The Portmadoc Lifeboat Station was opened by the Shipwrecked Fishermen and Mariners’ Royal Benevolent Society (SFMRBS) in 1853.

Due to silting of the harbour entrance, the Pwllheli lifeboat couldn't get out at dead-low water, and on 3 September 1951, a school master and 4 boys were drowned when their boat Dorothy capsized, and the Pwllheli lifeboat couldn't attend.

The Pwllheli lifeboat was subsequently replaced with a smaller carriage-launched boat, housed in the 1891 boathouse, which could then be launched off the beach.

On 1 September 1977 it went to the aid of a yacht that was aground on Portmadoc Bar in rough seas and a strong wind.

[3] Starting in 1983, larger and faster ILBs have been stationed at Criccieth, but since 2009 there has also been a smaller inshore rescue boat of the type more usually used by beach lifeguards.