Frequently Asked Questions


General Interest

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 When was the Coast Guard (and its forerunners) established and what is its organizational history?

The Coast Guard is an amalgamation of five formerly distinct federal services.  The following timeline reflects the establishment of those services and when they became part of what is now the United States Coast Guard as well as changes in the organizational structure of the Coast Guard itself.

  • 7 August 1789:  The service, eventually to be known as the U.S. Lighthouse Service, was established under the control of the Treasury Department (1 Stat. L., 53).
  • 1 September 1789: Navigation law administration was placed under Secretary of the Treasury by an act of 1 September 1789 (1 Stat. 55), with local enforcement by Treasury customs officials. On 22 January 1793, the Register of the Treasury became responsible for vessel documentation and for navigation and tonnage statistics. The Bureau of Statistics was established by an act of 28 July 1866 (14 Stat. 331), to collect navigation statistics, assign numbers to merchant vessels, and publish the annual list of American merchant vessels. Pursuant to acts of 26 May 1790 (1 Stat. 122) and 3 March 1797 (1 Stat. 506), district court judges submitted requests to the Secretary of the Treasury for remission of fines and penalties under the navigation laws. The Navigation Division was established in the Treasury Department in 1870 to administer the fines and penalties function.  Re-designated as the Internal Revenue and Navigation Division in 1878 it was re-designated Mercantile Marine and Internal Revenue Division in 1884.  It was abolished in 1887.  U.S. circuit courts handled disputes between seamen and masters until 7 June 1872 when judges were authorized to appoint shipping commissioners at various ports to administer navigation laws relating to merchant seamen.
  • 4 August 1790:  Congress authorized the Secretary of the Treasury, Alexander Hamilton, to create a maritime service to enforce customs laws (1 Stat. L. 145, 175).  Alternately known as the system of cutters, Revenue Service, and Revenue-Marine this service was placed under the control of the Treasury Department.
  • 7 July 1838:  Vessel inspections, first required by an act of 7 July 1838 (5 Stat. 304), were performed by engineers appointed by U.S. District Court judges. The Steamboat Act (10 Stat. 61), 30 August 1852, formally established the Steamboat Inspection Service in the Department of the Treasury and authorized the appointment of supervising steam vessel inspectors, who collectively constituted the Board of Supervising Inspectors. An act of 28 February 1871 (16 Stat. 458), authorized the appointment of a Supervising Inspector General for the Steamboat Inspection Service.  Steamboat Inspection Service was transferred to the Department of Commerce and Labor by act of 14 February 1903 (32 Stat. 825), and to the Department of Commerce by act of 4 March 1913 (37 Stat. 736).  It was combined with the Bureau of Navigation to form Bureau of Navigation and Steamboat Inspection by act of 30 June 1932 (47 Stat. 415).  It was renamed Bureau of Marine Inspection and Navigation in 1936.
  • 14 August 1848:  Congress appropriated funds to pay for life-saving equipment to be used by volunteer organizations (9 Stat. L., 321, 322).
  • 30 August 1852:  Steamboat Act established the Steamboat Inspection Service under the control of the Treasury Department (10 Stat. L. 61, 1852).
  • 9 October 1852: The Lighthouse Board, which administered the nation's lighthouse system until 1 July 1910, was organized. "This Board was composed of two officers of the Navy, two officers of the Engineer Corps, and two civilians of high scientific attainments whose services were at the disposal of the President, and an officer of the Navy and of the, Engineers as secretaries. It was empowered under the Secretary of the Treasury to "discharge all the administrative duties" relative to lighthouses and other aids to navigation. The Secretary of the Treasury was president of the Board, and it was authorized to elect a chairman and to divide the coast of the United States into twelve lighthouse districts, to each of which the President was to assign an army or navy officer as lighthouse inspector."
  • 18 June 1878:  U.S. Life-Saving Service established as a separate agency under the control of the Treasury Department (20 Stat. L., 163).
  • 5 July 1884: U.S. Bureau of Navigation was established in the Treasury Department by act of 5 July 1884 (23 Stat 118), to consolidate the administration of all navigation laws except those relating to vessel inspection, lighthouses, lifesaving, and revenue collection. Comprised of employees from the Bureau of Statistics concerned with numbering merchant vessels; the Register and Tonnage Division of the Register of the Treasury; the Internal Revenue and Navigation Division; and shipping commissioners, thereafter appointed by the Secretary of the Treasury.  It was transferred to Department of Commerce and Labor by act of 14 February 1903 (32 Stat. 825), and to the Department of Commerce by act of 4 March 1913 (37 Stat. 736). It was consolidated with Steamboat Inspection Service, effective 1 August 1932, by an appropriations act of 30 June 1932 (47 Stat. 415) to form the Bureau of Navigation and Steamboat Inspection.  It was re-designated Bureau of Marine Inspection and Navigation by Public Law 622 (49 Stat. L., 1380), 27 May 1936.
  • 14 February 1903: Congress created the Department of Commerce and Labor (32 Stat. L., Ch. 552). Bureau of Navigation, Steamship Inspection Service, and Lighthouse Service (Lighthouse Board and Lighthouse Establishment) were transferred to the new department (32 Stat. L., 825-827).
  • 17 June 1910: An Act of Congress (36 Stat. L., 534) abolished the Lighthouse Board and created the Bureau of Lighthouses to have complete charge of the Lighthouse Service (Establishment). This law constituted the organic act under which the Lighthouse Service operated thereafter.  Mr. George R. Putnam, the first Commissioner of Lighthouses, took office on 1 July 1910.  He served in that capacity until his retirement in 1935.
  • 4 March 1913: The Department of Commerce and Labor was renamed Department of Commerce. 
  • 28 January 1915:  President Woodrow Wilson signed into law the "Act to Create the Coast Guard," an act passed by Congress on 20 January, 1915 that combined the Life-Saving Service and Revenue Cutter Service to form the Coast Guard (38 Stat. L., 800).
  • 6 April 1917:  With the declaration of war against Germany the Coast Guard was transferred by Executive Order to the control of the Navy Department.
  • 28 August 1919:  Coast Guard reverted to Treasury Department after President Wilson signed Executive Order 3160.
  • 30 June 1932:  Steamboat Inspection Service and Bureau of Navigation were combined to form the Bureau of Navigation and Steamboat Inspection (47 Stat. L., 415). The new agency remained under Commerce Department control.
  • 27 May 1936:  Public Law 622 reorganized and changed the name of the Bureau of Navigation and Steamboat Inspection Service to Bureau of Marine Inspection and Navigation (49 Stat. L., 1380). The Bureau remained under Commerce Department control.
  • 1 September 1938: The U. S. Maritime Service was placed under the administration of the Coast Guard. The Coast Guard was then responsible for administering the Maritime Service's training stations.
  • 1 July 1939:  The Lighthouse Service became part of the Coast Guard (53 Stat. L., 1432).
  • 1 November 1941:  President Roosevelt’s Executive Order 8929 transferred the Coast Guard to Navy Department control.
  • 28 February 1942:  Executive Order 9083 transferred Bureau of Marine Inspection temporarily to the Coast Guard.
  • 1 September 1942: The Coast Guard's administration of Maritime Service training ended and that power was transferred to the newly established War Shipping Administration.
  • 1 January 1946:  In compliance with Executive Order 9666, the Coast Guard returned to Treasury Department control.
  • In April 1946 the Coast Guard created the Eastern, Western, and Pacific Area commands to coordinate cases that required the assets of more than one district.
  • 16 July 1946:  Pursuant to Executive Order 9083 and Reorganization Plan No. 3 the Bureau of Marine Inspection was abolished and became a permanent part of the Coast Guard under Treasury Department control.
  • 31 March 1948: The Tenth District, with headquarters at San Juan, Puerto Rico and comprising of the Panama Canal Zone, all of the island possessions of the United States pertaining to Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, and all United States reservations in the islands of the West Indies and on the north coast of South America, was abolished, and its functions, responsibilities, and facilities were transferred to and combined with the Seventh District, with headquarters at Miami, Florida.
  • 1 April 1967:  Executive Order 167-81 transferred the Coast Guard from the Treasury Department to the newly-formed Department of Transportation.
  • 1967: The Bridge Program was transferred from the Army Corp of Engineers to the U.S. Coast Guard within the Department of Transportation. The Coast Guard then became responsible for approval of the location and plans of bridges and causeways constructed across navigable waters of U.S. In addition, the Coast Guard was responsible for approval of the location and plans of international bridges and the alteration of bridges found to be unreasonable obstructions to navigation. Authority for these actions is found in the following laws: 33 U.S.C 401, 491, 494, 511-524, 525 and 535a, 535b, 535c, 535e, 535f, 535g, and 535h (Note: these are all separate sections, not subsections of 535). Section 535 and following is popularly known as the International Bridge Act of 1972. The implementing regulations are found in Title 33, Code of Federal Regulations Parts 114 through 118.
  • In January 1973, the Coast Guard renamed the Eastern and Western areas to the Atlantic and Pacific areas, respectively.
  • 30 May 1996: The Eighth and Second Districts were combined to form the new Eighth District.
  • 1 March 2003: The Coast Guard formally transferred from the Department of Transportation to the newly-created Department of Homeland Security.
  • 2004: To create unity of command in America’s ports, better align field command structures, and improve Coast Guard operational effectiveness, Sector Commands were created throughout the Coast Guard by integrating Groups, Marine Safety Offices (MSOs), Vessel Traffic Services (VTSs), and in some cases, Air Stations.  Sector Commands were established by 2006.
 

What wars & other conflicts did the Coast Guard participate in?

 
War Number Served Deaths in Action Wounded Total Casualties POWs

Quasi-War with France
unknown unknown unknown unknown 0

War of 1812
100 (?) unknown unknown unknown 86

Mexican War
71 officers unknown unknown unknown 0

Civil War
219 officers 1 unknown unknown 0

Spanish-American War
660 1 0 1 0

World War I
8,835 111 * unknown unknown 0

World War II
241,093 574 ** unknown 1,917 4

Korean War
8,500 *** 0 0 0 0

Vietnam War
8,000 7 60 67 0

Mayaguez Incident
8 **** 0 0 0 0

Grenada: Operation Urgent Fury
162 0 0 0 0

Panama: Operation Just Cause
9***** 0 0 0 0

Operations Desert Shield / Storm
400 0 0 0 0

Kosovo
100 0 0 0 0

Operation Enduring Freedom
27****** 0 1 1 0

Operation Iraqi Freedom
1,250 1 1 2 0

* = 81 Coast Guard deaths from other causes, i.e. crashes, accidents, disease or drowning.

** = 1,343 Coast Guard deaths from other causes, i.e. crashes, accidents, disease or drowning.

*** = Approximate number of Coast Guardsmen who were eligible for the Korean Service Medal.  

**** = Crewmen on board HC-130B CG-1339 & one Coast Guard officer participating in the USCG-USN Exchange Program on board USS Harold E. Holt (FF-1074).

***** = There were six personnel from Group Miami LEDET who were stationed aboard the USS Vreeland (FF-1068) which was conducting CN operations when the ship was diverted for Operation Just Cause.  Three others were assigned permanently to Panama and were also involved in the conflict.  No casualties were incurred.

****** = These figures are currently being updated: There are at least 22 people on the USCG RAID Team and this team renews annually.  In addition there was at least 3 NSA SIGINT USCG members [deployed] in the past year, there are two USCG SEALs (now Navy) who served in AFG twice.  One of the USCG SEALs received a Purple Heart for being wounded by a RPG in 2012.  He received the Bronze Star Medal with a "V" for Valor for his actions as well.

 

So you would like to be a lighthouse keeper or buy a lighthouse?

 
  • How do I buy a lighthouse? Where can I buy a lighthouse?

The best sources of information to purchase a lighthouse are the regional offices of the General Services Administration (GSA). A link to the GSA regional offices is provided. However, lighthouse properties can leave Federal government ownership in several ways. The GSA is the Federal government's real estate broker and normally processes most of the lighthouse sales. Usually, GSA will first offer the lighthouse property to the state or a non-profit historic preservation group. Then, the property may be auctioned to the highest bidder. However, some Federal agencies have the authority to directly dispose of their properties. The Congress of the United States may also enact special laws requiring that one or more lighthouses be transferred to the states or to non-profit organizations. Each lighthouse property sale may have special conditions. Prospective buyers need to research each property sale, beginning with the GSA.  Check their website:  GSA Website

  • How do I become a lighthouse keeper?

The Coast Guard does not accept volunteer lighthouse keepers.  Many of the light stations that have been turned over to the National Park Service or the various states, however, do permit volunteers to staff their lighthouses.  Check with the National Park Service or with your local historical preservation society. 

 

What are the Coast Guard's "Core Values"?

  • Honor, Respect & Devotion to Duty

Honor

Integrity is our standard. We demonstrate uncompromising ethical conduct and moral behavior in all of our personal actions. We are loyal and accountable to the public trust.

Respect

We value our diverse work force. We treat each other with fairness, dignity, and compassion. We encourage individual opportunity and growth. We encourage creativity through empowerment. We work as a team.

Devotion to Duty

We are professionals, military and civilian, who seek responsibility, accept accountability, and are committed to the successful achievement of our organizational goals. We exist to serve. We serve with pride.


History:

During March, 1993, those engaged in Coast Guard leadership development activities met to evaluate the Service’s Leadership Program.  During that meeting it was recognized that the absence of commonly stated core values was problematic to leadership development efforts.  Work was started to identify appropriate core values.  In October 1993, the Coast Guard Office of Personnel and Training assembled a study group to make recommendations to improve leadership development in the Service.  This group built upon the initial work from 1993 and subsequently identified and defined the Coast Guard Core Values of Honor, Respect, and Devotion to Duty. These were approved by the Commandant of the Coast Guard, Admiral Robert Kramek, and were officially promulgated in April 1994.

Further information:

CDR Patrick T. Kelly, Department of Leadership & Management, U.S. Coast Guard Academy. "Charting Progress: The Assessment of Core Values in the U.S. Coast Guard." A paper prepared for presentation to the Joint Services Conference on Professional Ethics, Washington, DC, January 28-29, 1999.

 

What initial instructions did Alexander Hamilton issue to the first officers of the nation's revenue cutters?

ALEXANDER HAMILTON'S LETTER OF INSTRUCTIONS TO
THE COMMANDING OFFICERS OF THE REVENUE CUTTERS

Treasury Department,

June 4th, 1791

 

Sir:

As you are speedily to enter upon the duties of your station it becomes proper briefly to point them out to you. Accordingly I send you a copy of the Act under which you have been appointed, and which are contained your powers and the objects to which you are to attend, and I shall add such observations as appears to me requisite to guide you in fulfilling the intent of that act.

 

It may be observed generally that it will be in a partial manner, the province of the Revenue Cutter to guard Revenue laws from all infractions, or breaches, either upon the coasts or within the bays, or upon the rivers and other waters of the United States, previous to the anchoring of vessels within the harbors for which they are respectively destined.

 

Hence, it will be necessary for you from time to time to ply along the coasts in the neighborhood of your station, and to traverse the different parts of the waters which it comprehends. To fix yourself constantly or even generally at one position, would in a great measure defeat the purpose of the establishment. It would confine your vigilance to a particular spot, and allow full scope to fraudulent practices, everywhere else.

 

The 63d section of the act herewith transmitted, declared that the officers of the Revenue Cutters are to be deemed officers of the Customs, and enumerates certain powers with which they are to be invested. The 30th section treating of the same powers, that of demanding manifests and that of searching vessels, enters into some details concerning them. These sections require particular attention as marking the outline of authority and duty, but in the capacity of officers of the Customs you will possess some other powers, and be bound to perform some other duties which are not mentioned in those sections. You will have a right for examination, and it will be your duty to seize vessels and goods in the cases in which they are liable to seizure for breaches of the Revenue laws, when they come under your notice, but all the power you can exercise will be found in some provisions of the law and it must be a rule with you to exercise none with which you are not clearly invested. In every case of doubt you 2

will follow the advice of the officer to whom you will be referred in a separate letter. On points of importance which admit of delay you may correspond with the Secretary of the Treasury.

 

The 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th sections which relate to manifests will also require your particular attention. The clear observance of the provisions of these sections is considered as of material consequences to the Secretary of the Treasury, and ample time having been allowed for them to be generally known and compiled with, it is now indispensable that they should be strictly enforced.

 

You will perceive that they are only required in respect to vessels belonging wholly or in part to a citizen or citizens, inhabitant or inhabitants of the United States. It is understood that by inhabitant is intended any person residing in the United States, whether citizen or foreign. The reason of the limitation is that citizens and resident foreigners are supposed to be acquainted with the laws of the country; but that foreign citizens residing in foreign countries, have not the same knowledge, and consequently ought not to be subjected to penalties in regard to a thing which they might not know to be necessary.

 

But since you cannot be presumed to know beforehand what vessels are owned in whole or in part by citizens or inhabitants, it will, of course, be your duty to demand the manifests of all indiscriminately, and to report those from which you do not receive them, to the Collector of the District for which they are bound, and you will at the end of every month (pursuing the division of the year by the calendar) send me an abstract of your records.

 

Careful attention is likewise due to the 13th and 14th sections of the act. It is of importance that vessels should not break bulk, or put out any part of their cargo even temporarily, previous to a regular entry and permission obtained, except in cases of real necessity, to be duly reported and proved. You will observe that besides the penalties on the masters and mates of the vessels from on board of which any goods shall have been illegally removed, the master or commander of the vessel or boat into which they may be received, and all persons aiding in the removal, are liable to a forfeiture of treble the value of the goods removed, and the vessel or boat into which they may be received is also subject to forfeiture. It is well known that one of the most extensive cases of illicit trade is that which is here intended to be guarded against--that of unlading goods before the arrival of a vessel into port, in coasters and other small vessels, which convey them clandestinely to land. Hence, the bare removal of goods from one vessel to another is made penal, though they may not have been landed. Nor will the pretext of their being intended to be replaced avail anything. The provisions of these sections admonish you to keep a careful eye upon the motions of coasting vessels, without, however, interrupting or embarrassing them unless where some strong ground of suspicion requires that they should be visited and examined.

 

The execution of the 15th section of the Act essentially depends on the Revenue Cutters. It is easy to see that it would be dangerous to the revenue for vessels to be permitted to go at pleasure from one part of the United States to another without announcing themselves to some proper officer. Hence, though each may proceed on her voyage from a more exterior to a more interior district to which she may be bound--yet none can go back from a more interior to more 3

exterior Districts, or from one part of the United States to another without first reporting himself to the Collector of the District, in order that he may come under the notice and precautions of the law. Nor can this be deemed a hardship; seeing her report will not oblige her to unlade any part of her cargo, but she may afterwards proceed with it wheresoever she pleases.

 

I have now noticed to you the principal parts of the law which immediately relate to the execution of your duty. It will, however, be incumbent upon you to make yourself acquainted with all the revenue laws, which concern foreign commerce, or the coasting trade--a knowledge of the whole spirit and tendency of which cannot but be a useful guide to you in your particular sphere. You will observe that the law contemplates the officers of cutters in certain cases remaining on board of vessels, until they arrive at their places of destination; and with a view to this it is that so many officers have been assigned to each cutter. It is not, however, expected that this will be done in every case, and it must be left to the discretion of the commanding officer when it shall be done--when there is a vessel, the lading of which is of very great value, or which has any considerable quantity of goods on deck, or in other situations from which they can readily be removed; or where the nature of the cargo is such as to admit more easily a clandestine landing, or from the highness of the duties to afford a more than ordinary temptation, or where a vessel is bound to a very interior district up long bays or rivers, or when any suspicious circumstances appear; in these and the like cases, it will be well to let an officer accompany the vessel to her place of destination. The want of a manifest will be a circumstance in favor of so doing. It will not, however, be advisable to make known the circumstances under which it is deemed most peculiarly proper to use these precautions; as it might sometimes unnecessarily give offense. It may be always left to be understood, that it is the practice whenever the state of the cutter renders it convenient. You are empowered, amongst other things, to affix seals on packages found in certain situations. For this purpose, proper seals will be prepared and transmitted. Till they are required, any other may be made use of. The principal design of this provision is to identify the packages found in such situations.

 

It will be expected that a regular journal be kept in each cutter, in the same manner, as far as circumstances are applicable, as is practiced in sea voyages, and that all occurrences, relative to the execution of the laws, and to the conduct of all vessels which come under their notice, be summarily noticed therein, and that a copy of this journal to the end of each month be regularly forwarded to the Treasury.

 

It has also occurred that the cutters may be rendered an instrument of useful information, concerning the coast, inlets, bays and rivers of the United States, and it will be particularly acceptable if the officers improve the opportunities they have (as far as shall be consistent with the duties they are to perform) in making such observations and experiments in respect to the objects, as may be useful in the interests of navigation, reporting the result, from time to time to the Treasury.

 

While I recommend in the strongest terms to the respective officers, activity, vigilance and firmness, I feel no less solicitude, that their deportment may be marked with prudence, moderation and good temper. Upon these last qualities, not less that the former, must depend 4

the success, usefulness and consequently continuance of the establishment in which they are included. They cannot be insensible that there are some prepossessions against it, that the charge with which they are intrusted [sic] is a delicate one, and that it is easy by mismanagement, to produce serious and extensive clamour, disgust and odium.

