for ten years aboard different ships and for several companies. He was recognised for two acts of bravery: in the Suez Canal he freed the ship's propeller from an entangling rope by diving underwater and cutting it, and in the Atlantic Ocean he jumped in to attempt to save a man who had fallen overboard while the ship was travelling at 14.5 kn (26.9 km/h; 16.7 mph). This latter act earned him the first Stanhope medal.
In 1875, on his second attempt, Webb gained fame by successfully swimming the English Channel from Dover, England, to Cap Gris-Nez, France. Public donations raised him £2,424 (about £240,000 today), and he started a career as a professional swimmer. Webb competed in several races, and performed stunts in England and America, including completing a 40-mile (64 km) swim from Gravesend to Woolwich along the Thames in 1877, swimming 74 miles (119 km) over six days to win a long-distance swimming race in 1879, and floating for 128.5 hours at the Boston Horticultural Hall in 1882. Webb's financial situation worsened, and in 1883 he was diagnosed with tuberculosis, leaving him bedridden for two months. Webb died later that year after being paralysed by the water pressure while attempting to swim down the rapids at Niagara Gorge, below Niagara Falls.
Webb was born on 19 January 1848 in Dawley, Shropshire. He was one of 13 children of the surgeon Dr Matthew Webb. In 1849, when Webb was 14 months old, his family moved to Madeley, and then in 1856 to Coalbrookdale, where they lived near the River Severn.
Webb's first memory involved the water. After school he would go with friends to play in the Severn, so by the age of seven he could swim. This was uncommon for the time, as swimming was not generally considered a pleasurable activity but rather a medical treatment. At eight Webb and his older brother Thomas saved their younger brother Charles from drowning. Webb enjoyed showing off in front of his friends and reading sea stories, with the book Old Jack by W. H. G. Kingston inspiring him to become a seaman.
In 1860, at twelve years old, Webb began training for the Merchant Navy aboard the HMS Conway training ship. Initially homesick and disliking the harsh conditions, Webb soon became popular on the Conway and earned the nickname "Chummy Webb". The routine was regulated but allowed time for play, and the boys studied both traditional subjects and nautical skills. Webb rescued a student who had fallen overboard. He impressed his peers by swimming for extended periods.
Apprenticeship with the Rathbone Brothers
In 1862 Webb began a three-year apprenticeship on eastern cargo ships operated by the Rathbone Brothers of Liverpool. He trained to become a second mate, earning £30 (about £3,200 today) for his three years' work. His first voyage was from Liverpool to Calcutta. The crew faced bad weather, which terrified Webb. Despite that he excelled in the harsh conditions and was not prone to seasickness, unlike the other new recruits. The ship then sailed to Hong Kong, Singapore, back to Calcutta and then back home. In Hong Kong Webb fought off a mugging attempt until a policeman caused the assailants to flee.
His next trip was to Aden and then Bombay, where he spent three months and first swam in the sea. He swam between the boats in the harbour, dining at his destination and swimming back again. He enjoyed the extra buoyancy that the saltwater provided and the roughness of the waves. Webb gained a reputation for fearlessness and was admired by his comrades. After his third voyage he passed his second mate qualification.
Work as a second mate and seaman
Webb's contract expired in 1865, after which he became a second mate for Saunders & Co., another Liverpool-based shipping company. He worked on ships to Japan, Brazil and Egypt.
Webb was confident in his physical abilities, especially in swimming. He would leap off the yardarm into the sea and earned an extra £1 per day for anchoring near a wreck and then swimming back to shore—a job that the other sailors were too afraid to do. In one incident he competed with a Newfoundland dog to see who could swim the longest in the rough sea. After an hour Webb was still swimming but the dog had to be rescued from the water. In the Suez Canal his ship's propeller became entangled in a rope. Webb dived repeatedly for hours, cutting the rope until the propeller was freed. Saunders & Co. never acknowledged his efforts so he left for the United States.
Disliking the US, Webb took a job as an ordinary seaman on the Cunard Line ship Russia to return to the UK. During the voyage he attempted to rescue a man overboard by jumping into the cold mid-Atlantic Ocean while the ship was travelling at 14.5 kn (26.9 km/h; 16.7 mph). During the 37 minutes before he was rescued Webb nearly drowned. The man was never found but the passengers of the Russia gave Webb a purse of gold and upon returning home he learned that his attempted rescue had won him the first Stanhope Medal and made him a hero in the British press.
From 1865 to 1875 Webb worked on seven ships, the last being the Emerald, where he served as captain for six months.
English Channel swimming record
In mid-1872 Webb read an account of the failed attempt by J. B. Johnson to swim the English Channel and became inspired to try.
In 1874 Webb sought financial backers for his Channel attempt and other long swims. He approached Robert Watson, owner of the Swimming, Rowing and Athletic Record and Swimming Notes and Record, for support. Though Watson doubted Webb would attempt the channel, he advised him to wait until next summer for better weather. Webb agreed and moved to Dover to practise. Locals nicknamed him the "Red Indian" as he would often come back from long swims with a red face. Before returning to Watson's office on Fleet Street he tested himself by swimming to the Varne Lightvessel and back, a distance of 13 miles (21 km).