Where were life boats kept on 1800s merchant ships?

Question

Where were life boats kept on 1800s merchant ships?

Answer 1

Life of a sailor in the 1800's was.......h...e....l..l I doubt the crew was worried to much about. Floggin was the norm, life boats would be an after thought

Answer 2

They had tenders or smaller boats that could be rowed, or sometimes sailed into shallow areas where the larger merchant vessels couldn't go, but I don't think they had lifeboats at all. As far as I know, coz I've never sailed an actual tall ship, which is what I think you mean (ones I'm thinking of are actually 1600's - 1700's but I know they had them in the earlier 1800's as well), I believe they kept them lashed to the flagship and lowered them into the water when they were needed. Merchant (and other) fleets also kept smaller sloops and such with them, sailing under their own power and with their own crews. If the flagship was somehow lost, the remaining crew could all cram into the smaller ships and stay there until they reached a port or until they -er- found another flagship (by which means would be determined based upon what the sailors were up to, mind...)