 

They will always keep in mind that their countrymen are freemen, and, as such, are impatient of everything that bears the least mark of a domineering spirit. They will, therefore, refrain, with the most guarded circumspection, from whatever has the semblance of haughtiness, rudeness, or insult. If obstacles occur, they will remember that they are under the particular protection of the laws and that they can meet with nothing disagreeable in the execution of their duty which these will not severely reprehend. This reflection, and a regard to the good of the service, will prevent, at all times a spirit of irritation or resentment. They will endeavor to overcome difficulties, if any are experienced, by a cool and temperate perseverance in their duty--by address and moderation, rather than by vehemence or violence. The former style of conduct will recommend them to the particular approbation of the President of the United States, while the reverse of it--even a single instance of outrage or intemperate or improper treatment of any person with whom they have anything to do, in the course of their duty, will meet with his pointed displeasure, and will be attended with correspondent consequences.

 

The foregoing observations are not dictated by any doubt of the prudence of any of those to whom they are addressed. These have been selected with so careful an attention to character, as to afford the strongest assurance, that their conduct will be that of good officers and good citizens. But, in an affair so delicate and important, it has been judged most advisable to listen to the suggestions of caution rather than of confidence, and to put all concerned on their guard against those sallies to which even good and prudent men are occasionally subject. It is not doubted that the instructions will be received as it ought to be, and will have its due effect. And that all may be apprized [sic] of what is expected you will communicate this part of your orders, particularly, to all your officers, and you will inculcate upon your men a correspondent disposition.

 

The 5th section of the Act, requires that all officers appointed pursuant to this Act, should take a certain oath therein specified. The Act of the 1st of June, 1789, requires that you should also take the oath to support the Constitution of the United States. These oaths, each of your officers must take before some Judge of the United States, if access can conveniently be had to one. If not, before some other magistrate, duly empowered to administer oaths, and a certificate from him, of the taking of it, must be transmitted to the Comptroller of the Treasury.

I am sir, your obedient servant,

 

ALEXANDER HAMILTON,

Secretary of the Treasury

 

What is the origin of the famous Coast Guard saying "You have to go out but you don't have to come back?"

A letter to the editor of the old Coast Guard Magazine, written by CBM Clarence P. Brady, USCG (Ret.), published in the March 1954 issue (page 2), stated that the first person to make this remark was Keeper Patrick Etheridge.   Brady knew him when both were stationed at the Cape Hatteras LSS.   Brady tells the story as follows:

"A ship was stranded off Cape Hatteras on the Diamond Shoals and one of the life saving crew reported the fact that this ship had run ashore on the dangerous shoals.   The old skipper gave the command to man the lifeboat and one of the men shouted out that we might make it out to the wreck but we would never make it back.  The old skipper looked around and said, 'The Blue Book says we've got to go out and it doesn't say a damn thing about having to come back.'"

Etheridge was not exaggerating.  The Regulations of the Life-Saving Service of 1899, Article VI "Action at Wrecks," section 252, page 58, state that:

"In attempting a rescue the keeper will select either the boat, breeches buoy, or life car, as in his judgment is best suited to effectively cope with the existing conditions.  If the device first selected fails after such trial as satisfies him that no further attempt with it is feasible, he will resort to one of the others, and if that fails, then to the remaining one, and he will not desist from his efforts until by actual trial the impossibility of effecting a rescue is demonstrated.  The statement of the keeper that he did not try to use the boat because the sea or surf was too heavy will not be accepted unless attempts to launch it were actually made and failed [emphasis added], or unless the conformation of the coast--as bluffs, precipitous banks, etc.--is such as to unquestionable preclude the use of a boat."

This section of the Regulations remained in force after the creation of the Coast Guard in 1915.  The new Instructions for United States Coast Guard Stations, 1934 edition, copied Section 252 word for word as it appeared in 1899.   [1934 Instructions for United States Coast Guard Stations, Paragraph 28, page 4].

 

How do you obtain the service record of someone who served in the Coast Guard and its predecessors (Life-Saving Service, Revenue Cutter Service, Steamboat Inspection Service, Bureau of Navigation or the Lighthouse Service), including information about cutter assignments and medals awarded? What about records regarding former lighthouse keepers? Crew lists and muster rolls?

Military Personnel Records (U.S. Coast Guard officers separated after 1928 and enlisted personnel separated after 1914):

If you would like to obtain copies of your own or a relative's Coast Guard service record (and they served in the Coast Guard sometime between 1914 to the present if they were enlisted or 1928 if they were a commissioned officer), which contains dates of service, station and cutter assignments, as well as medals and awards earned, you will need to contact the National Personnel Records Center, Military Personnel Records (NPRC-MPR).   Please see their website at the following URL:

http://www.archives.gov/st-louis/archival-programs/index.html

Or write to them directly at:

National Personnel Records Center, Military Personnel Records (NPRC-MPR)
National Archives & Records Administration
1 Archives Drive
St. Louis, MO  63138
Phone: (314) 801-0800


Civilian Personnel:

If the person you are researching served as a civilian in the Coast Guard or any of its predecessor agencies, you will need to contact the Civilian Records facility of the National Archives in St. Louis, Missouri:

National Personnel Records Center
National Archives & Records Administration
ATTN: Archival Programs
P. O. Box 38757
St. Louis, MO  63138

For more information: http://www.archives.gov/st-louis/civilian-personnel/faqs.html


Service prior to 1920:

If they served prior to 1928 or were keepers in the U.S. Lighthouse Service prior to 1919, the records will be in the headquarters branch of the National Archives.  Please visit their website for further information:

http://www.archives.gov/

Or write to them directly at:

National Archives and Records Administration
7th & Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC  20408


Lighthouse Keepers' Documentation:

Researching the career of anyone who served with the Lighthouse Service or the Coast Guard entails accessing documentation available at a number of different locations. Our office does not have any information on individual keepers. Personnel records for those who served in lighthouses prior to the Lighthouse Service's merger with the Coast Guard in 1939 need to contact the National Archives, which is the primary repository for all records concerning the Lighthouse Establishment & Service:

Write to them for further information:

National Archives and Records Administration
Textual Records
7th & Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20408

Or visit their website for further information:

http://www.archives.gov/

If the individual(s) served with the U.S. Lighthouse Service or the Coast Guard as a civilian, you will need to contact the National Archives branch in St. Louis, Missouri.  Please be advised that privacy restrictions apply to these records:

Civilian Employees (light keepers prior to 1939 were civilians, many stayed in as civilians after the Lighthouse Service merged with the Coast Guard after 1939):

National Archives & Records Administration
ATTN: Archival Programs
P.O. Box 38757
St. Louis, MO  63138


Crew Lists, Personnel Rosters & Muster Rolls:

If you would like to order copies of any station or cutter crew lists (muster rolls) and you are interested in a time period after 2005, please visit the U.S. Coast Guard Personnel Service Center Records Branch (MR) at their website's contact page here:

Records Branch: //www.uscg.mil/psc/adm/adm3/contact.asp

Include the cutter's or station's name and the month and year you are interested in. 

If you are looking for records from 1950-2005, please submit a FOIA request to the Coast Guard via:

//www.uscg.mil/foia/

If you are looking for records prior to 1950, please contact the National Archives:

http://www.archives.gov/contact/


Locating a Coast Guard Retiree:

You will need to contact the Coast Guard Pay and Personnel Center.  Due to the Privacy Act, however, they cannot provide home addresses.  Nevertheless, if you would like to contact a Coast Guard retiree, send an envelope addressed to:

COMMANDING OFFICER (RPD)
U.S. Coast Guard Pay & Personnel Center
444 SE Quincy
Topeka,  KS  66683-3591

Enclose in this envelope your correspondence (your letter to the retiree you wish to contact) inside another stamped envelope with the retiree's full name on it.  The Pay and Personnel Center will look through their files, add the retiree's address, and forward your correspondence on to the retiree.  Please include a telephone number where you may be reached--since there may be more than one retiree by the name you are seeking, they may need to contact you.

 

Are you interested in donating artifacts, documents, publications or photos to the Coast Guard Heritage Asset, Archive, and/or Special Collections? The Historian’s Office collects materials pertaining to the modern Coast Guard and its 5 predecessor agencies (Life-Saving Service, Revenue Cutter Service, Steamboat Inspection Service, Bureau of Navigation or the Lighthouse Service) to protect, preserve, and promote the history and heritage of the Coast Guard for future generations.

Heritage Asset Collection of Art & Artifacts and Coast Guard Archives

A photo of some examples of Coast Guard artifacts and archival items


 

Donating Artifacts & Archival Items to the Coast Guard History Program:

 

Thank you for your interest in donating artifacts or archival items to the U.S. Coast Guard History & Heritage Program.  This page lays out the criteria, requirements and processes that take place for the Coast Guard to accept donations related to the history, heritage and material culture of the Coast Guard.
 

Are you interested in donating an artifact (three dimensional items such as uniforms, swords, personnel effects, equipment, models, etc.) to the Coast Guard Heritage Asset Collection or archival items (personal or official papers, records, reports, letters, diaries, scrapbooks and photographs, etc.) to the Coast Guard Archives?

 

Artifacts:

World War II era SPAR uniform

Criteria for accepting an artifact into the Coast Guard Heritage Asset Collection:

1) Historical significance and context: The item must have a clear connection to the Coast Guard or any of its predecessor or related agencies. The item should be accompanied with supporting documentation.

2) Relevance: The item must provide historical and educational value. All items accepted should have an historical, education, exhibition, and/or programmatic use.

3) Condition and preservation needs: The object must be in fair condition. Curatorial Services must be able to store the item appropriately based on its materials, condition, and needs. If the object is in poor condition it must have significant relevance and context and must be able to be conserved as part of its long term storage plans. Curatorial Services must be able to reasonably care for the item in perpetuity.

4) Rarity and/or uniqueness: Items of a rare or unique nature that relate to the Coast Guard or any of its predecessor or related agencies should be collected to represent singular and extraordinary aspects of the agencies’ history.

5) Duplicates: Items that duplicate material already held in the Heritage Asset Collection should not be collected. They should only be considered if the historic context, background, and associated documentation make the item more relevant or rare than what is already in the collection.

6) Association or importance of artist or producer: Items associated, used, and/or created by important artistic and Coast Guard figures will be collected.

7) Format or size: Reasonable scale will be considered when assessing an item. Objects with sizes that can negatively impact the ability to provide long term care and storage must be carefully considered to ensure that their historical context and value outweigh the costs of care and housing.

 

 

Acquisition Process and Restrictions for the Coast Guard Heritage Asset Collection:

The Coast Guard may not solicit for nor expend appropriated funds to acquire artifacts.

No personnel of Coast Guard Curatorial Services or the Coast Guard may provide written or verbal appraisals of a donated item to its donor. Donors requiring appraisals of donated items must obtain such appraisals at their own expense using appraisers of their choice. Coast Guard personnel may not recommend any one appraiser, but may provide the donor with a general list of appraisers, if the donor so requests.

Donations must be made unconditionally.

All acquisitions must be approved by Commandant (CG-09231) and require ethical review via CG-094 (Legal). Authority to approve acquisitions for the Coast Guard Heritage Asset Collection valued up to $2,000.00 is delegated to the Chief Historian. All items with a value greater than $2,000.00 must go to CG-094 for gift review and CG-08 for acceptance.

No restrictive or conditional acquisitions (through donation, purchase or transfer) may be accepted for the collection, except by direction of Commandant (CG-09231).

All artifacts, when accepted by any representative of the Coast Guard, become the property of the US Coast Guard.

The Coast Guard will not accept permanent loans of historical property, except by direction of Commandant (CG-09231). The Coast Guard will only accept incoming loans if there is a definitive plan to exhibit the loaned material for a set amount of time.

For more information on donating artifacts to the Coast Guard, please contact our Office at History@uscg.mil.   

 

Archive Materials:

The Coast Guard Historian's Office maintains an important Special Collections Archive.  The Archive consists primarily of archival material that is not included in the official records now held by the National Archives and Records Administration [NARA].  It includes hundreds of thousands of unique and accessible images, publications, manuals, directives, personal papers, diaries, scrapbooks, reports, and documents.  

The Coast Guard Historian's Office photography collection is one of the largest collections of Coast Guard-related photography in the world.  It consists of hundreds of thousands of distinct photographs, negatives and slides dating from the post-Civil War-era to the early 1990s.  Images include lighthouses, cutters, lighthouse tenders, light vessels, combat images (especially from World War II and Vietnam), personnel, life-boat and air stations.

This collection also includes several thousand books, pamphlets, manuals, directives, instructions and newsletters that deal specifically with the Coast Guard or are Coast Guard publications.  Most significant are the old manuals, service publications and back issues of most of the periodicals published by the service.

The material preserved in our archive complements official records now kept at NARA and adds depth to our understanding of all aspects of Coast Guard history.  These records come from former commandants, officers, enlisted personnel, civilians and their families.

If you are interested in donating any such archival items, please contact us at History@uscg.mil.


Contact & Further Information:

For more information on donating artifacts and archival materials to the Coast Guard, please contact us at History@uscg.mil.

 

The Coast Guard Heritage Asset Committee will make the final determination on whether the Coast Guard will accept any donation offers.  The Heritage Asset Committee is made up of the Chief Historian, the Coast Guard Curator, the Curator of the Coast Guard Academy Museum, the Coast Guard Collections Manager, our Atlantic Area Historian and our Pacific Area Historian, and the Coast Guard Archivist.

Revenue Cutter Service Tureen

Thank you for your interest in preserving all aspects of Coast Guard history.

 

 

Are there any Coast Guard monuments and memorials? Where are they located?

Coast Guard Monuments & Memorials

A list of Coast Guard monuments & memorials around the country and around the world -- first compiled and published by The Reservist Magazine (May & June 1996 issues).  It is preserved here in honor of all past, present and future Coast Guardsmen.

 

The following Memorials were not listed in the original Reservist Magazine articles (or were dedicated after the articles were published in 1996):

Lightship Sailors Memorial
New Bedford, Massachusetts
A memorial to all lightship sailors who lost their lives in the line of duty was dedicated in 2002 in New Bedford after a four-year effort.  The fog-bell from the Vineyard Lightship, lost during the hurricane of 1944, sits atop a granite monument.  The names of all lightship sailors who gave their lives in the service of their country are inscribed in the monument's base.

Richard Etheridge Statue
Pea Island Station Cookhouse Museum, Collins Park
Manteo, North Carolina

A bronze statue of Captain Richard Etheridge was erected and dedicated near the Pea Island Station's Cookhouse which has been restored and now resides in Manteo, North Carolina at Collins Park.

Coast Guard 44363 Station Quillayute Memorial
Coast Guard Station Quillayute River
La Push, Washington

A memorial to the crew of CG-443653 who lost their lives while responding to a distress call on 12 February 1997  was dedicated on the grounds of the station.  The memorial plaque reads: "David A. Bosley Boatswain's Mate Second Class [,] Clinton P. Miniken Seaman [,] Matthew E. Schlimme Machinery Technician Third Class [,] These poor plan men, dwellers upon the lonely shores, took their lives in their hands, and at the most imminent risk, crossed the most tumultuous sea. . ., and all for what?  That others might live to see home and friends.  MLB44363 [,] Coast Guard Station [,] Quillayute River [,] La Push Washington [,] February 12, 1997."

Veterans Memorial Garden
1650 Memorial Drive
Lincoln, Nebraska

Coast Guard Memorial Monument
Florida Veterans Cemetery
Bushnell, Florida

A Coast Guard monument was dedicated on 12 November 2011 at the Florida Veterans Cemetery in Bushnell, Florida.  The inscription reads: "Dedicated to the Men and Women of the United States Coast Guard [;] Suncoast Chapter USCG CWOA."

Coast Guard Memorial Monument
New Hampshire State Veterans Cemetery
Boscawen, New Hampshire

A Coast Guard memorial and monument were dedicated in 2011 along the Memorial Walkway at the New Hampshire State Veterans Cemetery.  The monument was "Dedicated to all men and women who served in the US Coast Guard and Coast Guard Auxiliary."

National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial
Washington, D.C.
The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial is the nation’s monument to law enforcement officers who have died in the line of duty.  Dedicated on October 15, 1991, the Memorial honors federal, state and local law enforcement officers who have made the ultimate sacrifice for the safety and protection of our nation and its people.  Among the names listed on the memorial are the following Coast Guardsmen:

  • Matthew Harold Baker

  • Edgar Allen Culbertson

  • Scott James Chism

  • Christopher Everett Ferreby

  • Ronald Alan Gill, Jr.

  • Karl Edwin Gustafson

  • Terrell Edwin Horne III

  • Victor A. Lamby

  • Craig Eric Lerner

  • Shaun Michael Lin

  • Paul Erik Perlt

  • Sidney C. Sanderlin

  • Arthur James Sanderson

  • Jonathan D. Scotchmer

  • Duane Elmer Stenbak

  • Vernon F. Thompson

Coast Guard HU-16E Albatross CG-1240 Memorial plaques
Gulf of Mexico & Coast Guard Air Station Clearwater
Clearwater, Florida

Coast Guard Albatross CGNR-1240 crashed in the Gulf of Mexico 22 mile east of Apalachicola, Florida, on the night of 5 March 1967 while on a SAR case.  All six crewmen aboard the aircraft were killed.  The Coast Guard placed a memorial plaque on a monument at Air Station Clearwater in their honor in 2007.  Another plaque was placed on the underwater wreck site.

DC3 Nathan Bruckenthal Memorials:

  • Bruckenthal Monument and Plaque
    TACLET South, Opa Locka, Florida

Douglas Munro Memorial
Point Cruz Yacht Club, Honiara, Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands

A memorial to Douglas Munro at the Point Cruz Yacht Club in Guadalcanal

 Every year on the 7th of August (the Solomon's Remembrance Day) a Senior Coast Guard Officer pays tribute to Douglas Munro and his shipmates at the Point Cruz Yacht Club by reading not only his Medal of Honor citation but also the story of the combat action that he took part in.  It is read to everybody from the Prime Minister, Governor General, visiting military dignitaries (usually U.S. Marines and U.S. Navy personnel), Embassy and High Commission personal, especially the military attaches.

USS Tampa, CG, Memorial
Gibraltar

There is a memorial plaque on Gibraltar honoring the USS Tampa, CG, which was sunk by a German U-boat during World War I with a loss of all hands while serving as a convoy escort.  The cutter was based at Gibraltar during the war.  The memorial was dedicated on 4 August 1934.

Mack Memorial
Station Chatham, Massachusetts

There is a monument next to Coast Guard Station Chatham that commemorates the attempted rescue of the crew of the barge Wadena off Monomoy Island on 17 March 1902 in which seven USLSS surfmen perished in the line of duty.

Ida Lewis Rock, Ida Lewis Light & Ida Lewis Grave
Newport, Rhode Island
Lime Rock and Lime Rock Light were renamed in honor of the Lighthouse Service's most famous female light-keeper.  Her grave is at the Common Burial Ground in Newport, Rhode Island.

USCGC Ingham
U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Ingham (WPG-35) Maritime Museum & National Historic Landmark, Key West, Florida

In accordance with a directive from the Commandant's Office, Ingham is the official memorial site to Coast Guardsmen killed in action in World War II and Vietnam. 

San Jacinto Coast Guard Memorial
San Jacinto, California

An 18-foot replica of the Fenwick Lighthouse in Druding Park serves as a memorial to the U.S. Coast Guard.

Coast Guard Academy
New London, CT

  • Bertholf Plaza
    Completed in 1992, the plaza is named for Ellisworth P. Bertholf, the first Commandant of the modern-day Coast Guard.  The plaza is the site of several plaques commemorating Coast Guard personnel who served in war-time.

  • Robert Crown Park
    Crown Park is named for CAPT Robert Crown, USN (Ret.), a past president of the Navy League.  The park is home to several monuments to the Coast Guard, among them the Wars and Conflicts Memorial, a black-granite obelisk depicting wartime scenes of service.

  • Hall of Heroes Memorial
    Located in Chase Hall barracks, the Hall of Heroes was established in April, 2005 by the Class of 1959 to commemorate heroic alumni of the Academy.  The Hall of Heroes includes the Wall Of Remembrance that honors Academy graduates who perished while carrying out an operational mission and the Wall of Gallantry that honors Academy alumni who have been formally recognized for acts of heroic service.

  • Captain Hopley Yeaton Memorial
    The tomb of the first commissioned officer of the Revenue Marine, Hopley Yeaton, now lies on the Academy's grounds.  He was originally buried in Lubec, Maine, but in 1975 his burial site was threatened by modernization. The Corps of Cadets sailed the Barque Eagle to Lubec where his remains were exhumed and laid to rest at the Academy.

Rescue Flotilla 1 (The "Matchbox Fleet") Memorial
Poole, England

Along the harborside at Poole, England, on June 6, 1994, a plaque was dedicated to the men of Coast Guard Rescue Flotilla 1.  The inscription reads: "From this Quay, 60 cutters of the United States Coast Guard Rescue Flotilla 1 departed for the Normandy Invasion, 6 June 1944.  These 83 foot boats, built entirely of wood, and the 840 crewmembers were credited with saving the lives of 1437 men and 1 woman.  In remembrance of the service of Rescue Flotilla 1, and with appreciation of the kindnesses of the people of Poole to the crews, this Plaque is given by the men and women of the United States Coast Guard."

Coast Guard at Normandy Memorial
Utah Beach, Normandy, France

On June 6, 1994, the Coast Guard Combat Veterans Association dedicated a plaque to those Coast Guard veterans who served at the invasion of Normandy.  The plaque's inscription reads: "Dedicated this 6th day of June, 1994, to the members of the United States Coast Guard who participated in the initial invasion of Normandy, especially to those who gave their lives here, and to all United States Coast Guard forces who served worldwide on land, sea and air during WWII.  The nations of the world shall long remember Normandy; the United States armed forces, their allies and the cost of freedom at this place.  The United States Coast Guard motto is, as always, 'Semper Paratus' Always Ready".

Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial
Colleville-sur-Mer, France

This U.S. national cemetery near Normandy is the final resting place of seven Coast Guardsmen:

  • Harry L. Siebert; BM2c (died 6 June 1944)

  • August B. Buncik, MoMM3c

  • Fletcher P. Burton, Jr., S1c

  • Jack A. DeNunzio, S1c

  • Leslie Fritz, S1c

  • Stanley Wilczak, RM3c

  • Bernard L. Wolfe, S1c (Wall of Missing)

Brittany American Cemetery and Memorial
Brittany, France

This U.S. national cemetery in Brittany is the final resting place of one Coast Guardsman:

  • Joseph A. Leonard, S1c (Wall of Missing)

Sicily-Rome American Cemetery and Memorial
Nettuno, Italy

This U.S. national cemetery near Anzio is the final resting place of one Coast Guardsman:

  • Hurt, James L. ST2c

North Africa American Cemetery and Memorial
Carthage, Tunisia

This U.S. national cemetery near Normandy is the final resting place of 18 Coast Guardsmen:

  • Cataloni, Angelo, S1c (Wall of Missing)

  • Clemens, Richard G., S1c (Wall of Missing)

  • Grout, Jonathan D., LT

  • Hildreth, Charles E., CCS

  • Hoodcock, Joseph L., F1c

  • Koch, Delmar H., S1c (Wall of Missing)

  • La Rue, Donald, S1c

  • Lavonier, Robert J., F1c (Wall of Missing)

  • McSorley, Wilbur J., F1c (Wall of Missing)

  • Minor, Walter B., QM3c (Wall of Missing)

  • Nichols, Boyce R., S1c

  • Oglesby, Buel B., TM3c (Wall of Missing)

  • Petrella, Julius T., RM3c (Wall of Missing)

  • Petrolini, Angelo J., S2c (Wall of Missing)

  • Ramond, Alphonse F., S1c (Wall of Missing)

  • Risner, Paul R., S2c (Wall of Missing)

  • Sanders, Carver G., BM2c (Wall of Missing)

  • Stewartz, Stanley S., S2c (Wall of Missing)

Mount Tom Memorial
Holyoke MA
A monument was established in 1996 that memorialized the victims of a B-17 crash here on 9 July 1946.  The victims, including 14 Coast Guardsmen, were passengers on a Flying Fortress that crashed while bound from Gander, Newfoundland, to Mitchell Field.  The Coast Guardsmen aboard were:

  • Johnson, Wilfred, LT

  • Meriam, Frank G., LT

  • Archilles, David Franklin, S2c

  • Benfield, George Ralph, RM2c

  • Davenport, Gregory Paul, S1c

  • Fleming, George, ETM3c

  • Gillis, Ernest Ralph, RDM3c

  • Miller, Arthur Calvin, S1c (ETM)

  • Scott, Russell Samuel, BM2c

  • Simons, Arnold Joseph, RM3c

  • Warm, Alfred Leonard, RM3c

  • Warshaw, Stanley Paul, S2c (ETM)

  • Winnard, Lee, RM3c

  • Worth, Hugh James, Y1c

The other victims included LT Pasquale P. Coviello, USPHS, an Assistant Surgeon who was assigned to the Coast Guard.


 

A "Monumental" Task -- Part I

Each year from Memorial Day to Independence Day, our nation remembers its heritage and military heroes with ceremonies and celebrations.  In addition, monuments from coast to coast testify to Americans' heroic but often forgotten deeds.  Unfortunately, some of these monuments are also forgotten.  One such example that I had never heard of but stumbled upon in 1993, is the Alaska Veterans Memorial on George Parks Highway between Anchorage and Fairbanks. There, in the Alaskan wilderness, was a unique concrete memorial - five massive sculpted upright concrete slabs honoring each branch of our Armed Forces.  So, knowing there were more monuments out there like this, The Reservist has been advertising for Coast Guard Monuments Across the USA since December 1995.  In addition to contacting every district's public affairs office, we asked you, our readers, to submit USCG monuments from your local area - from your hometown village squares, cemeteries and local Coast Guard units. I found that "ask and you shall receive" was an understatement as I compiled a list of over 50 Coast Guard monuments. Even though our reader response was outstanding, I know there are probably more Coast Guard monuments out there that were not submitted or that we do not know about. Nevertheless, because I didn't want to cram all 50 plus monuments into a few pages with tiny photos, I decided to publish this special monuments feature over two issues. And so, Part I of "Coast Guard Monuments Across the USA" are primarily monuments on the east coast. Next month, we'll include the rest of the monument submissions.
- Edward J. Kruska
PA1, USCGR, Editor, May, 1996


USCG Bicentennial Monument
Newburyport, MA

This monument was dedicated by the City of Newburyport, Mass. on Aug. 4, 1989, in anticipation of the celebration of the 200th birthday of the Coast Guard. In attendance was then-Commandant ADM Paul Yost, the Secretary of Transportation, the First District Commander and a host of dignitaries. 
Newburyport is the birthplace of the Coast Guard. The first Revenue Cutter Massachusetts was launched upriver at MacKay Shipyard, not far from where this monument stands on the waterfront behind the maritime museum. 
- William V. McGoldrick
Hampton, N.H. 

John Foster William Headstone
Boston, MA

While following Boston's "Freedom Trail" a few years ago, my family was exploring the Old Granery Burying Ground on Tremont Street and happened upon the grave of John Foster Williams. He was selected by George Washington to command the first U.S. Revenue Cutter Massachusetts. The Federal Building that houses the First Coast Guard District is named in his honor. 
- Lisa M. Kruska 
Alexandria, Va. 

American Seaplane NC-4 Plaque
Plymouth, MA

The Coast Guard shares a unique place in aviation, American and world history. A plaque placed at the Plymouth harbor by the Borough of Plymouth says: This tablet was erected by the Plymouth Borough Council to commemorate the arrival on the 31st day of May 1919 of the American Seaplane NC-4, in Plymouth Sound, on the completion of the first transatlantic flight, and the reception by the mayor of Plymouth of the Commander Pilots and crew on their landing at the Barbican. 

So what does this have to do with the Coast Guard? Among the six-man crew making the first transatlantic flight was LT Elmer F. Stone, first Coast Guard Aviator, and one of two pilots aboard the NC-4 that landed in Plymouth, England. Stone is not identified with a USCG after his name although four of the six crew have USN after their names. ENS H.C. Rood, also aboard, was not listed as either USN or USCG but as radio operator. 
- CAPT Ken Depperman, USCG (Ret.) 
Scituate, Mass. 

Mount Tom Memorial
Holyoke, MA

On July 9, 1946, a B-17 Bomber with 25 servicemen, including [14] Coast Guardsmen, returning from Goose Bay, Labrador, to Westover Air Force Base slammed into Mount Tom in Holyoke, located in western Massachusetts. All aboard perished. The crash site went unmarked until 1994 when someone piled rocks there as a memorial. Local resident Norman Cote noticed the rock memorial and persuaded local officials to establish a permanent monument. And so, 50 years after the tragedy, a monument was constructed at the crash site. A 50th anniversary memorial service and monument dedication [was scheduled for Saturday, July 6, 1996.]
-CAPT Tom O'Hara, USCGR (Ret.) 
Wayland, Mass. 

Coast Guard Academy
New London, CT

  • Bertholf Plaza
    Completed in 1992, the plaza is named for Ellisworth P. Bertholf, the first Commandant of the modern-day Coast Guard.  The plaza is the site of several plaques commemorating Coast Guard personnel who served in war-time.

  • Robert Crown Park
    Crown Park is named for CAPT Robert Crown, USN (Ret.), a past president of the Navy League.  The park is home to several monuments to the Coast Guard, among them the Wars and Conflicts Memorial, a black-granite obelisk depicting wartime scenes of service.

  • Hall of Heroes Memorial
    Located in Chase Hall barracks, the Hall of Heroes was established in April, 2005 by the Class of 1959 to commemorate heroic alumni of the Academy.  The Hall of Heroes includes the Wall Of Remembrance that honors Academy graduates who perished while carrying out an operational mission and the Wall of Gallantry that honors Academy alumni who have been formally recognized for acts of heroic service.

  • Captain Hopley Yeaton Memorial
    The tomb of the first commissioned officer of the Revenue Marine, Hopley Yeaton, now lies on the Academy's grounds.  He was originally buried in Lubec, Maine, but in 1975 his burial site was threatened by modernization. The Corps of Cadets sailed the Barque Eagle to Lubec where his remains were exhumed and laid to rest at the Academy.

USCG World War II Monument
New York, NY

A Coast Guard World War II monument is located in Lower Manhattan's Battery Park in New York City, near the ferry that takes Coasties to Governors Island. Every Memorial Day for at least the last 20 years, USCG American Legion Post No. 719, along with Coast Guardsmen from Governors Island, have had a ceremony here for our fallen Coast Guardsmen. Last year, this monument made the front page of the N.Y. Daily News around Memorial Day. The monument cost $18,000 when completed in the late 1940s. The sculptor was CPO Norman Thomas, USCG. Contractor was National Sculpture Services of New York. 
- CDR William J. Farrell, USCGR (Ret.) 
Bayside, N.Y. 

Dimitri Fedotoff White Headstone
Valley Forge, PA

Though the modern port security unit came into being in the early 1980s, the PSU concept can actually be traced back to WWII. Early in the war, the threat of sabotage and enemy subversive action was strong. Something had to be done. Enter Dimitri Fedotoff White and Donald F. Jenks, who co-developed plans for a Volunteer Port Security Force (VPSF) at Captain of the Port (COTP) Philadelphia. Following implementation of the White-Jenks plan in 1942, more than a thousand volunteers performed security functions on the docks, wharves and waterfront in support of the war effort. The largest port security force in the U.S., Philadelphia's efforts were soon imitated by other COTPs.   Dimitri Fedotoff White, born in Kronstadt, Russia Oct. 27, 1889 - emigrated to the U.S. following World War I during which he had served as a lieutenant commander in the Russian Imperial Navy, and as a lieutenant in the British Royal Navy. White is mentioned in Malcolm Willoughby's The U.S. Coast Guard in WWII. White died Nov. 21, 1950 and is buried at Valley Forge National Park's Washington Memorial Chapel outside Philadelphia. My father, Brig. Gen. Richard Stinson, is rector of the chapel and is shown in the photo at left. 
- By PSC Peter A. Stinson, USCGR 
Portsmouth, Va. 

Douglas A. Munro and World War II Monuments
Coast Guard Training Center, Cape May, NJ

A visitor to the Coast Guard Training Center at Cape May, N.J. can find at least two monuments to Coast Guard heroes. Douglas A. Munro, the Coast Guard's only Medal of Honor recipient is honored near Munro Hall with a statue that was dedicated in November, 1989. Also, Coast Guardsmen who served in World War II are remembered on the plaza outside the physical fitness complex with a replica of the monument in New York's Battery Park (see above left). Also at Cape May, one can find the ship's bell from the decommissioned CGC Cherokee, located in front of the base administration building. This bell was obtained recently and replaced a U.S. Lighthouse Service bell. 
- CWO3 Bill Carson 
TRACEN Cape May, N.J.
- MK1 Ralph Maddocks 
USCGR, Pennsville, N.J. 

WWII Patrol Frigate Monument
Coast Guard Yard, Curtis Bay, MD

Patrol frigates were conceived as all-purpose gunships and their design was a refinement of the British "River Class" frigate. They were 308-feet long and performed convoy escort, anti-submarine warfare (ASW), shore support fire, anti-aircraft (AA) screen and ocean station duties in both the Atlantic and Pacific Theaters of Operation during World War II. Fifteen thousand Coast Guard personnel crewed 75 WWII patrol frigates. Patrol frigates were well-armed, with three three-inch 50-caliber deck guns, two twin-40 mm Bofors and eight single 20-mm Oerlikons for AA screen. ASW weapons included a Hedgehog mortar, eight depth charge throwers, two depth charge racks aft and a ram bow. Typical wartime crew size totalled about 200. Not one of them was lost during the war, attesting to the seamanship skills, leadership and combat readiness of the Coast Guard officers and men who sailed in them. In addition to the one shown here (yes, that's me pointing to the USS Orange [PF-43], which I served aboard as a Watertender Fireman in 1945-46), there are two other monuments to the patrol frigates dedicated by the Patrol Frigate Reunion Association - one at Alameda, Calif. and another will be dedicated at the CG Academy on Sept. 6, 1996 by members of the PFRA during their annual reunion in Boston. 
CAPT George L. Sutton, USCGR (Ret.) 

United States Navy Memorial
Washington, DC 

The Coast Guard is honored on one of the 22 bronze relief plaques at the U.S. Navy Memorial, located on Pennsylvania Avenue (below) in our nation's capital. The 36-by-32 inch relief (right) shows the Coast Guard doing what it does best - making rescues at sea of civilian sailors and recreational boaters in distress. This bronze relief was sponsored by past and present members of the Coast Guard, with contributions from the Chief Petty Officers Association and other private donors. 
- CAPT Thomas Coldwell, USN (Ret.) 
U.S. Navy Memorial 

Vietnam Veterans Memorial
Washington, DC 

Among the 58,196 names etched on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial (Wall) in our nation's capital are seven Coast Guardsman. The wall, dedicated in 1982, cost $8.5 million and is located adjacent to the Lincoln Memorial. It has become a major attraction for locals and visitors alike. The names, hometowns and other pertinent information of the seven Coast Guardsman are listed according to date of casualty. 
- Libby Hatch 

Coast Guardsmen Listed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial 
Name; Hometown; Rank; Rating; Age; Date of Death; Panel; Line

  • David Charles Brostrom; Los Altos, CA; LTJG; 25; 08/11/66; 09E; 126

  • Jerry Phillips; Corpus Christ, TX; EN2; 27; 08/11/66; 09E; 128

  • Jack Columbus Rittichier; Barberton, OH; LT; 34; 06/09/68; 58W; 014

  • Heriberto Segovia Hernandez; San Antonio, TX; FN; 20; 12/05/68; 37W; 046

  • Morris Sampson Beeson; Pitkins, LA; ENC; 37; 03/22/69; 28W; 008

  • Michael Harris Painter; Moscow, ID; EN1; 26; 08/08/69; 20W; 115

  • Michael Ward Kirkpatrick; Gainesville, FL; LTJG; 25; 08/09/69; 20W; 119

Navy and Marine Memorial
Arlington, VA 

For many years, the "Navy and Marine Memorial Dedicated to Americans Lost at Sea" was referred to as the Coast Guard monument. The memorial was used as a backdrop for the Chief Petty Officers 75th birthday salute in the August 1995 Reservist (inset). It stands 35 feet tall and is 30 feet long, and was sculpted in aluminum by Ernest Begni del Piatta. It consists of seven sea gulls in flight above the crest of a wave and stands on a green granite base. Under an Act of Congress passed on Feb. 16, 1924, it was erected, without cost to the United States, by the Navy and Marine Memorial Association for $335,630. A Joint Resolution approved June 26, 1934, authorized the erection on public grounds in the city of Washington, D.C. Congress appropriated $13,000 for the transportation and placement of the monument, which was dedicated Oct. 18, 1934. The Report of the 68th Congress stated that "this memorial is intended as a monument to our national life on the sea and to be affectionately dedicated to the thousands of Americans who have gone down in the sea whose destiny is so closely linked with our naval and maritime services...." It also honors those who are still offering their lives in the performance of heroic deeds upon the waters of the world. The Coast Guard unveiled a plaque (left) here during the Coast Guard's Bicentennial in 1990. 
- CAPT John Bruce, USCG (Ret.) 
Bethesda, Md. 

Coast Guard Monument
Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, VA

The Coast Guard monument at Arlington National Cemetery (Section 4), is made of white marble and is pyramid-shaped. It stands 12-feet high and was dedicated May 23, 1928 as a tribute to the Coast Guardsmen who lost their lives in World War I. The foundation and pyramid are suggestive of rocks standing in the sea along the coast, or marks of danger to navigation and represent the service ideals of steadfastness and endurance. The front of the monument has the USCG emblem on it and a sea gull, symbolic of the Coast Guard's watchful untiring spirit. The names of those in the Coast Guard who lost their lives in World War I are inscribed on the monument. The southeast side is dedicated to CGC Tampa, sunk by an enemy submarine in Bristol Channel Sept. 26, 1918. All 115 on board were lost. The northwest side is dedicated to CGC Seneca, which lost 11 Coast Guardsmen while endeavoring to salvage the torpedoed British Steamer Wellington in the Bay of Biscay Sept. 17, 1918. The architect was George Howe and the sculptor was Gaston Lachaise. Carved on the foundation: Thy Way Is In The Sea. 
- Arlington National Cemetery Historian 

USS Serpens Memorial
Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, VA

When the Coast Guard-manned USS Serpens (AKA-97) exploded and sank Jan. 29, 1945 at Lunga Beach, Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands, it marked the largest single disaster suffered by the Coast Guard in World War II.  Only two survived the blast, while 250, including 193 Coast Guardsmen, were lost.  The Serpens Monument in Section 34 at Arlington is octagon-shaped and has inscribed upon it an alphabetical listing of the deceased servicemen's names, rank and branch of service.  It marks the second largest mass grave at Arlington.  At the monument dedication Nov. 16, 1950, VADM Merlin O'Neill, then-USCG Commandant remarked, "we cannot undo the past...but we can ensure...that these men shall be respected and honored forever." 
- CG Historian 

Waesche, Cowart, Hull Headstones
Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, VA

Just a short walk from the pyramid-shaped Coast Guard Monument at Arlington are several graves of Coast Guard veterans.  Probably the most well-known Coast Guardsman buried there is ADM Russell R. Waesche, Commandant from 1936-1946. His wife, Agnes R. Waesche, is buried alongside him.  Also interred at Arlington is VADM Kenneth K. Cowart, who served as the last Coast Guard Chief Engineer from 1950-1958 and was laid to rest March 14, 1996.  His headstone says: "Coast Guard For'er."  Buried alongside him is his wife, Adah Hatch Cowart.  CG Reservist CAPT Earl B. Hull, 1881-1955, is also buried at Arlington alongside his wife, Althea B. Finn.  There are many other Coast Guardsmen buried at Arlington, which is currently compiling data on numbers of service members interred there from each branch of the military. 
- Reservist Magazine 


 

A "Monumental" Task -- Part II

We're back this month [June, 1996] with a continuation of our feature on "Coast Guard Monuments Across the USA." As I mentioned last month, our readers sent us over 50 USCG monument entries, and I decided to publish them over two issues. Part I depicted Coast Guard monuments primarily located in the northeast and mid-Atlantic regions. In this issue, you'll notice we move all around the nation, beginning with a few monuments from the north and midwest, move to the south and Gulf Coast and finally, go west!  We think you'll find some of the stories behind these monuments fascinating.  Our front cover this month, shown uncropped at left, was taken in 1991 (the CGR's 50th anniversary year) at the CGC Escanaba National Memorial Service in Grand Haven, Mich.  The service was held, as it is every year, during the week of Aug. 4 (the Coast Guard's birthday) at the annual Coast Guard Festival.  CGC Escanaba sank June 13, 1943, off southern Greenland with the loss of 101 crew...there were only two survivors.  It was the second worst loss of life suffered by the Coast Guard in World War II.  At far left is Escanaba survivor SN Ray O'Malley.  For those of you who contributed to this two-part feature on our CG monuments, thank you! 
Edward J. Kruska
PA1, USCGR, Editor


Ancient Order of Pterodactyl
Gloucester, MA 

The Ancient Order of Pterodactyl is a group of active and retired CG aviators and air crewmen. Their plaque, overlooking Gloucester Harbor, is attached to a large boulder and is a tribute to the first USCG air station. It reads: "In honor of the men who established Coast Guard aviation in May of 1925 on Ten Pound Island in Gloucester Harbor, home of the first continuously operating Coast Guard air station. Growth in operations and aircraft size forced a move to Salem, Mass. in 1935 and again to Cape Cod in 1970."
CPO Tom Guthlein
Station Gloucester, Mass. 

USCG Legacy Monuments
Governors Island, NY 

As probably everyone has heard by now, the Coast Guard is departing Governors Island as part of streamlining. To commemorate the Coast Guard's 31-year stay on the New York harbor island, the Coast Guard recently placed four monuments at each compass point on the island. The west monument, shown at right, is a tribute to area lighthouses. The east monument is a WWI and WWII remembrance of USCG involvement in the N.Y. area, while the south monument honors those from New York who fought for our nation's freedom. Finally, the north monument, facing lower Manhattan, is a tribute to the "cradle of Coast Guard history," remembering Alexander Hamilton and our nation's First Congress, then-convened in N.Y. City, which passed legislation establishing the "Revenue Marine," Aug. 4, 1790. 
LT John Shallman
LANTAREA Public Affairs

Armed Forces Memorial
Wilson, NY 

This monument is located at the Wilson Historical Museum in my village of Wilson, N.Y., a harbor village of 1,200 on Lake Ontario. I drill at Coast Guard Station Niagara, Youngstown, N.Y., 12 miles away. I know this monument is not entirely a Coast Guard monument, but you very rarely see an all-CG monument in small villages. Still, I am glad the Coast Guard was not left out as it has in others I've seen.
BM1 Gary S. Pettit
USCGR, Wilson, N.Y.

Faces of Freedom
Slovan, PA 

We thought you'd like to see what a little town in Pennsylvania did for its 16 heroes who were killed during World War I and II. The people of Slovan (located west of Pittsburgh) are very proud of their local heroes and monuments shown here. One of the 16 is Coast Guardsman Seaman 2nd Class Marko Yaksic (top row, fourth from left; inset at right). Yaksic, 20, was killed Sept. 25, 1942, during the invasion on Vella Lavella, Solomon Islands while aboard LST 167. He is buried in Hickory Cemetery. There is also a mural of our Faces of Freedom in our local VFW, Barto Post 6553 (left). My son, Mike Dugas, currently in the Coast Guard, is the sailor shown saluting the mural. It was created by Susan Renee Schott, an art teacher from nearby Burgettstown, Pa. 
Steve M. Dugas
Slovan, Pa. 

Ohio Historical Marker
Camp Perry, OH

I'm one of the historians here at Camp Perry, Ohio, where the Coast Guard has done a lot of training for port security units. In October of 1995, we had an Ohio historical marker placed here at Camp Perry, within a stone's throw of Lake Erie. It reads, "Additionally, in 1990, United States Coast Guard Reservists trained here in preparation for the Persian Gulf War." The text for the marker was written by another Camp Perry historian, Virgil Gordon, which I then typed up. It was exciting to finally see the fruits of our labor.
Anna Bovia
Camp Perry, Ohio 

Armed Forces Monuments
Dearborn County, IN 

Lawrenceburg, in southeastern Indiana, population 4,400, is the Dearborn County seat. Outside the courthouse are a number of monuments dedicated to our Armed Forces, including one dedicated to the Coast Guard (left). It reads: "Formed to guard the coasts against smugglers. They police shorelines and harbors, enforce navigation regulations and conduct searches from water and air for people lost at sea. They maintain transmitting stations that send navigation signals all over the world." 
CWO3 Jay Enginger
MSD Cincinnati

USCG Inland Lifesaving Station
Louisville, KY

On Sept. 24, 1993, the Louisville Area World War II Coast Guard Committee dedicated two bronze plaques aboard the old Coast Guard Inland Lifesaving Station (below right). The plaques commemorate both the continuous operation of the Coast Guard station from 1880 to 1972 (the last inland floating lifeboat station in the Coast Guard) and the efforts of "citizen-reservists" in Louisville during World War II. The station now serves as the offices for the Steamboat Belle of Louisville (left of station in photo above). 
LCDR Chuck Polk, USCGR
CGHQ (G-WTR-2), Louisville native

Cain Hall & Plaque 
RTC Yorktown, VA

LT Colleen Cain was a Coast Guard Reservist who became the CG's first female HH-52A pilot in June 1979. On Jan. 7, 1982, while stationed at AIRSTA Barbers Point, Hawaii, the helicopter she was co-piloting responded to a distress call from a fishing vessel in stormy weather. The helo crashed into the side of a mountain in the Wailua Valley of Molokai, Hawaii. Cain, along with two other crew members, CDR Buzz Johnson and ASM David Thompson were killed. Cain Hall, a 100-room residence hall at RTC Yorktown, was dedicated in her memory Oct. 25, 1985. The Cain family also unveiled a bronze plaque outside the entrance to Cain Hall at the dedication (see photo above). A plaque honoring the three Coast Guardsmen is in the Barbers Point Club in Hawaii. Another plaque honoring Cain is among those at the International Forest of Friendship, Atchison, Kan. An article on Cain appeared in the March 1996 Reservist.
Reservist Staff

CGC Cuyahoga Memorial
Yorktown, VA 

When CGC Cuyahoga collided with the Argentine motor vessel Santa Cruz near the mouth of the Potomac River in Virginia Oct. 20, 1978, 10 Coast Guardsman and one Indonesian naval officer died.  This monument at RTC honors them. 
Reservist Staff

Canfield Plaque, Painting & Trophy
RTC Yorktown, VA 

Congressman Gordon Canfield of New Jersey, considered the father of the CGR, introduced legislation to create the Coast Guard Reserve in 1941. To honor him, RTC Yorktown dedicated Canfield Hall in 1984. It was the first CG facility to be named after a member of Congress. The photo above right is a reproduction from the September / October 1984 Reservist showing the Canfield Hall plaque and a painting of Gordon Canfield, both unveiled at the 1984 dedication. At left is then-RADM James C. Irwin, then-Chief, Office of Readiness & Reserve, Mrs. Dorothy Canfield, second from right, and then-CAPT John N. Faigle, right, who later served as Chief, Office of Readiness & Reserve. In the photo at right is the Gordon Canfield Trophy, permanently displayed at the Reserve Officers Association Minuteman Building in Washington, D.C. For many years, the trophy was awarded to the nation's best reserve unit. 
LT Dave Allen, USCGR
CGHQ (G-WTR-2), Alexandria, Va. 

USLHS Bell Monument
Seaman Bernt Riise Memorial
Charleston, SC 

At Base Charleston, we have two monuments. The top photo shows a U.S. Lighthouse Service bell from 1923 mounted on a concrete slab. Flanking the bell are the father-son Coast Guard team of BMCS Tom Gelwicks, Sr., left, and BMC Tom Gelwicks, Jr. The other memorial is the Bernt Riise memorial headstone. Riise was a seaman aboard the Revenue Cutter Yamacraw, who drowned at sea in 1909. The memorial stone depicted at left was found in 1982, five feet underground while digging a grave in the oldest section of Magnolia Cemetery in Charleston. Originally erected by his shipmates, the memorial was recovered and placed permanently at Base Charleston as a final resting place for Seaman Riise. 
BMCS Thomas Gelwicks, USCG (Ret.)
YN1 T. Roberts, USCGR

Flagler College CGR Display
St. Augustine, FL 

St. Augustine is considered by many to be the birthplace of the CGR. One of the first classes to graduate from Reserve officer training did so at St. Augustine in May 1941 at the converted Ponce de Leon Hotel, now Flagler College. From 1942-45, thousands of young recruits received their "boot" and advanced training at what was certainly one of the most unusual training stations of WWII. A visitor to Flagler College today will find a permanent display recognizing USCG WWII training activities (see photo above). The display includes plaques presented to the college by various groups. These plaques include Coast Guard Reserve 50th anniversary and CGR emblem plaques, two engravings and one 4-by-5 inch plaque mounted on the front center of the display which reads: "Site of U.S. Coast Guard Training Station and Related Activities During World War II 1942-45." Other magazine articles and photos round out the display. 
Tom King, Archivist, Flagler College
St. Augustine, Fla.

Douglas Munro Memorial
Crystal River, FL

BMCM John "Jocko" Mahoney, left in photo, and CWO4 George Senn, USCGR (Ret.), right, were guests of the Yankeetown Coast Guard Station at the Sept. 27, 1995 dedication of the Douglas A. Munro monument honoring the Coast Guard's only Medal of Honor winner. This 5,500-pound granite monument is located in the park at the rear of Crystal River City Hall. Sponsored by the USCG and Crystal River Eagles Aerie 4272, the dedication ceremony was well organized with over 400 persons in attendance. 
CWO4 G.R Senn, Jr., Crystal River, Fla. 
David W. Mittman, Monclova, Ohio

City Hall Square & Lighthouse Monuments
St. Augustine, FL

On Aug. 24, 1990, Coast Guard E-2C Radar Surveillance Aircraft Number 3501 crashed while returning from a mission that originated at Naval Air Station Roosevelt Roads, Puerto Rico. The E-2C was at mission's end and returning when the crew reported a fire in the port engine. It crashed in a cow pasture one-quarter mile from the runway, taking with it the four-man crew. Over 1,500 members of the CG family made contributions for St. Augustine's City Hall Square monument (below left). It was dedicated Aug. 23, 1991. Another plaque honoring the four was placed near St. Augustine lighthouse (below). 
LT John Shallman
LANTAREA PAO

CGC Blackthorn Monuments (WLB-391)
St. Petersburg, Fla. and Galveston, TX

On the evening of Jan. 28, 1980, CGC Blackthorn (WLB-391) collided with the tanker Capricorn in Tampa Bay, Fla., near the Sunshine Skyway Bridge.  Homeported in Galveston, Blackthorn had just completed an extensive yard period in the Tampa area and had many crew members who had never sailed aboard the vessel.  The incident claimed the lives of 23 Coast Guardsmen.  A 6,000-pound monument commemorating the sinking is located at the Sunshine Skyway bridge north base rest area.  The monument points out the location where Blackthorn and Capricorn collided.  All 23 Coast Guardsmen are listed on the 5-foot wide by 8-foot tall monument, dedicated in 1981.  It was constructed of gray granite with polished face, chipped sides and back to provide the desired degree of maintenance-free permanence.  The Florida Legislature named the wayside parks at each end of the Skyway Bridge "Blackthorn Memorial Park."  At Base Galveston, a buoy contains a commemorative plaque and is lit permanently.  It looks out over Galveston Bay (right photos). 
MK1 Donald Kessel, Bradenton, Fla.
BM1 David Devine, ANT Galveston

White Alder Memorial Park
New Orleans, LA

I had only been in the Coast Guard Reserve 16 months when I performed my first ADT at Base New Orleans.  These photos, taken in December 1970 of the White Alder Memorial, are located on the base . CGC White Alder collided with the Formosan freighter Helena Dec. 7, 1968.  The memorial is dedicated to 17 Coast Guardsmen who were killed in the collision. 
LCDR Chuck Polk, USCGR
Commandant (G-WTR-2)

Anthony L. Oneto Memorial Room
El Paso, TX

During WWII, Anthony Oneto served as a CG Reserve officer aboard USS Cavalier. On March 11, 1947, while serving with the U.S. Border Patrol, Oneto was shot in the head four times at Indio, Calif. by a man attempting to smuggle four illegal aliens. Oneto, 30, died of the gunshots instantly. He is honored at the U.S. Border Patrol Museum & Library in El Paso with a room named after him. American Legion Post 812 in Los Angeles is also named in his honor. 
CWO4 T. Golda 
Grand Island, N.Y. 
Ed's note: A feature on Oneto was published in The Reservist, September 1994. 

CDR Elmer F. Stone Statue
San Diego, CA 

Coast Guard Air Station San Diego pays tribute to the USCG's first aviator, CDR Elmer Stone, with this statue. He also was one of the crew of the Navy NC-4 that made the first transatlantic flight May 31, 1919. A plaque and montage of photos of him and fellow aviators hangs next to the plaque.
CAPT William N. Taylor
USCGR (Ret.), San Diego

World War II Patrol Frigate Monument
Coast Guard Island, Alameda, CA

As a member of the Patrol Frigate Reunion Association (PFRA) and a plank owner of USS Albuquerque PF-7, I was one of the speakers at the Aug. 10, 1994 dedication ceremonies of the Patrol Frigate Monument located on Munro Circle at CG Island. The 75 Coast Guard-manned frigates of WWII are listed on the monument and are accompanied by the newly-completed flagstone and ship's bell. 
David Hendrickson
Fresno, Calif. 
Ed's note: Two other monuments are dedicated to the patrol frigates - one of which was published in last month's Reservist (located at Curtis Bay, Md.); the other will be dedicated Sept. 6 at the CG Academy during the PFRA reunion in Boston. 

Humanitarian Mission Sculpture
Coast Guard Island, Alameda, CA 

In April 1979, then-PA1 Chester L. "Chet" Spaulding thought CG Island needed some dimensional art (sculpture). So, Spaulding, now a reserve chief and self-taught sculptor, drew a sketch of what became the "Humanitarian Mission," a bronze sculpture that rests in Building 14's main entrance foyer (right). His command and CGHQ commissioned Spaulding to sculpt it slightly less than half life-size for casting in bronze. The statue's basic features were modeled from photos of Spaulding's shipmates: SK1 Grace Parmelee, CWO4 Andrew Gregorich and LTJG Kenneth Thysell. The final bronze was made at Nordhammer Art Foundry in Oakland. After only ten months of work, the sculpture was unveiled Jan. 25, 1980.
PA2 Darrell Wilson & PA2 David Angle, USCG
11th CG District Public Affairs (North Region)

Port Chicago National Memorial
Concord, CA 

On July 17, 1944, in one of the worst stateside disasters of WWII, 320 Navy, Coast Guard, Marine and civilian dock workers died when the SS E.A. Bryan and S.S. Quinault Victory exploded at Port Chicago. Almost all of the men killed were African-Americans. Five Coast Guardsmen were manning a fire barge nearby and perished in the blast. Fifty years later, July 17, 1994, the Port Chicago Naval Magazine National Memorial was dedicated and the five Coast Guardsmen's names are listed (above): MM1 W. Degryce, BM1 P. Broda, MM3 E. Portz, SN C. Riley and SA J. Sullivan. Behind the monument is LCDR S. Danschuk, USCG, and PS2 Scott Kendrick, USCGR. Port Chicago was torn down in 1968, but to this day, the cause of the disaster remains a mystery. 
PAC R. Cabral, USCGR, San Francisco 
Ed's note: See March 1995 Reservist for Port Chicago feature.

Columbia River Bar Memorial
Astoria, OR 

The Columbia River Bar is one of the most treacherous in the nation, if not the world. The monument in nearby Astoria honors nine Coast Guardsmen who paid the ultimate sacrifice including five from the MLB Triumph in 1961, three from UTB 41332 in 1977 and MK1 Charles W. Sexton in 1991.
LT Mike White
Cape Disapp., Wash. 

Cape Disappointment Plaque
Station Cape Disappointment, WA 

This plaque is mounted on a boulder at Station Cape D. and says: "A memorial to all those Coast Guardsmen who made the supreme sacrifice that others might live, 1961-1982. Eight Coast Guardsmen are listed on this plaque provided by the Ilwaco-Long Beach Kiwanis Club in 1983. 
LT Mike White 
Cape Disappointment, Wash. 

Coast Guard Memorial
Black Lake, Ilwaco, WA 

This Coast Guard memorial is located two miles from Station Cape Disappointment. It was financed by the American Legion and was dedicated in 1992. It says, "Dedicated to the United States Life Saving Service, the United States Coast Guard, and those who lost their lives in service." Nine names are listed.
LT Mike White 
Cape Disappointment, Wash. 
Ed's note: A larger photo of this monument is on the cover of this monuments section, p. 7.

Douglas A. Munro Gravesite
CGCVA 50th Munro Monument
Cle Elum, WA 

Our Coast Guard's only Medal of Honor recipient, Signalman First Class Douglas Albert Munro, is interred in the Veterans' section, Laurel Hills Cemetery in Cle Elum. His mother, LT Edith Munro, a WWII SPAR, (see November 1994 Reservist), is interred next to her son. The Coast Guard Combat Veterans Association dedicated a monument here Sept. 27, 1992, to commemorate 50 years since Munro's heroic actions and ultimate sacrifice at Guadalcanal.
C. E. Kermen
South Cle Elum, Wash. 

Armed Forces Memorial
Wenatchee, WA 

A few years ago, a veterans' memorial was erected at the convention center here in Wenatchee. I noticed right away that the USCG seal was left off. Time went by and I dropped the issue. Then, about a year ago, another CG Reservist, PS2 Harvey Gjesdal moved to town, and he noticed the deletion and was pretty outraged. He started a letter-writing campaign and contacted veterans' groups, senators and representatives. Because of his efforts, the Coast Guard emblem was finally added to the monument. As you look at the photo (above), you'll notice the emblem is centered beneath the other services' emblems. Standing next to the monument is PS2 Gjesdal, a reservist with me at Station Seattle, who is also a Deputy Sheriff for Douglas County, Wash. 
BMC C. M. Buick, USCGR
Wenatchee, Wash. 

USCG Bering Sea Patrol Monument
Dutch Harbor, Unalaska, AK 

This monument is located at Dutch Harbor in Alaska's Aleutian Islands. It was dedicated by the Coast Guard and people of Alaska on our service's bicentennial, Aug. 4, 1990. It is a tribute to the Bering Sea Patrol - those United States Revenue Cutter Service sailors who sacrificed much for Alaska and their nation. 
M. L. Rinehart
Baltimore, Md. 

Hula Dancer / Bathing Beauty
Sand Island, Base Honolulu, HI 

The "Hula Dancer" and "Bathing Beauty" statues were constructed by Italian POW Alfredo Giusti during WWII to honor the women back home, waiting for the prisoners' return. Giusti was interned at a camp located on Sand Island, now the site of CG Base Honolulu. Nearly 5,000 POW's were interned between 1944-46 on Sand Island and other camps on Oahu. Today, the statues (restored in 1995) grace the entrance to the new Florence Ebersole Smith Administration Building at Base Honolulu (photo above).
LCDR R.M. Dielh and MST1 R.U. Klarmann
Base Honolulu, Sand Island, Honolulu, Hawaii 

Anchor Memorial
Base Honolulu, HI 

Base Honolulu's anchor memorial is the USCG's first monument to recognize all sailors and ships lost in operations during World War II. It was dedicated Sept. 2, 1995 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of V-J Day and the end of the war. The memorial consists of a 15-foot white anchor circumscribed by a ring of copper plates listing the names of over 900 sailors killed in action. Inside the circle are two pedestals and a large brass bell. The pedestals contain plaques which list all USCG ships lost in action and explain the memorial's symbolism. The bell was rung during the dedication, attended by ADM Robert E. Kramek, Commandant, and MCPO-CG Rick Trent, to honor those Coast Guardsmen who perished in WWII. In addition, the foundation of the bell contains a time capsule which will be opened in 50 years. 
LCDR R.M. Dielh and MST1 R.U. Klarmann
Base Honolulu, Sand Island, Honolulu, Hawaii


People

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Who were the Commandants of the Coast Guard?

Commandants & Chiefs of the Revenue Marine Division

Chiefs of the Revenue Marine Bureau (The Chiefs exercised centralized control over the Revenue Marine Bureau.)

  • 1843-1848 Captain Alexander V. Fraser, USRM
  • 1848-1849 Captain Richard Evans, USRM

In 1849 the Revenue Marine Bureau was dissolved, and the Revenue Marine fell under the control the Commissioner of Customs until the Revenue Marine Bureau was again established in 1869.

  • 1869-1871  N. Broughton Devereux
  • 1871-1878  Sumner I. Kimball
  • 1878-1885  Ezra Clark
  • 1885-1889  Peter Bonnett

Commandants

  • 1889-1895 Captain Leonard G. Shepard, USRCS, Chief, Revenue Marine Division
  • 1895-1905 Captain Charles F. Shoemaker, USRCS, Chief, Revenue Marine Division
  • 1905-1911 Captain Worth G. Ross, USRCS
  • 1911-1919 Commodore Ellsworth P. Bertholf
  • 1919-1924 Rear Admiral William E. Reynolds
  • 1924-1932 Rear Admiral Frederick C. Billard
  • 1932-1936 Rear Admiral Harry G. Hamlet
  • 1936-1946 Admiral Russell R. Waesche
  • 1946-1949 Admiral Joseph F. Farley
  • 1949-1954 Vice Admiral Merlin O’Neill
  • 1954-1962 Admiral Alfred C. Richmond
  • 1962-1966 Admiral Edwin J. Roland
  • 1966-1970 Admiral Willard J. Smith
  • 1970-1974 Admiral Chester R. Bender
  • 1974-1978 Admiral Owen W. Siler
  • 1978-1982 Admiral John B. Hayes
  • 1982-1986 Admiral James S. Gracey
  • 1986-1990 Admiral Paul A. Yost, Jr.
  • 1990-1994 Admiral J. William Kime
  • 1994-1998 Admiral Robert E. Kramek
  • 1998-2002 Admiral James M. Loy
  • 2002-2006 Admiral Thomas H. Collins
  • 2006-2010 Admiral Thad W. Allen
  • 2010-2014 Admiral Robert J. Papp, Jr.
  • 2014-Present Admiral Paul F. Zukunft

 

 

Who are some heroes of the Coast Guard?

Heroes of the Coast Guard

 

Samuel W. Allison

Lieutenant Samuel W. Allison, USCGR, was awarded the Silver Star during World War II for: "conspicuous gallantry in action as Commanding Officer of USS LCI(L)-326 during amphibious landings on the French coast June 6, 1944.  Displaying superb seamanship and dauntless courage, Lieutenant Allison successfully landed units of the Army, then stood off the beach for salvage duty.  Realizing that the services of a control boat were urgently needed, he volunteered for this assignment and, in the face of concentrated shell fire and constant threat of exploding mines, effectively directed boat traffic throughout the remainder of the initial assault." 

 

Henry M. Anthony

Anthony began his naval career in 1920 as an enlisted man in the U.S. Navy, and saw service aboard submarines. After transferring to the Coast Guard, he specialized in breaking rumrunner codes.  Beginning in 1935, Anthony had formed a close association with Navy's Pacific Fleet intelligence officers in Hawaii and had devoted much time to breaking simple Japanese "tuna clipper" codes, meanwhile teaching himself Japanese -- the Coast Guard has always been on a shoe-string budget and would not pay for language classes -- so Anthony, on his own initiative, learned Japanese.  He boarded all Japanese merchant vessels calling at Hawaii, on the pretext of searching for smuggled narcotics but in reality to check their routings and other sailing data.  Over the years, Anthony became an authority on the Japanese merchant marine.  During World War II, the Navy ordered Anthony to command a unit of the Pacific Fleet that concentrated on breaking the codes for the Japanese merchant fleet--which permitted U.S. submarines to decimate the Japanese merchant fleet during the war.

 

Richard A. Arrighi

Ensign Richard A. Arrighi, USCGR, an officer on board the cutter Escanaba, was posthumously awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Medal on 18 August 1943, during rescue operations off Greenland on 3 February 1943.  After the troopship Dorchester was torpedoed, Arrighi was the first to go over the side as a "retriever."  During the early hours of the rescue operations, one lifeboat, was contacted which was in fair condition.  This boat had picked up the other survivors and was fairly crowded. As the lifeboat was made fast to Escanaba's side, one of its helpless members fell in between the cutter and the lifeboat.  This poor man was covered with oil and the men in the lifeboat simply could not extricate him from his perilous position.  ENS Arrighi, who was working in the water at the time, swam in between the boat and the ship, pulled the man out so that he would not be crushed, held him up so that a line could be put around him and helped the men in the boat get him on aboard.  Arrighi was in grave danger of being himself crushed between the boat and the ship's side, but due to his disregard of his own safety and to his quick action he was spared, only to lose his life in June when Escanaba blew up.  Arrighi was in and out of the water rescuing survivors, working in the dark with a rough sea running and quitting only when his, rubber suit became worn and filled with water.  After that he had to be hauled on board and treated for exposure.

 

Ross Bell

Lieutenant (j.g.) Ross Bell was the executive officer of the cutter, CGC Point Welcome during a tour of duty on Operation Market Time in the Republic of Vietnam.  In a tragic "friendly fire" incident, several U.S. Air Force aircraft mistakenly attacked Point Welcome while she was on patrol during the night of 11 August 1966. With the death of the commanding officer, Lieutenant (j.g.) David Brostrom, LTJG Bell assumed command of the cutter despite being seriously wounded by the fire that killed Brostrom. He continued to exercise command until his wounds forced his relief by BMC Richard Patterson. For his actions, LTJG Bell was awarded the Bronze Star Medal with Combat "V".

 

Ellsworth Price Bertholf

Captain Ellsworth Price Bertholf was the first commandant of the Coast Guard.  He joined the Revenue Cutter Service in 1885, beginning a long and distinguished career.  While serving on the revenue cutter Bear he participated in the Point Barrow-Overland Relief Expedition of 1897-1898. Congress awarded him a Gold Medal of Honor for his actions on that expedition. He was instrumental in implementing the merger of the U.S. Life-Saving Service and the Revenue Cutter Service to form the Coast Guard in 1915.

 

William H. Best

Water Tender William H. Best, a crewman of the CGC Seneca on convoy duty during the First World War, was posthumously awarded a Navy Cross "for services in attempting to save the British merchant steamer Wellington after she had been torpedoed by a German submarine, and who lost his life when the Wellington foundered on September 17, 1918."  

Frederick C. Billard

Rear Admiral Frederick C. Billard served as the commandant of the Coast Guard from 1924 through his death in 1932. He was a veteran of the First World War and was awarded the Navy Cross for his service in that conflict. He oversaw the service’s expansion during the enforcement of Prohibition and reinforced the Coast Guard’s traditional tasks as well. He worked well with Congress and the Treasury Department and was loved throughout the service.  Robert Johnson, in his history of the Coast Guard entitled Guardians of the Sea, wrote of Billard that "he must rank with the greatest commandants of the Coast Guard."

Benjamin Bottoms

ARM1c Benjamin Bottoms was a Coast Guard radio operator assigned to the cutter Northland's aircraft on the Greenland Patrol during World War II.  He was killed when his aircraft, piloted by LT John Pritchard, crashed while attempting to rescue a downed Army Air Force B-17 crew in Greenland.

William L. Boyce

Acting Machinist William L. Boyce was a member of the crew of the cutter Seneca during the First World War.  He was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal "for his actions while attempting to save the torpedoed British merchant steamer Wellington, which subsequently foundered." Boyce was killed during the attempt.  

Joseph R. Bridge

Aviation Ordnanceman 1/c Joseph R. Bridge was posthumously awarded the Gold Lifesaving Medal "for heroic daring during a sea rescue on 18 January 1953."  Bridge was a crewman on board a Coast Guard PBM that crashed offshore of mainland China while conducting a rescue of the crew of a Navy reconnaissance aircraft that had been shot down.  He was killed in the crash. 

David Brostrom

Lieutenant (j.g.) David Brostrom was the commanding officer of the cutter Point Welcome during a tour of duty with Operation Market Time in the Republic of Vietnam.  In a tragic "friendly fire" incident, several U.S. Air Force aircraft mistakenly attacked the Point Welcome while she was on patrol during the night of 11 August 1966. As soon as the Point Welcome was illuminated by flares dropped by the Air Force aircraft, he raced to the bridge, calling out orders to his crew.  He was killed as he reached the bridge.

Fletcher W. Brown

First Lieutenant Fletcher W. Brown, an officer on board the cutter Seneca on convoy duty during the First World War, was awarded a Navy Cross "for heroic and distinguished service as the commander of a volunteer crew that attempted to save the British merchant steamer Wellington after she had been torpedoed by a German submarine.  They persisted in that attempt until the Wellington foundered on 17 September 1918. "   

Nathan Bruckenthal

On April 25, 2004, Damage Controlman Third Class Nathan Bruckenthal, USCG, from Smithtown, New York, and two U. S. Navy sailors were killed in the line of duty while conducting maritime intercept operations in the North Arabian Gulf.  He and six other coalition sailors attempted to board a small boat near the Iraqi Khawr Al Amaya Oil Terminal.  As they boarded the boat it exploded.  Petty Officer Bruckenthal died later from injuries sustained in the explosion.  Petty Officer Bruckenthal was the first Coast Guardsman killed in action since the Vietnam War.  He was assigned to Tactical Law Enforcement South in Miami, Florida and deployed with Coast Guard Patrol Forces Southwest Asia aboard the USS Firebolt.  This was his second deployment to the Arabian Gulf for Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Richard L. Burke

Captain Richard L. Burke was a Coast Guard aviation pioneer who participated in numerous rescues and ensured that aviation would play a central role in Coast Guard operations.  He earned his wings in 1931 and immediately became one of the best Coast Guard pilots of the time, specializing in open-ocean rescues while flying Coast Guard flying boats.  In 1933 he made the first open-ocean rescue ever in a Douglas RD Dolphin, a feat for which President Franklin Roosevelt awarded him the first of two Distinguished Flying Crosses he earned during his career.  He was also awarded a Silver Lifesaving Medal for another daring open-ocean rescue flight.  He became the commanding officer of Air Station Cape May in 1933 and served there until 1940 where he currently served as the chief pilot for Secretary of the Treasury Henry Morgenthau.  He later served as the commanding officer of Air Station Elizabeth City during the Second World War, where he was responsible for saving dozens of lives of seamen from torpedoed merchant ships.  After the war he served as the Air-Sea Rescue Officer for the Eastern Sea Frontier Headquarters, coordinating the air-sea rescue activities of all of the armed services of the U.S. He then served as the Chief, Aviation Division of the Coast Guard.  

John Cahoone

Captain John Cahoone commanded the revenue cutter Vigilant during its engagement with the British privateer Dart during the War of 1812.  The Dart had preyed upon Yankee shipping in Long Island Sound for some time, taking 20 to 30 vessels. She appeared off Newport on 4 October 1813 with two freshly caught prizes, and this braggadocio proved her undoing. Capt. Cahoone took 20 Navy volunteers on board to augment his regular crew and made sail to engage the brazen Britisher. Vigilant boldly sailed well within gun range of the more heavily armed sloop and loosed a broadside, which stunned the privateer. A boarding party from the revenue cutter quickly scrambled aboard the enemy vessel as she brushed alongside her quarry and quickly carried the Briton. Vigilant lost two men in the engagement, both of whom fell into the water and drowned while attempting to board.

 

Hugh George Campbell

Hugh George Campbell was born in South Carolina in 1760 and, in 1775 he volunteered to serve on board the Defense, the first man-of-war commissioned by the council of South Carolina in the Revolutionary War. He began his career in the Revenue Cutter Service in 1791, when he received an appointment as first mate on board the revenue cutter South Carolina. By 1798, he was promoted to master and served with great distinction in the Quasi-War with France. As captain of the cutter Eagle, Campbell captured more enemy vessels than any other cutter captain and most other navy captains. In the summer of 1799, the U.S. Navy appointed him “master commandant” and by the fall of 1800 he was commissioned a captain in the navy.  He later enjoyed a distinguished naval career as a senior captain commanding the USS Constellation and USS Constitution. During the War of 1812, he commanded a fleet of gunboats out of St. Marys, Georgia, which captured some of the first enemy vessels of the war. He died in 1820, during an overland trip from Charleston, S.C., to Washington, D.C.

 

Francis Cartigan

Captain Francis Cartigan commanded the revenue cutter Alabama during the Revenue Marine Services attempt to rid the Gulf of Mexico of pirates.  He and his crew, with the assistance of the revenue cutter Louisiana, destroyed a pirate rendezvous point on Breton Island in 1820.

William H. Cashman

On 9 March 1928 a pulling surfboat with nine men aboard, under the command of Boatswain's Mate First Class William Cashman, got underway from the Manomet Life-Saving to go to the rescue of the steamer Robert E. Lee.  The Lee had grounded on Mary Ann Rocks in a heavy gale.  While returning to the station the surfboat capsized due to extremely heavy seas, spilling all nine men into the water.  Six were rescued but "Captain" Cashman, Surfman Frank W. Griswold, and Surfman Edward R. Stark perished in the line of duty in the freezing water.  During the on-going search and rescue operations all 236 passengers and crew from the Robert E. Lee were saved.


William P. Chadwick

Keeper William P. Chadwick of the Green Island Lifeboat Station in New Jersey was awarded the Gold Lifesaving medal for the rescue of the crew of the schooner George Taulane on 3 February 1880.  Even after suffering a debilitating injury from flying debris, Chadwick directed the repeated efforts to save the crew of the broken Taulane. Finally after 5 ½ hours, Chadwick’s men were able to erect a breeches buoy.  Within a half-hour all of the Taulane’s crew were safely ashore.  

Garner J. Churchill

Chief Warrant Officer (Boatswain) Garner J. Churchill of Humboldt Bay Lifeboat Station, California, was awarded the Gold Lifesaving Medal for the rescue of the sinking vessel Rena.  His crew, however, were only awarded Silver Life-Saving medals, and he refused to accept his gold medal unless the crew also received the gold medal.  The Department proved to be unwilling to change the award, and he therefore took the lesser Silver Lifesaving Medal along with his crew.  His son noted that he took the Silver Life-Saving Medal because "he felt that he had done no more than his men."  During the Second World War, while attempting to rescue the crew of a torpedoed freighter in a 36-foot motor life boat, he evaded and narrowly escaped attack from a Japanese submarine.

Paul L. Clark

F 1/c Paul Leaman Clark was awarded a Navy Cross, one of only six awarded to Coast Guardsmen during World War II, for his actions during the invasion of North Africa in November 1942.  His citation reads: "For extraordinary heroism while serving as engineer of a landing boat attached to the USS JOSEPH T. DICKMAN during the assault on and occupation of French Morocco from November 8 to 11, 1942.  When a hostile plane strafed his boat with machinegun fire, mortally wounding the bow man and severely injuring the coxswain, Clark with quick initiative immediately withdrew from the beach.  Speeding toward the USS PALMER, he placed the wounded men aboard and, although his craft was riddled by enemy bullets, courageously returned to his station at the beach."

Malachi Corbell, Keeper

Keeper Malachi Corbell saved two African-American fishermen whose boat capsized near Caffey's Inlet, North Carolina.  In June, 1877 he was awarded a Silver Lifesaving Medal, becoming the first member of the U.S. Life-Saving Service to earn one of the newly instituted Treasury Department life-saving medals.

T. James Crotty

Lieutenant T. James Crotty was an expert on mine recovery and served with United States forces in the Philippines at the start of the Second World War.  There he carried out special demolition work during the retreat of American and Filipino forces from Bataan to Corregidor.  He then served as the executive officer of the USS Quail, which swept clear channels to the island and also bombarded Japanese forces on Bataan. Crotty was captured by the Imperial Japanese Army after the surrender of Corregidor in May 1942.  He died later that fall of diphtheria.  He was one of only three Coast Guardsmen held as prisoners of war during the 20th century.

Joseph L. Crowe, Jr.

Captain Joseph L. Crowe, Jr., was a noted Coast Guard aviator responsible for numerous rescues during peacetime and war and for his abilities as a leader, planner, and pilot.  From 1971 to 1972, Crowe served as an exchange pilot with the Air Force's 37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron in Vietnam, flying numerous combat search and rescue missions.  In June, 1971, he flew a combat rescue mission behind enemy lines to rescue successfully two downed airmen.  Another combat rescue mission took place in April, 1972, when Crowe attempted to rescue Lieutenant Colonel Iceal Hambleton, USAF, who was made famous in the book Bat 21 (by William C. Anderson).  Due to heavy enemy fire that riddled his HH-53C "Super Jolly," however, Crowe was forced to abort the rescue and barely made it back to base.  He planned the operation that led to the successful rescue of American and South Vietnamese personnel trapped in Quang Tri during May, 1972.  Crowe earned the Frederick L. Feinberg Award of the American Helicopter Society for his daring rescue in 1976 of seven men who were trapped on the bow section of sinking tanker Spartan Lady 145 miles south of Martha's Vineyard during an intense storm.  He later commanded Coast Guard Air Station Cape Cod for two tours of duty.  Crowe was awarded three Distinguished Flying Crosses and nine Air Medals during his Coast Guard career.

 

Edgar A. Culbertson

BM1 Edgar A. Culbertson perished in the line of duty while trying to save three brothers who had been swept off the jetty of the Duluth Entry North Breakwater Light on the night of 30 April 1967.  He was posthumously awarded the Coast Guard Medal.  Two other Coast Guardsmen who participated in the rescue attempt, FN Ron Prei and BM2 Richard Callahan, survived and were also awarded the Coast Guard Medal.

 

John A. Cullen

John A. Cullen was awarded the Legion of Merit for discovering and reporting the first landing of German saboteurs on the United States coast, 13 June 1942.  His timely report alerted authorities to the presence of Nazi saboteurs on U.S. soil and was instrumental in leading to their capture of the entire 8-man sabotage team within two weeks.  Ultimately Cullen’s actions resulted in the foiling of OPERATION PASTORIOUS, the code-name for the German operation, before the German operatives could carry out their mission.  

Benjamin B. Dailey

Keeper Benjamin B. Dailey was the keeper of the Cape Hatteras Lifeboat Station in North Carolina who was awarded the Gold Lifesaving medal after rescuing 9 men from the foundering ship Ephraim Williams on 22 December 1884.  In one of the most daring rescues by the Life-Saving Service since its organization, Dailey’s 7-man crew pulled for two hours through a heavy sea to reach the vessel five miles offshore. Only by relying on his expert boat-handling skills was Dailey able to bring all the survivors and his crew back to safety.  

Charles Walter David, Jr.

Stewards-Mate First Class Charles Walter David, Jr., was an African American Coast Guardsman who served on board the cutter Comanche during World War II.  When the Comanche came to the aid of the survivors of the torpedoed transport Dorchester in the frigid waters off Greenland, David volunteered to dive overboard to help rescue those in need--practicing the newly devised "rescue retriever" technique.  David repeatedly dived overboard in the water to save several men.  He even saved the life of the Comanche's executive officer, LT Robert W. Anderson, when Anderson became unable to pull himself out of the water due to exposure.  David died a few days later from hypothermia contracted during his heroic efforts.  He was posthumously awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Medal for his bravery.

Warren T. Deyampert

Steward's Mate Third Class Warren T. Deyampert was posthumously awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Medal.  Deyampert, a crewman aboard the cutter Escanaba, took part in that cutter's rescue of the survivors of the torpedoed transport Dorchester off Greenland on 3 February 1943.  He worked between three and four hours in the water during darkness, pulling rafts in close to the ship, securing them with lines from the ship, securing bowlines about the survivors so that they could be hauled aboard Escanaba, and at times keeping helpless survivors afloat until they could put lines about them.  They were often in danger of being crushed by the life rafts as they brought them close to the ship's side.  Deyampert stuck with a single floating survivor as he drifted astern under the counter, in order to keep him clear of the propeller, just in case it turned.  He disregarded this danger to himself, in order that the survivor might be kept clear of it.  Deyampert perished later that year when Escanaba exploded and sank.

Charles L. Duke

Ensign Charles L. Duke carried out one of the more remarkable arrests ever conducted by the Coast Guard during the enforcement of Prohibition.  While on patrol in New York harbor, he single-handedly captured the freighter Greypoint and its crew of 22 in a daring and heroic act.  The freighter carried over a half-million dollars worth of illegal liquor on board.  

Dwight H. Dexter

Dwight Dexter served as the commander of the small boat pool at Lunga Point on Guadalcanal from the first days of the invasion until November, 1942 after being assigned to the staff of  the Commander of the Transport Group, South Pacific.  He also served as Douglas Munro's commanding officer.  Dexter was awarded the Silver Star for his actions at Guadalcanal.

 

Lance A. Eagan 

Lance Eagan earned his wings in 1965 first flew HH-52A helicopters along with HU-16E amphibians out of Coast Guard Air Station Brooklyn before being among the first group of Coast Guard aviators to volunteer to serve in Vietnam with the US Air Force Force's 37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron flying rescue missions.  He made numerous combat rescues during his tour and by the end of his Coast Guard aviation career he was awarded the Silver Star, the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Air Medal (with 10 oak leaf clusters), a Combat Action Ribbon, two Letters of Commendation, Presidential Unit Citation, National Defense Medal (with 4 bronze stars) and the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross (with palm).

Walter B. Eberle

First Assistant Keeper Walter B. Eberle, assigned to the Whale Rock Light Station in Rhode Island, remained at his post on the night of 21 September 1938 when a hurricane hit the northeast coast.  Eberle was killed when the lighthouse was swept out to sea.  He was a US Navy veteran, a master diver, and the father of six children.   His body was never recovered. 

Russell Elam

Cook Elam Russell, of the cutter Seneca on convoy duty during the First World War, was posthumously awarded a Navy Cross "for services in attempting to save the British merchant steamer Wellington after she had been torpedoed by a German submarine, and who lost his life when the Wellington foundered on September 17, 1918."  

Frank A. Erickson

Frank A. Erickson was an aviation pioneer who led the Coast Guard's acquisition and development of rotary-wing aircraft.  He was instrumental in convincing the armed services of both the U.S. and Great Britain of the helicopter's potential, particularly for search and rescue and combat operations, risking his career in openly supporting what was then an untried and unproven technology.  Erickson first earned his wings in 1935 and made his first open-ocean rescue the following year while assigned to Air Station Miami.  He piloted amphibian aircraft attached to three of the newly commissioned 327-foot cutters in an experiment that tested combined aircraft-cutter operations.  He was then ordered to the Sikorsky Aircraft Company's plant at Bridgeport, CT, for training in the new helicopters being manufactured there, forming the first Coast Guard Helicopter Detachment.  He was designated as Coast Guard Helicopter Pilot No. 1 and became an instructor. He organized and trained pilots who participated in the joint U.S. and British evaluation trials held on board the SS Daghestan in November 1943 to ascertain the feasibility of helicopter flight operations aboard ships at sea.  He also trained 102 helicopter pilots and 225 mechanics, including personnel from the Army Air Force, Navy, Coast Guard and the British Army, Royal Air Force and Navy.  On 3 January 1944 he flew the first ever rescue flight by helicopter when he piloted a Sikorsky HNS-1, carrying two cases of blood plasma, from New York City to Sandy Hook, NJ, during a violent storm, for the treatment of Navy crewmen from the destroyer USS Turner, which had exploded and burned off New York Harbor.  He developed equipment such as the power hoist, rescue slings and baskets, floats that permitted helicopters to land on water and techniques like landing and taking off from vessels at sea and hovering in all weather and wind conditions.  These advances furthered the utility of the helicopter, leading to its acceptance and use around the globe. Erickson's impact on the development of the helicopter in all its uses is beyond estimation.

Louis C. Etheridge, Jr.

A well-known example of African American military expertise was the crew of stewards that manned a battle station on the cutter Campbell, which rammed and sank a German submarine on February 22, 1943. SD 1/c Louis C. Etheridge, Jr., captain of the  Campbell's African American gun crew, was presented the Bronze Star medal (with a combat citation) on February 25, 1952, and a personal letter of congratulations from the Commandant.  The gun crew earned medals for "heroic achievement."

Richard Etheridge

Captain Richard Etheridge became the first African-American to command a Life-Saving station when the service appointed him as the keeper of the Pea Island Life-Saving Station in North Carolina in 1880. The Revenue Cutter Service officer who recommended his appointment, First Lieutenant Charles F. Shoemaker, noted that Etheridge was "one of the best surfmen on this part of the coast of North Carolina." Soon after Etheridge's appointment, the station burned down. Determined to execute his duties with expert commitment, Etheridge supervised the construction of a new station on the original site. He also developed rigorous lifesaving drills that enabled his crew to tackle all lifesaving tasks. His station earned the reputation of "one of the tautest on the Carolina Coast," with its keeper well-known as one of the most courageous and ingenious lifesavers in the Service. On October 11, 1896, Etheridge's rigorous training drills proved to be invaluable. The three-masted schooner, the E.S. Newman, was caught in a terrifying storm.  The vessel came ashore on the beach two miles south of the Pea Island station. The storm was so severe that Etheridge had suspended normal beach patrols that day. But the alert eyes of surfman Theodore Meekins saw the first distress flare and he immediately notified Etheridge. Etheridge gathered his crew and launched the surfboat.  Battling the strong tide and sweeping currents, the dedicated lifesavers struggled to make their way to a point opposite the schooner, only to find there was no dry land.  The daring, quick-witted Etheridge tied two of his strongest surfmen together and connected them to shore by a long line.  They fought their way through the roaring breakers and finally reached the schooner.  The seemingly inexhaustible Pea Island crewmembers journeyed through the perilous waters ten times and rescued the entire crew of the E.S. Newman.  For this rescue the crew, including Etheridge, were recently awarded the Gold Lifesaving Medal by the Coast Guard.

 

Ray Evans

Petty Officer (later Commander) Raymond J. Evans was awarded a Navy Cross for his actions at the Matanikau River, Guadalcanal on 27 September 1942.  Along with his friend and shipmate Douglas Munro, Evans participated in the rescue and evacuation of  elements of the 1st Battalion, 7th Marines, who were under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Lewis B. "Chesty" Puller, from behind enemy lines while under fire.  

Manuel Ferreira

Manuel Ferreria served as a lighthouse keeper for seven different lighthouses during his career, which spanned from 1908 through 1946.  He was known as "one of the grand old men of Hawaiian lighthouse lore."  In 1919 he rescued the crew of a Japanese fishing trawler when that vessel ran aground off Barber's Point, Hawaii, where he served as a keeper.  He was instrumental in saving the schooner Bianca and its crew in 1923 when the ship lost its sails and was in danger of smashing on a reef.   Ferreira was unable to launch the lighthouse skiff due to the high surf conditions.   Instead, he ran three miles to the nearest telephone and called for assistance.   The USS Sunadin was dispatched and reached the wallowing schooner just in time to tow it to safety. 

Florence Ebersole Smith Finch

Florence Finch enlisted in the Coast Guard Women's Reserve (SPARs) during World War II after first escaping imprisonment by the Japanese.  She was captured in the Philippines in October, 1944 after serving with the Filipino resistance and assisting U.S. and Filipino prisoners of war.  She was liberated by Allied forces during the invasion of the Philippines and after returning to the U.S., she joined the SPARs.  She was the first woman to receive the Pacific Theatre Campaign ribbon.  She was also presented with the U.S. Medal of Freedom.

 

Joel Hilton Fisher

LCDR Joel Fisher was attached to the G-5 Intelligence Division of the U.S. Army during World War II.  He joined the Coast Guard after being turned down from enlisting in the Army due to poor eyesight.  He was commissioned ensign in 1942.  After carrying out assignments in Alaska he was assigned to Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF).  There he was assigned as Chief, Foreign Exchange and Property Control Section, Financial Branch of G-5 SHAEF.  He commanded a 75-man task force assigned to locate and recover stolen valuables taken by German forces during the war, including millions of dollars worth of art, gold, silver and gemstones.  They travelled with front-line combat units as Allied armies advanced on Germany.   

 

William Ray Flores

SA William Ray "Billy" Flores died in the line of duty while saving the lives of many of his shipmates when his cutter, the Blackthorn, collided with the tanker Capricorn, on January 28, 1980.  The Blackthorn and the tanker Capricorn collided near the entrance to Tampa Bay, Florida. The Blackthorn capsized before all the cutter’s crew could abandon ship. Twenty-seven of Flores’ shipmates did escape the sinking ship.  After the ships collided Flores and another crewmember threw lifejackets to their shipmates who had jumped into the water. Later, when his companion abandoned ship as the Blackthorn began to submerge, Flores -- who was less than a year out of boot camp--remained behind and used his own belt to strap open the lifejacket locker door, allowing additional lifejackets to float to the surface. Even after most crewmembers abandoned ship, the 19-year-old Flores remained aboard to assist trapped shipmates and to comfort those who were injured and disoriented.  He was posthumously awarded the Coast Guard Medal.  

Gene R. Gislason

Lieutenant Gene R. Gislason was awarded the Silver Star: "For outstanding heroism as Commanding Officer of the USS LCI(L)-94, while landing assault troops in Normandy June 6, 1944.  He successfully directed his ship through numerous beach obstacles to the proper beach, discharged his troops and retracted while his ship was seriously damaged from heavy enemy fire.  Ship's communications, engine telegraph and electric steering were disabled by direct hits on the pilothouse which killed three crewmen, and one screw and shaft were rendered inoperative by beach obstacles.  By his coolness under fire and excellent seamanship, Lieutenant Gislason overcame these difficulties and brought his ship off the beach on hand steering and one screw.  He later supervised repairs and in four hours enabled the LCI(L) to remain operative in the assault area for three weeks."

Willis J. Goff

Gunner's Mate First Class Willis Jerry Goff,  a crewman on board the cutter Point Banks on patrol in Vietnam,  was awarded the Silver Star for "his heroic courage and gallantry in action while engaged in armed conflict against North Vietnamese and Viet Cong aggressors in the Republic of Vietnam on Jan. 22, 1969."  He and fellow Point Banks crewman EN2 Larry D. Villarreal volunteered to man the cutter's launch to rescue a group of nine South Vietnamese soldiers who were trapped along a beach by two Viet Cong platoons.  Under continuous enemy fire, they made two landings on the beach to rescue successfully all of the South Vietnamese soldiers.  His citation read, in part: ". . .with courageous disregard for their own safety, Petty Officer Goff and his fellow crewmember were able to rescue nine South Vietnamese Army personnel who would have met almost certain death or capture without the assistance of the two Coast Guardsmen.  Petty Officer Goff's outstanding heroism, professionalism, and devotion to duty and to his fellow man were in the highest traditions of the United States Naval Services."

 

Charles C. Goodwin

Keeper Charles C. Goodwin of the Cleveland, Ohio Lifeboat station was awarded the Gold Lifesaving medal after he rescued 29 people from 3 ships on the nights of 31 October, 1 November, and 11 November 1884, each time during a horrific gale. 

Stewart Ross Graham

Commander Stewart Graham, USCG, was an aviation pioneer and trailblazer.  He, along with Captain Frank Erickson, were instrumental in developing the helicopter as a search and rescue platform.  Additionally, Graham carries the distinction of having made a number of helicopter "firsts":  he became the first helicopter pilot to take off and land on a ship at sea; the first to perform a nighttime medevac by helicopter; the first to make a transcontinental helicopter flight; and the first to use a helicopter hoist to rescue survivors from a foundering ship.  He was also instrumental in developing equipment such as the power hoist, and rescue slings and baskets that permitted helicopters to conduct rescues.  He developed techniques utilizing that equipment in all weather and wind conditions, thereby making the helicopter the premiere SAR aircraft that it is today.  Graham's impact on the development of the helicopter in all its uses is beyond estimation. 


Frank W. Griswold

On 9 March 1928 a pulling surfboat with nine men aboard, under the command of Boatswain's Mate First Class William Cashman, got underway from the Manomet Life-Saving to go to the rescue of the steamer Robert E. Lee.  The Lee had grounded on Mary Ann Rocks in a heavy gale.  While returning to the station the surfboat capsized due to extremely heavy seas, spilling all nine men into the water.  Six were rescued but "Captain" Cashman, Surfman Frank W. Griswold, and Surfman Edward R. Stark perished in the line of duty in the freezing water.  During the on-going search and rescue operations all 236 passengers and crew from the Robert E. Lee were saved.

 

William Ham

William Ham was a very aggressive cutter captain during the War of 1812. As commander of the Norfolk-based cutter Jefferson, he took by force the British schooner Patriot on June 25, 1812. This event took place just a week after the proclamation of war and was the first American maritime capture of the conflict. On April 12, 1813, four Royal Navy barges captured the American schooner Flight. With volunteer militia on board Jefferson, Ham ran down three of the barges, capturing over sixty British officers and enlisted men and freeing the captain and crew of the American merchantman. Together with the cutter Gallatin, the Jefferson also participated in the wartime seizure of the British merchant vessels General Blake, Active and Georgiana.

 

Alexander Hamilton

Secretary of the Treasury and Continental Army veteran Alexander Hamilton's first task when he joined President George Washington's cabinet was to put the finances of the young American republic in order. Hamilton realized that tariffs on imported goods were the primary means of generating revenue and that smugglers were inhibiting the collection of these funds. As such, he proposed the construction of 10 cutters to safeguard revenue by combating smuggling. On 4 August 1790 Congress authorized the construction of these vessels and for his foresight Hamilton is regarded as the "Father of the Coast Guard."

Winfield J. Hammond

Chief Aviation Electronicsman Winfield J. Hammond was posthumously awarded the Gold Lifesaving Medal for heroic daring during a sea rescue on 18 January 1953.  Hammond was a crewman on board a Coast Guard PBM that crashed offshore of mainland China while conducting a rescue of the crew of a Navy reconnaissance aircraft that had been shot down.  He was killed in the crash.  

Marcus A. Hanna

Marcus A. Hanna was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions while serving in the Union Army during the Civil War.  On 4 July 1863 at Port Hudson, Louisiana, Hanna "voluntarily exposed himself to heavy enemy fire" to get water for his comrades.  After the war Hanna served as the principal keeper of the Cape Elizabeth Light Station, located near Portland, Maine.  On 28 January 1885 he rescued two men from the wrecked schooner Australia and for this action was awarded the Gold Lifesaving Medal.  As such, Hanna is the only individual to have been awarded both the Medal of Honor and the Gold Lifesaving Medal.  

Glen Livingston Harris

Surfman Glen Livingston Harris was awarded a Silver Star by Admiral Chester Nimitz for his combat actions during the invasion of Guadalcanal.  He participated in the first wave landings at Tulagi Island. His citation reads: "For distinguishing himself conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity in action during the landings on Tulagi Island, whose boat with seven others, constituted the first assault wave.  He landed his embarked troops and then made repeated trips during that day and the following two days, in spite of heavy enemy fire, to effect the landing of equipment, ammunition and supplies, and on September 8 he made a landing against a Japanese force at Taivu Point, Guadalcanal Island; thereby materially contributing to the successful operations in which the enemy were defeated.  His conduct throughout was in keeping with the finest traditions of the United States Coast Guard."  Vice Admiral Russell R. Waesche, Commandant of the Coast Guard, also promoted him to Machinist's Mate, Second Class.

Frederick T. Hatch

Surfman Frederick Hatch was a two-time winner of the Gold Lifesaving Medal.  He earned his first award while serving in the Life-Saving Service and the second while serving as a keeper in the Lighthouse Service.

Mike Healy

Michael A. "Hell-Roaring Mike" Healy, the son of a slave, served a distinguished career as the Captain of the United States’ most famous cutter, USRC Bear he saved hundreds of men.  In 1890 he initiated the successful program which transferred herds of reindeer from Siberia to Alaska in order to help feed the native Alaskan population.  In addition to this humanitarian effort, Healy was the service’s foremost Arctic navigator and he maintained American laws in Alaska in the absence of established courts.  

Henry G. Hemingway

Captain Henry Hemingway had a distinguished career, primarily at sea.  He saw service as a line officer aboard the famous cutter Rush on the Bering Sea Patrol and McCulloch as well as the Morrill during the Mont Blanc disaster in Halifax, Nova Scotia.  He served as the gunnery officer aboard the USS San Diego during World War I and survived the torpedoing of that warship by the U-156.  He commanded the cutter Snohomish in 1923 during a search-and-rescue case off Port Angeles that defied belief and earned him the Gold Lifesaving Medal for his actions in saving the entire crew of the SS Nika during a gale.

 

Coit T. Hendley

Lieutenant, junior grade Coit Hendley was awarded the Silver Star: "For heroism as Commanding Officer of the USS LCI(L)-85 while landing assault troops in Normandy, France, June 6, 1944.  Lieutenant Hendley successfully landed his troops despite the mining of his vessel, fire in three compartments and a concentration of enemy fire while unloading.  His courage and seamanship in directing repairs and retracting from the beach resulted in saving the lives of many wounded aboard."

           

Heriberto Hernandez

Fireman Heriberto Hernandez was killed in action while carrying out a reconnaissance mission on the Rach Nang River in South Vietnam while in a small boat from his cutter, CGC Point Cypress.  Two other Coast Guardsmen with him were wounded but survived.   For his bravery as he faced the enemy, Hernandez was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart Medal and the Bronze Star Medal with the Combat “V” device. "'Skill, courage under enemy fire, and devotion to duty:' Bronze Star Medal Recipient Heriberto "Eddie" Hernandez and Coast Guard Smallboat Operations in Vietnam” by Dr. William Thiesen, The Quarterdeck Log, Vol. 28, No. 2 (Summer 2013).

 

Master Benjamin Hiller

As master of the cutter Pickering, Benjamin Hiller established quite a reputation as a combat captain in the Quasi-War with France. Pickering’s battle with the French privateer l’Egypte Conquise serves as a testament to Hiller’s bravery in the face of tremendous odds. In early October 1799, the French sent the most powerful privateer in the West Indies on a mission to capture Pickering. With between fourteen and eighteen nine-and six-pound cannon, and double-manned with between 175 and 250 men, the privateer out-gunned and out-manned Pickering’s defenses of fourteen four-pounders and a crew of less than one hundred. Termed by witnesses as “severe,” the nine-hour duel occurred around October 8th, 1799. It continued for five hours, ceased for an hour and re-commenced for three additional hours after which the privateer struck its colors and surrendered.

Hiller compiled an impressive record as master of the Pickering. Between early 1799 and the summer of 1800, his cutter captured over fifteen vessels. These included a French merchant vessel valued at $100,000 (in 1799 dollars) and at least ten prize vessels the French had captured. This figure also included five French privateers, a number of which rivaled Pickering’s fighting strength. Pickering disappeared with all hands in a violent storm in September 1800, in which the frigate USS Insurgente was also lost with all hands.

 

James A. Hirshfield

Vice-Admiral James Hirshfield had a remarkable career in the Coast Guard.  He is perhaps best remembered for his actions during a convoy battle on the North Atlantic during the Second World War while he commanded the cutter Campbell.  The Campbell engaged six U-boats and sank a seventh all in the period of two days.  Hirshfield earned the Navy Cross for his actions, one of only six such awards given to Coast Guardsmen during that conflict.

Calvin Hooper

Calvin Hooper was a long-time captain in the Bering Sea and was the first commanding officer of the Bering Sea Patrol.  He served as the commanding officer of the revenue cutter Corwin when that cutter became the first to cruise systematically in the Arctic Ocean in 1880.

 

Terrell Horne III

On 2 December 2012 Chief Boatswain's Mate Terrell Horne, III, the Executive Petty Officer of the Coast Guard Cutter Halibut, was killed in the line of duty while conducting maritime law enforcement operations off the coast of California. He sustained fatal injuries when the small boat he was on was rammed by a vessel being operated by drug smuggling criminals.  One of Horne’s final actions was to push a fellow crewmember out of the way before the smuggling vessel collided with the Coast Guard small boat, thereby giving his life to save his shipmates.  He was posthumously promoted to the rank of Senior Chief Petty Officer and awarded the Coast Guard Medal.

 

Donald R. Horsley

Master Chief Boatswains Mate Donald Robert Horsley served the Coast Guard though 44 years of continuous service from age 17 to 62, enlisting on 4 August 1942. He served on active duty for 44 years, four months, and 27 days. His career spanned three wars, and saw service on board 34 vessels. During the Vietnam War, BMCM Horsley served 41 months as the senior enlisted person assigned to Division 13, Coast Guard Squadron One out of Cat Lo, Republic of Vietnam. This Division of 82-foot patrol boats was tasked with the maritime interdiction of the reinforcement and re-supply of Communist forces fighting in South Vietnam. During this assignment, BMCM Horsley was awarded the Bronze Star with a Combat "V". After Vietnam, Horsley served throughout the Pacific, including assignments on board the seagoing tender Basswood and as the Officer-in-Charge of the Coast Guard Buoy Depot on Guam. In 1976, he was assigned as the Officer-in- Charge on board the river tender Wyaconda, out of Dubuque, Iowa. He returned to sea on board the cutter Sherman and was transferred to Morgenthau when Sherman was decommissioned in early 1986. At his retirement ceremony in January 1987, Horsley was awarded the Meritorious Service Medal.

 

George F. Hutchinson

Lieutenant, junior grade George F. Hutchinson was awarded the Silver Star: "For gallantry in action against the enemy as Commanding Officer of the USS LCI(L)-83 while landing assault troops in Normandy, France, June 6, 1944.  Lieutenant Hutchinson directed his ship to the beach through heavily mined obstacle while under heavy enemy fire that caused numerous Army casualties, successfully unloaded troops after the ship was mined and remained with the ship effecting repairs that enabled it to come off the beach on the next tide."

 

Miles H. Imlay

Captain Miles H. Imlay commanded a flotilla of Coast Guard landing vessels in all major amphibious invasions in the European Theater of operations during the Second World War, including the invasion of occupied France at Normandy.  He was the second in command of one of the three invasion groups that landed at Omaha Beach on the morning of June 6, 1944 and sailed off the beaches during the day directing incoming landing craft to their correct landing places, continually under enemy fire. He later assumed command of that force after the assault group commander returned to England. He was instrumental in restoring operations off Normandy after the storms of late June wrecked the artificial harbors created off the invasion beaches. He was awarded the Silver Star for his actions on D-Day and also earned the Legion of Merit for his actions at the invasion of Sicily and a gold star in lieu of a second Legion of Merit for his role during the invasion of Salerno, Italy.  

Joshua James

Captain Joshua James served for his entire adult life as a life-saver. Beginning with the Massachusetts Humane Society at age 15, he ended his career in the Life-Saving Service at age 74 when he died while still serving at his Point Allerton Life-Saving station.  During that career he earned almost every medal available for bravery and the Life-Saving Service Superintendent, Sumner Kimball, wrote "Captain Joshua James was probably the most celebrated life-saver in the world."  

David H. Jarvis

David Henry Jarvis was appointed to the Revenue Cutter Service in 1881, and served until his retirement as a captain in 1905.  He spent the majority of his career in Alaska and the Bering Sea.  His most famous adventure came during an expedition to save the men of a whaling fleet that had become trapped in the ice off Point Barrow, Alaska, during the winter of 1897-1898.  Jarvis, then a first-lieutenant, led a three-man rescue team consisting of Second-Lieutenant Ellsworth P. Bertholf and Doctor J.S. Call of the U. S. Public Health Service, with a herd of about 400 reindeer across 1,500 miles of tundra and pack-ice to Point Barrow.  They arrived after a journey of 99 days and thereby saved over 300 men from starvation. They had completed the longest rescue mission ever undertaken in Coast Guard history.  On 28 June 1902, Congress, in response to a request from President William McKinley to recognize officially what he called a "victory of peace," awarded Gold Medals of Honor to Jarvis and the other two members of what became known as the Overland Relief Expedition.

 

Maurice Jester

Lieutenant Commander Maurice Jester was the commanding officer of the cutter Icarus that attacked and sank the more heavily armed U-352 off the coast of North Carolina during the Second World War.  The Navy awarded Jester the Navy Cross for his actions in sinking the Nazi submarine, the second U-boat sunk by U.S. forces during the war.  

 

Clifford Johnson

Petty Officer Clifford Johnson was on liberty at the Coconut Grove Lounge in Boston on the night of 28 November 1942 when the lounge caught fire.  Over 490 persons perished in what was one of the worst fires in the nation's history.  Petty Officer Johnson repeatedly risked his life by entering the fire on four occasions to pull victims from the flames, receiving severe burns over his body.  He spent over two years in the hospital recovering from his injuries.

Jerome G. Kiah

Keeper Jerome G. Kiah, keeper of the Point Aux Barques, Michigan, Lifeboat Station, was awarded the Gold Lifesaving Medal for his gallant attempt to rescue people on board the scow J.H. Magruder in 1880. His boat capsized and he was the only survivor. He later became a district superintendent.  

Sumner I. Kimball

Sumner Increase Kimball was the man most responsible for organizing the U.S. Life-Saving Service, established in 1878.  He served as its head for its entire existence through its merger with the Revenue Cutter Service in 1915. He also served as the civilian head of the Revenue Marine Bureau within the Department of the Treasury, and so was intimately connected to both the Revenue Cutter Service and the Life-Saving Service, the fore-bears of the present day Coast Guard.  In 1877 he established a School of Instruction whereby the service selected and trained its own officer replacements, the fore-runner of the Coast Guard Academy.  

Michael Kirkpatrick

Lieutenant (j.g.) Michael Kirkpatrick was the executive officer of the cutter Point Arden during the conflict in Vietnam.  While acting as the mount captain, directing harassment-and interdiction mortar fire against enemy positions along the South Vietnamese coast on 9 August 1969, the mortar battery exploded, mortally wounding him.

 

William J. Kossler

Captain William J. Kossler was the Chief of Aeronautical Engineering who urged, in concert with Frank Ericsson, the development of the helicopter for military use and rescue work. Because of his far vision and confidence in the principle of rotary wing aircraft, Captain Kossler was greatly responsible for the adoption of the helicopter by the Coast Guard and Navy. He was instrumental in establishing a helicopter training base for all the U.S. military services and for the British Admiralty at the Coast Guard Air Station in Brooklyn.

 

Lawrence O. Lawson

Keeper Lawrence O. Lawson of the Evanston, Illinois, Life-boat Station was awarded the Gold Lifesaving medal for the rescue of the crew of the steam vessel Calumet on November 28, 1889.  His boat crew, made up entirely of students from Northwestern University, took a train, rode horses, and walked to the site of the wreck 15 miles from the station through a gale.  Rescue was effected only after the display of extraordinary courage and heroism by the boat’s crewThey launched a surfboat under near impossible conditions to rescue the 18-man crew of the Calumet.  He was known throughout the service for his leadership abilities.  

Frederick Lee

Captain Frederick Lee, USRM, commanded the revenue cutter Eagle during the War of 1812.  The British captured the Eagle only after a battle that lasted for over a day in which Eagle's crew valiantly fought the British from the shore when their cutter grounded.  

Ida Lewis

Taking over for her father who had been incapacitated by a stroke, Idawalley Z. Lewis served 39 years as the keeper of the Lime Rock, Rhode Island, Lighthouse. She made her first rescue at age 15, and was credited with saving 18 lives. She made her last rescue when she was 65, fifty years after her first. In recognition for her outstanding career as the keeper at Lime Rock, the light was renamed Ida Lewis Light.  

Harris Loomis

Captain Harris Loomis was the commanding officer of the revenue cutter Louisiana that assisted in the destruction of a pirate base on Breton Island in 1820.  While under his command the Louisiana also captured nine pirate vessels.

Raymond J. Mauerman

Captain Raymond J. Mauerman, USCG, was awarded the Legion of Merit for: "meritorious conduct as commanding officer of the USS JOSEPH T. DICKMAN during the amphibious invasion of Italy. Displaying keen judgment and expert professional skill, he effectively directed the training planning and performance of his; ship under devastating hostile fire, enabling troops, vehicles and equipment to be disembarked expeditiously on the well fortified enemy beachhead. By his splendid ship handling and sound evasive tactics he fought his vessel ably and efficiently during repeated heavy bombing attacks and brought her through without serious casualties to his command."  CAPT Mauerman was awarded a Gold Star in lieu of a second Legion of Merit for: "outstanding services as commanding officer of DICKMAN prior to and during the amphibious invasion of Southern France 15, 1944. Captain Mauerman efficiently organized and thoroughly trained his ship and boat group to execute the assigned mission leading transporting to the assault area and landing the embarked army assault units on the invasion beaches on the coast of Southern France. His able conduct of this task contributed materially to the effective establishment of the beachhead and to the overall success of the invasion."

C. C. Mauethrop

Seaman C. C. Mauethrop, a member of the crew of RC Commodore Perry, gave his life in the performance of his duties in Unalaska in 1896.  Prior to his death he rescued four of his shipmates who had fallen into the sea from the cutter's launch after they had gone to rescue another crewman who had fallen overboard.  Mauethrop "grabbed a line and leaped over the side" into the freezing water to rescue the four. He died later when he fell from a mast after trying to free a fouled pennant.

 

John A. Midgett

John Allen Midgett was the Keeper of the Chicamacomico Lifeboat Station, North Carolina. On 16 August 1918 Midgett heard an explosion and saw the British tanker, Mirlo, (a victim of U-117) foundering. Manning a power surfboat Midgett and his men (5 of 6 of whom were also named Midgett) went out to render assistance. Braving a heavy surf and burning oil, Midgett and his crew were able to save all but 10 men in this 6 ½ hour ordeal. For their efforts the Midgetts received Gold Lifesaving medals.

 

Rasmus S. Midgett

Surfman Rasmus S. Midgett single-handedly rescued ten people from the grounded ship, Priscilla, on 18 August 1899. While on patrol three miles from the Gull Shoal Lifeboat Station, Midgett noticed the flotsam and heard the cries from the broken vessel. Deciding to take immediate action, he first directed seven of the passengers through the surf and then he carried the other three to safety. For his actions he received the Gold Lifesaving Medal.  

Harold Christian Miller

Boatswain's Mate Second Class Harold Christian Miller was awarded a Silver Star by Admiral Chester Nimitz for his combat actions during the invasion of Guadalcanal. He participated in the first wave landings at Tulagi Island. His citation reads: "For distinguishing himself conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity in action during the landings on Tulagi Island, whose boat with seven others, constituted the first assault wave. He landed his embarked troops and then made repeated trips during that day and the following two days, in spite of heavy enemy fire, to effect the landing of equipment, ammunition and supplies, and on September 8 he made a landing against a Japanese force at Taivu Point, Guadalcanal Island; thereby materially contributing to the successful operations in which the enemy were defeated. His conduct throughout was in keeping with the finest traditions of the United States Coast Guard."  Vice Admiral Russell R. Waesche, Commandant of the Coast Guard, also promoted him to Boatswain's Mate, First Class.

Tracey W. Miller

Aviation Machinists Mate 3/c Tracey W. Miller was posthumously awarded the Gold Lifesaving Medal for "heroic daring during a sea rescue on 18 January 1953."   Miller was a crewman on board a Coast Guard PBM that crashed offshore of mainland China while conducting a rescue of the crew of a Navy reconnaissance aircraft that had been shot down.  He was killed in the crash. 

Kathleen A.  Moore

Kathleen "Kate" Moore served as the keeper of the Fayerweather Lighthouse of Black Rock in Bridgeport for decades.  Her father began tending the light in 1817 and Ms. Moore began assisting him in 1824 when she was twelve.   When her father became ill, she took over all of his duties.  Although she served as the principal keeper during that time she did not receive her official appointment as the head keeper until 1871.  She saved at least 21 lives during her tenure.  She retired from service in 1878.

Charles B. Mosher

Lieutenant (j.g.) Charles B. Mosher, commanding USCGC Point Grey, was awarded the Silver Star Medal "for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action"  while serving on a Market Time patrol.  On 10 May 1966 near the mouth of the Co Chien River, the Point Grey engaged an enemy trawler attempting to infiltrate arms and ammunition to the Viet Cong.  After forcing the trawler to ground in shoal water near the shoreline, "POINT GREY laid down an effective, intermittent barrage along the shore to prevent Viet Cong forces from removing the trawler's cargo. . .[he] twice drove his cutter through a withering blast of enemy gunfire in attempts to put a boarding party on the trawler,  He ceased these valiant attempts to put a boarding party on the trawler only after three of his crewmembers were wounded.  He then joined with newly arrived friendly forces in destroying the enemy vessel and confiscating part of its cargo.  Lieutenant (jg) Mosher's outstanding leadership and professional skill were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Coast Guard."

Douglas A. Munro

Signalman First Class Douglas A. Munro was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions at the Matanikau River, Guadalcanal on 27 September 1942.  As coxswain of a 36-foot Higgins boat, Munro took charge of the dozen craft which helped evacuate the surrounded elements of the 1st Battalion, 7th Marines under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Lewis B. "Chesty" Puller.  Shortly after the last marine got on board, Munro was shot and killed by enemy fire.  He is the only Coast Guardsman to have been awarded the Medal of Honor.  

James J. Nevins

Boy 1/c James J. Nevins, of the cutter USCGC Seneca on convoy duty during the First World War, was posthumously awarded a Navy Cross "for services in attempting to save the British merchant steamer Wellington after she had been torpedoed by a German submarine, and who lost his life when the Wellington foundered on September 17, 1918."  

Carl S. Newbury

Coxswain Carl S. Newbury of the cutter Seneca was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross "for services in attempting to save the British merchant steamer Wellington after she had been torpedoed by a German submarine, and who lost his life when the Wellington foundered on September 17, 1918."  

Frank Newcomb

Lieutenant Frank Newcomb was the commanding officer of the revenue cutter Hudson at the battle for Cardenas, Cuba, during the Spanish American War. Newcomb and his crew rescued the disabled Navy torpedo boat USS Winslow under fire. President William McKinley noted in his request to Congress to recognize the gallantry of Newcomb and his crew with a special medal. The President noted that "In the face of a most galling fire from the enemy's guns, the revenue cutter Hudson, commanded by First Lieutenant Frank h. Newcomb, United States Revenue Cutter Service, rescued the disabled Winslow, her wounded commander and remaining crew. The commander of the Hudson kept his vessel in the very hottest fire of the action, although in constant danger of going ashore on account of the shallow water, until he finally got a line fast to the Winslow and towed that vessel out of range of the enemy's guns, a deed of special gallantry." Congress awarded Newcomb a gold Congressional medal, the officers of Hudson received silver medals, and the crew received bronze medals for their heroism. These were the only specially struck medals awarded for bravery during the war. 

Margaret Norvell

Margaret Norvell, a keeper in the U.S. Lighthouse Service, served at the Head of Passes Light from 1891 to 1896, the Port Pontchartrain Light from 1896 to 1924 as the head keeper and then finished her career at the West End Light where she served from 1924 to 1932.  She rescued numerous shipwrecked persons during her career and assisted many others in distress.  On one occasion in 1903 when a storm swept away every building in the community except the lighthouse she cared for over 200 people who had been left homeless.

Merlin O'Neill

Captain Merlin O'Neill, USCG, was awarded the Legion of Merit for: "outstanding services in the amphibious invasion of the Island of Sicily as commanding officer of the USS LEONARD WOOD. By careful preparation, outstanding professional skill and cool and energetic leadership under fire, he affected the landing of embarked troops and equipment in such manner as to contribute greatly to the success of the assault. He ably fought his ship during enemy bombing attacks, and upon completion of operations, retired from the combat area without any damage to the ship."

Douglas Ottinger

Captain Douglas Ottinger was a commander of the revenue cutter Lawrence. He gained fame when he boarded the clipper ship Challenge with a small armed party to quell a riot that had broken out in the harbor where Challenge was berthed. When the mob boarded the vessel, Ottinger and his party dispersed the mob and saved the vessel. Ottinger was also an early Inspector of the US Life-Saving Service.  He built the early Lifesaving Service boathouses on the Jersey shore and promoted the use of the life-car.

Martin M. Ovesen

Water Tender Martin M. Ovesen, of the  cutter Seneca on convoy duty during the First World War, was posthumously awarded a Navy Cross "for services in attempting to save the British merchant steamer Wellington after she had been torpedoed by a German submarine, and who lost his life when the Wellington foundered on September 17, 1918."  

Gene E. Oxley

Seaman 1/c Gene E. Oxley was awarded the Silver Star for his actions on D-Day at Normandy on 6 June 1944.  His citation reads: "For gallantry while on the USS LCI(L)-85 during the assault on the coast of France June 6, 1944, and for extraordinary courage in volunteering and twice taking a line ashore, in the face of heavy machine gun and shell fire, in order to assist troops unloading from the ship to the beach through chest deep water."

Richard H. Patterson

BMC Richard Patterson served on board the cutter Point Welcome when the cutter came under attack by friendly aircraft in August, 1965 just south of the demilitarized zone in South Vietnam.  The first attack caused a blazing gasoline fire on the fantail of the cutter that threatened to engulf the entire after section of the vessel.  Chief Patterson, displaying the finest qualities of bravery and leadership, took charge of the situation and using a fire hose, forced the flaming liquid over the side, thus extinguishing the fire.  Even as he was accomplishing this task, he saw the second aircraft attack rip through the pilot house killing the cutter's commanding officer and seriously wounding the executive officer and the helmsman. Unhesitatingly, and with complete disregard for his personal safety, Chief Patterson climbed to the bridge and took command.  He ordered the crew to carry the wounded to the comparative safety of the below decks area.  Alone on the bridge, he then maneuvered the cutter at high speed to avoid subsequent attacks.  When it became apparent that he could not successfully evade the attacking aircraft, he ran the cutter close ashore, and directed the crew to abandon ship.  Under his composed leadership, the wounded were wrapped in life jackets and paired with the able bodied before going over the side.  Chief Patterson kept his crew calm and organized while they were in the water and until they were picked up by rescue craft.  The Navy Department awarded him the bronze star with the combat "V" device for his actions.

Carl U. Peterson

Lieutenant Commander Carl U. Peterson was the commanding officer of the cutter Escanaba which was sunk in the North Atlantic in June of 1943 with a loss of all but two crewmen. The cutter had been on escort duty.  He was posthumously awarded the Legion of Merit for "outstanding services as commanding officer of the USCGC Escanaba while that vessel was engaged in rescue operations in behalf of an American transport [Dorchester] which was torpedoed and sunk on February 3, 1943.  Proceeding through heavy seas in total darkness, Lt. Comdr. Peterson, under imminent threat of enemy attack, took immediate action which involved great skill with the result that 133 men were rescued from the sea."

Kenneth Phillips

Lieutenant Commander Kenneth Phillips was the commanding officer of the Coast Guard manned destroyer escort USS Leopold during the Second World War. The Leopold, while escorting a convoy across the North Atlantic, was torpedoed and sunk by a U-boat. He ensured that his men abandoned ship and did his utmost to encourage his men to survive in the frigid waters until they were rescued. He did not survive.

Robert H. Prause

Lieutenant Robert H. Prause, the executive officer of cutter Escanaba, was awarded a posthumous Letter of Commendation for his work in organizing and supervising the rescue operations of the survivors of the sinking of the troopship Dorchester on 3 February 1943.  The handling, by LT Prause, of the survivors and crew members in the water while the ship was maneuvering, plus the prompt recovery of two crew members who were pulled overboard as they tried to keep the survivors alongside, displayed sound judgment and excellent seamanship.  Despite the lack of illumination there was no confusion.  Everyone worked with grim determination to cheat the enemy out of as many victims as possible, despite the constant threat of submarine action.  LT Prause had previously planned the retriever method of rescue and had gone into the icy water off the dock at Bluie West One, Greenland, in a rubber suit with a line attached.  He perished later that year when Escanaba blew up and sank while on convoy duty. 

William H. Prime

Seaman William H. Prime, of the cutter Seneca on convoy duty during the First World War, was posthumously awarded a Navy Cross "for services in attempting to save the British merchant steamer Wellington after she had been torpedoed by a German submarine, and who lost his life when the Wellington foundered on September 17, 1918."  

John A. Pritchard

Lieutenant John A. Pritchard was a Coast Guard aviator assigned to the cutter Northland on the Greenland Patrol during World War II. He and his radio operator, ARM1c Benjamin Bottoms, were killed when his aircraft crashed while attempting to rescue a downed Army Air Force B-17 crew in Greenland during a severe storm. The day before Pritchard had already rescued two of the bomber’s crew and he heroically volunteered to attempt another flight to rescue the remaining Army Air Force personnel even though a storm was closing in on the crash site.

 

Forrest O. Rednour

Ship's Cook, 2/c Rednour, of Chicago, was awarded the Navy & Marine Corps Medal during World War II.  His citation reads: "For heroic conduct while aboard the CGC Escanaba during the rescue of survivors from a torpedoed ship [Dorchester] in North Atlantic waters.  Despite possible enemy submarine action, Rednour risked his life in the black and icy waters to aid in the rescue of unconscious and helpless survivors.  Realizing the danger of being crushed between the rafts and the ship's side or of being struck by a propeller blade if the engines backed, he swam in under the counter of the constantly maneuvering Escanaba and prevented many floating survivors from being caught in the suction of the screws, in one instance retrieving a loading raft.  Rednour's gallant and voluntary action in subjecting himself to pounding seas and bitter cold for nearly four hours contributed to the rescue of 145 persons."  Rednour worked the longest of all retrievers and accounted for the greatest number of survivors.

Jack Rittichier

Lieutenant Jack Rittichier began his flying career with the U.S. Air Force before accepting a commission with the Coast Guard in 1963 and began his first Coast Guard assignment flying out of Air Station Elizabeth City.  He quickly earned a Unit Commendation for his rescue work during Hurricane Betsy.  In May 1966 he was assigned to Air Station Detroit and was awarded the Air Medal in June 1967 for his role as the copilot of a helicopter that flew 150 miles from Detroit, in blinding snow and ice conditions, to rescue eight seamen from the West German motor vessel Nordmeer.  Rittichier was one of the first three Coast Guard exchange pilots to volunteer to fly combat search and rescue missions with the Air Force's 37th Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron in the Republic of Vietnam.  Within three weeks of his arrival in Vietnam he demonstrated his courage above and beyond the call of duty.  Flying through heavy enemy fire to save four Army fliers, he earned a Distinguished Flying Cross.  Two weeks later, under the light of illumination flares, he pulled nine men from the side of a mountain, five of whom were badly wounded.  On 9 June 1968, 37 miles west of Hue, Rittichier, along with his crew, attempted to rescue a downed Marine Corps fighter pilot.  After heavy enemy fire forced him to pull away during his first attempt to land, he came around again after the area had been swept by helicopter gunships.  As he hovered near the Marine pilot, however, enemy bullets riddled his HH-3E "Jolly Green Giant" helicopter and set it afire.  He tried to pull away, but his aircraft would not respond.  The helicopter settled to the ground and exploded.  Within 30 seconds a ball of fire consumed the aircraft, killing all on board.  During his distinguished career, he demonstrated a fearless determination to save lives at the risk of his own.  He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross with two oak leaf clusters, the Air Medal with three oak leaf clusters, the Silver Star, a Purple Heart, and a Coast Guard Unit Commendation.  

Robert M. Salmon

Lieutenant Robert M. Salmon was awarded the Silver Star: "For gallantry as commanding officer of a U.S. LCI(L) while landing assault troops in Normandy, France, June 6, 1944.  He pressed the landing of troops despite the mining of his vessel, a serious fire forward and heavy enemy gunfire.  He supervised the unloading of troops, directed the fire fighting despite the loss of proper equipment and exhibiting courage of a high degree remained with the ship until it was impossible to control the progress of the fire until it was impossible to control the progress of the fire and it was necessary to abandon ship over the stern.  After abandoning he directed a party searching for firefighting equipment and subsequently fought the fire on another LCI(L) and assisted her commanding officer until she was abandoned."

 

Sidney Sanderlin

BMC Sidney Sanderlin was the commanding officer of CG-249, a 75-foot patrol boat, who was killed in action in 1927 during a boarding and arrest while enforcing the Prohibition laws. His killer, Horace Alderman, was hanged at the Coast Guard Section Base, Fort Lauderdale, FL.

Charles Satterlee

Captain Charles Satterlee was the commanding officer of the cutter Tampa during the First World War. He was killed in action when the Tampa was torpedoed and lost with all hands on September 26, 1918. He was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Medal.

 

Charles B. Sexton

Machinery Technician First Class Charles W. Sexton, USCG, was awarded a posthumous award of the Coast Guard Medal for "extraordinary heroism."  His award citation stated: "Petty Officer SEXTON is cited for extraordinary heroism on 11 January 1991 while serving as emergency medical technician aboard Coast Guard Motor Lifeboat CG-44381.  The boat crew was responding to a distress call from F/V SEA KING, a 75-foot stern trawler with four persons on board, which was taking on water and in danger of sinking, four nautical miles northwest of the Columbia River Bar, with her decks awash and after compartment and engine room steadily filling up with water.  From the relative safety the motor lifeboat, Petty Officer SEXTON unselfishly volunteered to go aboard the foundering fishing vessel to treat the injuries of a SEA KING crew member who had fallen to the deck boat during a failed helicopter hoist.  He skillfully diagnosed the victim's injuries, informed the flight surgeon of the extent of the injuries and provided first aid treatment.  Once the victim was stabilized, Petty Officer SEXTON turned his attention to assisting with the dewatering of the vessel.  The SEA KING required several dewatering pumps to remove the initial quantity of sea water from the engine room.  Then, hourly dewatering of the vessel was necessary to maintain proper trim aboard the vessel.  After more than 6 hours of this exhausting routine, with the worst of the treacherous bar crossing behind them, the SEA KING suddenly, without warning, rolled over, throwing victims into the churning seas and trapping Petty Officer SEXTON in the enclosed pilot house.  He went down with vessel, sacrificing his life while attempting to save the lives of the SEA KING’s crew members.  Petty Officer SEXTON demonstrated remarkable initiative, exceptional fortitude, and daring in spite of imminent danger in this rescue.  His courage and devotion to duty are most heartily commended and are in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Coast Guard."

Leonard G. Shepard

Captain Leonard G. Shepard was the Chief of the Division of the Revenue Cutter Service from 1889-1895. He saw the service through a number of reforms that prepared it for the next century. No longer was the primary duty of the cutters revenue collection.  He oversaw the change to a constabulary of the sea.

 

Halert C. Shepheard

Commodore Halert C. Shepheard served as the Coast Guard's Chief of the Merchant Marine Inspection Division during World War II.  At the invitation of General Dwight Eisenhower, Vice Admiral Russell Waesche appointed then-Captain Shepheard to serve on the staff of SHAEF during the planning for the Normandy Invasion where he was the staff expert on issues regarding the merchant marine. For his service during the war, Commodore Shepheard was awarded the Legion of Merit.  His citation read, in part: "Uncompromising in his devotion to duty and tireless in his efforts, Commodore Shepheard, by his resourceful initiative and judgment, contributed essentially to the development of an efficient war-time  United States Merchant Marine for the transportation of troops, war-time personnel and war cargoes to all fronts of the world on merchant and troop ships with a minimum loss of ships, passengers, operating personnel or cargoes, thereby serving the interests of his country to the best of his fine abilities throughout the most critical period in the history of the Nation."

Charles F. Shoemaker

Captain Charles F. Shoemaker replaced Captain Leonard Shepard as the Chief of the Revenue Cutter Service in 1895. He oversaw the establishment of a permanent school to train cadets and convinced Congress to authorize and appropriate money for the construction of newer cutters capable of ocean cruising.

Edward Smith

Rear Admiral Edward "Iceberg" Smith served for 40 years in the Coast Guard.  He was the first Coast Guardsman to earn a Ph.D.  He commanded the Greenland Patrol during the Second World War after first becoming an expert in arctic operations and oceanography before the war with the International Ice Patrol.  The Navy awarded him the Distinguished Service Medal for his war-time activities.  Prior to the war he participated in the Marion Expedition and took part in the Graf Zeppelin polar flight of 1931.  After the war he commanded the Third District and the Eastern Area before retiring in 1950.  He went on to head the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute.

William Allerton Sparling

Coxswain William Allerton Sparling was awarded a Silver Star by Admiral Chester Nimitz for his combat actions during the invasion of Guadalcanal. He participated in the first wave landings at Tulagi Island. His citation reads: "For distinguishing himself conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity in action during the landings on Tulagi Island, whose boat with seven others, constituted the first assault wave. He landed his embarked troops and then made repeated trips during that day and the following two days, in spite of heavy enemy fire, to effect the landing of equipment, ammunition and supplies, and on September 8 he made a landing against a Japanese force at Taivu Point, Guadalcanal Island; thereby materially contributing to the successful operations in which the enemy were defeated. His conduct throughout was in keeping with the finest traditions of the United States Coast Guard." Vice Admiral Russell R. Waesche, Commandant of the Coast Guard, also promoted him to Boatswain's Mate, Second Class.

 

Edward R. Stark

On 9 March 1928 a pulling surfboat with nine men aboard, under the command of Boatswain's Mate First Class William Cashman, got underway from the Manomet Life-Saving to go to the rescue of the steamer Robert E. Lee.  The Lee had grounded on Mary Ann Rocks in a heavy gale.  While returning to the station the surfboat capsized due to extremely heavy seas, spilling all nine men into the water.  Six were rescued but "Captain" Cashman, Surfman Frank W. Griswold, and Surfman Edward R. Stark perished in the line of duty in the freezing water.  During the on-going search and rescue operations all 236 passengers and crew from the Robert E. Lee were saved.

Merton Stellenwerf

Coxswain Merton Stellenwerf, of the cutter Seneca on convoy duty during the First World War, was posthumously awarded a Navy Cross "for services in attempting to save the British merchant steamer Wellington after she had been torpedoed by a German submarine, and who lost his life when the Wellington foundered on September 17, 1918."  

Joseph E. Stika

Lieutenant Joseph E. Stika was awarded the Navy Cross for heroic conduct on the occasion of the explosion and fire at the T.A. Gillespie shell-loading plant at Morgan, New Jersey, in October 1918.  

Elmer F. Stone

Commander Elmer "Archie" Fowler Stone was a Coast Guard aviation pioneer. He was one of two officers to first suggest that the Coast Guard develop an aviation capability and became the Coast Guard's first aviator upon graduating from flight training at Pensacola. Stone piloted the Navy's NC-4 on its historic and successful trans-Atlantic flight in 1919. For this daring feat, Stone earned a Congressional Medal of Achievement as well as a Navy Cross. Stone then worked with the Navy's Bureau of Aeronautics for the next six years as a test pilot. Here he assisted in the development of the catapults and arresting gear of the new aircraft carriers USS Lexington and USS Saratoga, equipment still used on aircraft carriers to this day. After a tour at sea, "Archie" Stone became the commanding officer of the Coast Guard Aviation Unit at Cape May, NJ. He continued to develop his skill at making open-ocean landings until he was arguably the best seaplane pilot in any of the world's naval services. In 1933 when the Navy dirigible Akron went down off the Atlantic coast in a storm with only three survivors of the 76 aboard, Stone was the only pilot available willing to attempt a landing in the heavy seas. He accomplished this successfully, but was too late to save any more lives. In December 1934 Stone set a new world speed for amphibian aircraft. His last duty was as the commanding officer of the Air Patrol Detachment in San Diego. He died of a heart attack while on duty on 26 May 1936 and was buried in Arlington National Cemetery. Stone was a pivotal figure in the establishment and development of aviation for the Coast Guard and the Navy and was a favorite of many of the famous aviation figures of the day, including Eddie Rickenbacker, aircraft designers Anthony Fokker, Igor Sikorsky, and Alexander P. de Seversky and the Prince of Wales.  Commander Elmer "Archie" Stone was enshrined in the Naval Aviation Hall of Honor in 1983.  

Dorothy Stratton

Captain Dorothy Stratton, USCGR, directed the Coast Guard’s Women’s Reserve or SPARs during the Second World War. A full professor and the dean for women at Purdue University, Stratton was the first woman accepted into the women’s reserve in 1942 and she devised the name SPAR from the Coast Guard’s motto Semper Paratus - "Always Ready." Serving in administrative and support roles, the SPARs freed desperately needed men for sea duty and made a significant contribution to the American war effort.  

John F. String, Jr.

Lieutenant John F. String, Jr., USCGR, was awarded the Silver Star for: "conspicuous gallantry in action while serving as commanding officer of the USS PC 545 off Anzio, Italy on March 18, 1944. When an enemy motor torpedo boat was sighted at night. Lt, String immediately ordered the attack. With an expert display of seaman ship, he so skillfully maneuvered the ship that the first shots scored hits on the enemy craft before it was able to maneuver into position to effectively use its torpedoes and the resulting fire caused it to disintegrate in an explosion. This successful action against the enemy contributed materially to the protection of shipping in the Anzio area and to the successful maintenance of forces ashore."

Gerald W. Stuart

Lieutenant (j.g.) Gerald W. Stuart was posthumously awarded the Gold Lifesaving Medal for "heroic daring during a sea rescue on 18 January 1953."  Stuart was a crewman on board a Coast Guard PBM that crashed offshore of mainland China while conducting a rescue of the crew of a Navy reconnaissance aircraft that had been shot down.  He was killed in the crash. 

Josiah Sturgis

Captain Josiah Sturgis of the U.S. Revenue Marine was the commanding officer of the revenue cutter Hamilton that gained notoriety along the coast of New England.  He rescued hundreds of people and many ships in his career. He received many testimonials from Boston merchants and was so well known that a piano piece was written about his ship entitled the "Hamilton Quick Step." 

Daniel James Tarr

Surfman Daniel James Tarr was awarded a Silver Star by Admiral Chester Nimitz for his combat actions during the invasion of Guadalcanal. He participated in the first wave landings at Tulagi Island. His citation reads: "For distinguishing himself conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity in action during the landings on Tulagi Island, whose boat with seven others, constituted the first assault wave. He landed his embarked troops and then made repeated trips during that day and the following two days, in spite of heavy enemy fire, to effect the landing of equipment, ammunition and supplies, and on September 8 he made a landing against a Japanese force at Taivu Point, Guadalcanal Island; thereby materially contributing to the successful operations in which the enemy were defeated. His conduct throughout was in keeping with the finest traditions of the United States Coast Guard." Vice Admiral Russell R. Waesche, Commandant of the Coast Guard, also promoted him to Boatswain's Mate, Second Class.

Barham F. Thomson III

Lieutenant (j.g.) Barham F. Thomson III, commanding USCGC Point Slocum, was awarded the Silver Star Medal "for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action"  while serving on a Market Time patrol.  On 20 June 1966 the Point Slocum went to the assistance of USCGC Point League which was in a "fierce firefight" with an enemy trawler attempting to deliver arms and ammunition to Viet Cong forces near the mouth of the Co Chien River.  By the time the Point Slocum arrived on scene, the enemy trawler had been driven aground and Viet Cong forces ashore were firing on the cutters.  When friendly aircraft arrived in the area, the Point Slocum passed close along the shoreline in an attempt to draw enemy fire, thereby exposing their positions to the aircraft.  The cutter received some damage from enemy fire.  When the trawler caught fire, he "put POINT SLOCUM alongside and proceeded to extinguish the fire.  His bravery and skill in risking his vessel, first to draw the enemy fire, and then to save the captured ship and its cargo greatly contributed to the United States efforts against insurgent forces in the Republic of Vietnam and were in keeping with the highest traditions of the United States Armed Forces."

 

Raymond H. Tingard

Water Tender Raymond H. Tingard, of the cutter Seneca on convoy duty during the First World War, was posthumously awarded a Navy Cross "for services in attempting to save the British merchant steamer Wellington after she had been torpedoed by a German submarine, and who lost his life when the Wellington foundered on September 17, 1918."  

 

Carl R. Tornell

Aviation Electronicsman 1/c Carl R. Tornell was posthumously awarded the Gold Lifesaving Medal for "heroic daring during a sea rescue on 18 January 1953."  Tornell was a crewman on board a Coast Guard PBM that crashed offshore of mainland China while conducting a rescue of the crew of a Navy reconnaissance aircraft that had been shot down. He was killed in the crash. 

Samuel Travis

Captain Samuel Travis of the Revenue Marine was the commanding officer of the cutter Surveyor during the War of 1812. The cutter was boarded by the British in 1813 and captured after a brief, but spirited, engagement which so impressed the British commander that he returned Travis’s sword.  He wrote:

 "Your gallant and desperate attempt to defend your vessel against more than double your number, on the night of the 12 inst., excited such admiration on the part of your opponents, as I have seldom witnessed, and induces me to return you the sword you had so nobly used. . . . Our poor fellows have severely suffered; occasioned chiefly, if not solely, by the precautions you had taken to prevent surprise.  In short, I am at a loss which to admire most, the arrangement on board the Surveyor, or the determined manner by which her deck was disputed, inch by inch.  You have my most sincere wishes for the immediate parole and speedy exchange of yourself and brave crew. . ."

William F. Trump

Motor Machinist's Mate 1/c William F. Trump was awarded the Silver Star: "For gallantry and intrepidity in action in the assault phase of an LCI (L) which landed troops in the face of severe enemy fire and despite a profusion of beach obstacles on the coast of France June 6, 1944.  Having volunteered for the assignment he waded between the heavily mined beach obstacles and dragged an anchor and anchor-line to shallow water, thereby providing a safety line for troops to follow."

William B. Turek

Lieutenant Commander William B. Turek, a marine inspector assigned to MSO Hampton Roads, gave his life in the line of duty on 3 March 1993 while inspecting the M/V Cape Diamond.  During a test of the ship's carbon dioxide extinguishing system a release of a significant amount of CO2 imperiled the crew stationed in the engine room.  Lieutenant Commander Turek gave his life in attempting to warn those men of the CO2 release.  The Coast Guard posthumously awarded Lieutenant Commander Turek the Coast Guard Medal.

 

Aden C. Unger

Commander Aden C. Unger was awarded the Silver Star: "For outstanding services as a deputy assault group commander in the assault on the coast of France, June 6, 1944.  He took his station close to the beach under heavy enemy fire on the day of the assault and remained under fire during the most bitter period of the fighting, when with great coolness he made decisions on the spot, reorganized, grouped and dispatched craft to the beach, and made the weight of his judgment felt in a manner which contributed materially to the success of the operation."

 

Larry D. Villarreal

Engineman Second Class Larry D. Villarreal, a crewman on board the cutter Point Banks on patrol in Vietnam, was awarded the Silver Star for "his heroic courage and gallantry in action while engaged in armed conflict against North Vietnamese and Viet Cong aggressors in the Republic of Vietnam on Jan. 22, 1969."  He and fellow Point Banks crewman GM1 Willis J. Goff volunteered to man the cutter's launch to rescue a group of nine South Vietnamese soldiers who were trapped along a beach by two Viet Cong platoons.  Under continuous enemy fire, they made two landings on the beach to rescue successfully all of the South Vietnamese soldiers.  His citation read, in part: ". . .with courageous disregard for their own safety, Petty Officer Villarreal and his fellow crewmember were able to rescue the nine Vietnamese Army personnel who would have met almost certain death or capture without the assistance of the two Coast Guardsmen.  Petty Officer Villarreal's outstanding heroism, professionalism, and devotion to duty and to his fellow man were in the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service."

Christian Von Paulsen

Captain Christian Von Paulsen, a Coast Guard aviation pioneer, earned his wings in 1920.  He helped to establish the first successful Coast Guard air unit on Ten Pound Island in Gloucester Harbor in May 1925.  Using borrowed U.S. Navy aircraft, they proved that aviation was useful in carrying out traditional Coast Guard operations, including law enforcement and search and rescue.  The former was important during this time as Prohibition and the consequent increases in smuggling put the national spotlight on the Coast Guard.  Von Paulsen continued experimenting with different techniques, insuring that aviation would become an indispensable part of the Coast Guard.  He commanded Coast Guard Air Station Cape May from 1930 to 1932 and then Air Station Miami.  While he was stationed here the Treasury Department awarded him a Gold Lifesaving Medal for a daring open-sea rescue.  The rescue made him famous and he appeared in the "Unsung Heroes" comic book in the mid-1930s.  He was also a respected sailor and ship's captain as well, and commanded the Greenland Patrol during World War II.  Von Paulsen played an instrumental role in establishing the aviation arm of the Coast Guard.

Arend Vyn, Jr.

Lieutenant junior grade Arend Vyn was awarded the Silver Star: "For gallantry in action as Commanding Officer of USS LCI-91 in the assault on the coast of France June 6 1944.  Lt (j.g.) Vyn beached his ship and discharged the Army elements therein in the face of murderous fire and a labyrinth of obstacles and mines.  In spite of the fact that his ship was mined and repeatedly struck by artillery fire and small-arms fire, he continued to land the army load in the face of certain loss of his ship.  His determination to put the Army ashore was in keeping with the highest traditions of the offensive spirit of the United States Naval Service."

Russell R. Waesche, Sr.

Admiral Russell R. Waesche, Sr., was the commandant of the Coast Guard from 1936 through 1945.  He oversaw the expansion of the Coast Guard during the Second World War and managed to keep the service’s identity intact during its four years under the control of the Navy Department during that conflict.

Kate Walker

Kate Walker, a keeper with the U.S. Lighthouse Service, served at the Robbins Reef Light from 1894 to 1919.  She was originally appointed as an assistant keeper to her husband, the head keeper of the light.   When he passed away in 1886 she became the head keeper and served until she retired in 1919.  During her tenure, she rescued approximately 50 people who were shipwrecked near her station.

 

Quentin R. Walsh

Lieutenant Commander (later Captain) Quentin R. Walsh was a member of the Logistics and Planning Section, US Naval Forces during World War II.  Prior to the Normandy invasion, he planned the occupation and operation of the ports that were to be captured from the Germans. During the fighting for Cherbourg in late June 1944, Walsh and Lieutenant Frank Lauer, USNR forced the surrender of Fort du Homet, a German stronghold.  For his actions he was awarded a Navy Cross.  His citation read: [For] "Heroism as Commanding Officer of a U.S. Naval party reconnoitering the naval facilities and naval arsenal at Cherbourg June 26 and 27, 1944.  While in command of a reconnaissance party, Commander Walsh entered the port of Cherbourg and penetrated the eastern half of the city, engaging in street fighting with the enemy.  He accepted the surrender and disarmed 400 of the enemy force at the naval arsenal and later received unconditional surrender of 350 enemy troops and, at the same time, released 52 captured U.S. Army paratroopers."

Robert G. Ward

Seaman 1/c Robert G. Ward was awarded the Silver Star: "For conspicuous gallantry in action during the landing operations against the enemy on Cotentin Peninsula, France, June 6, 1944.  While acting as coxswain of a landing craft in the first wave, Ward successfully landed his troop personnel despite enemy opposition.  Upon retracting from the beach he observed the stranded crews from two other landing craft whose boats had been destroyed by enemy mortar fire.  Ward returned to the beach, took off both crews despite continued shelling, and returned safely with them to his ship."

Bernard C. Webber & the crew of the CG-36500

BM1 Bernard C. Webber, coxswain of motor lifeboat CG-36500, from Station Chatham, Massachusetts, and his crew of three rescued the crew of the stricken tanker Pendleton, which had broken in half during a storm on 18 February 1952 off the coast of Massachusetts.   Webber maneuvered the 36-footer under the Pendleton's stern with expert skill as the tanker's crew, trapped in the stern section, abandoned the remains of their ship on a Jacobs ladder into the Coast Guard lifeboat.  Webber and his crew of three, EN3 Andrew Fitzgerald; SN Richard Livesey; and SN Irving Maske, saved 32 of the 33 Pendleton's crewmen who were on the stern section of the ship.  Webber and entire crew were awarded the Gold Lifesaving Medal for their heroic actions. 

Robert J. Yered

Engineman First Class Robert J. Yered was awarded the Silver Star for action on 18 February 1968 while attached to Explosive Loading Detachment #1, Cat Lai, Republic of Vietnam.  EN1 Yered was supervising the loading of explosives on board an ammunition ship when an enemy rocket struck a barge loaded with several tons of mortar ammunition moored alongside.  His citation noted that "without regard for his personal safety, [he] exposed himself to the enemy fusillade as he helped extinguish the fire on the burning barge. . .His courageous act averted destruction of the ammunition ship, and the Army Terminal."  EN1 Yered also received the Purple Heart for injuries suffered during the attack.  

Hopley Yeaton, USRM

Captain Hopley Yeaton, a veteran of the Continental Navy during the American Revolution, was the first officer commissioned in what would become the Revenue Marine and commanded the revenue cutter Scammel, one of the original 10 cutters authorized by Alexander Hamilton and Congress.

August Zuleger

Assistant Master at Arms August Zuleger, of the cutter Seneca on convoy duty during the First World War, was posthumously awarded a Navy Cross "for services in attempting to save the British merchant steamer Wellington after she had been torpedoed by a German submarine, and who lost his life when the Wellington foundered on September 17, 1918."

 

When was the rank of chief petty officer authorized for the Coast Guard and who was the first Coast Guardsman to attain the rank? When was the rank of master chief petty officer authorized for the Coast Guard and who was the first Coast Guardsman to attain the rank?

When was the rank of Chief Petty Officer authorized for the Coast Guard and who was the first to attain the rank?

While the term Chief originated during the Civil War, it usually referred to the ship’s cook with the most rank or authority. On 25 February 1893 President Benjamin Harrison issued General Order No. 409. This executive order established an enlisted pay scale which was divided into rates and included the grade of Chief Petty Officer. Shortly thereafter, on 1 April 1893 the U.S. Navy created the grade of Chief Petty Officer. Later, the changes resulting from the merger of the Revenue Cutter Service and the U.S. Life Saving Service to form the U.S. Coast Guard in 1915 demonstrated that there was a need for the establishment of a higher enlisted authority. On 18 May 1920, therefore, the 66th Congress authorized in Chapter 190, Section 8:

That commissioned officers, warrant officers, petty officers, and other enlisted men in the Coast Guard shall receive the same pay, allowances, and increases as are now, herein are, or hereafter may be prescribed for corresponding grades or ratings and length of service in the Navy; and the grades and ratings of warrant officers, chief petty officers, petty officers, and other enlisted persons in the Coast Guard shall be the same as in the Navy, in so far as the duties of the Coast Guard may require...

That same day U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters issued General Order No. 43, Article 817 which created the rank of the chief petty officers. The first uniform of the Chief Petty Officer appeared in the 1922 Coast Guard Headquarters Uniform Regulations. Similar to that worn by CPOs in the Navy, the Coast Guard CPO Uniform was distinguished by the inclusion of the Coast Guard Shield which was 1 inch in height and was affixed on the right sleeve midway between the wrist and elbow. The symbol of the Chiefs’ authority is the anchor. Emblematic of their stability and security, it also reminds Chiefs of their responsibility to those they serve, both senior and junior.

Although 18 May 1920 is acknowledged as the day the grade of Chief Petty Officer was authorized, who the first Coast Guardsman to attain that grade has not been determined. Therefore, no particular individual can be considered the first Chief Petty Officer in the Coast Guard.


When was the rank of Master Chief Petty Officer authorized for the Coast Guard and who was the first to attain the rank?

The heritage of Senior Chief Petty Officer and Master Chief Petty Officer are intertwined. In May 1958, Congress established two additional senior enlisted pay grades, E-8 and E-9, with the enactment of Public Law 85-422. Each service was left to define its two new pay grades. Although the Coast Guard adopted the Navy’s version, Coast Guard roles did not accurately match Navy roles as the two had different missions.

 

Service-wide examinations for outstanding Chiefs were held on August 5, 1958.

 

On November 1, 1958, Master Chief Yeoman Jack Kerwin became the first Coast Guardsman to advance to E-9. A few months later, a second group of Chiefs from the February 1959 examinations were elevated to E-8 and E-9 effective on May 16, 1959.

 

Researched and written by MKCM G. L. "Roc" Della Rocco, USCG

 

 

Who was the first Coast Guardsman to. . .? Coast Guard Firsts, Lasts & Record Setting Achievements.

Coast Guard Firsts, Lasts and/or Record Setting Achievements:

Please note that this is not an officially sanctioned list but only one put together by the Historian's Office as a means of keeping track of events of historical interest.  Unless otherwise indicated the entries are made up of submissions sent to our office by the Coast Guard personnel involved as well as research by William R. Wells, II (see below).


Retired Coast Guardsman and historian William R. Wells II has published a list of firsts for officers of the Revenue Cutter Service entitled "Who's on First." 

He compiled his list from his research in the original "Rosters of Officers of the Revenue Cutter Service." 

Oldest:

Station--Oldest by location: Boston Light (1716)

Oldest existing structure: Sandy Hook Lighthouse (1764) (transferred to National Park Service)

Oldest commissioned boat station still in service: Sandy Hook, NJ

Oldest cutter in active service: Smilax (1 Nov 1944).

Oldest airframe in active service: HC-130H number 1500 (delivered August 1973); oldest rotary wing HH-65A number C6501 (delivered to CG on 14 Nov 1984)

Oldest structure still in service: Boston Light (1789)

In seniority, the Coast Guard is the oldest continuous sea-going service of the United States.  It was created on 4 August 1790 when President George Washington signed "The Tariff Act," a bill Congress passed, that was originally written by Secretary of the Treasury Alexander Hamilton.  The Act created a "system of cutters" charged with enforcing the new nation's customs' laws, which, at the time, were the only source of revenue for the federal government.  The "system of cutters," which was eventually named the Revenue Marine, is therefore older than the United States Navy.  The Continental Navy was disbanded after the end of the Revolutionary War and Congress did not authorize a "new" navy until 27 March 1794, when it passed an act that authorized the construction of six frigates of which only three were actually constructed and launched in 1797.  Congress did not even create an actual Department of the Navy until 1798, administering the frigates and their crews through the Department of War up until that time!  The 1794 act also authorized the creation of Marine detachments for each frigate, thereby marking the beginning of this illustrious sea service under the federal government.  The United States Coast Guard, the modern descendant of the Revenue Marine, therefore predates both the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps.


Aviation:

First involvement in aviation: Life-Saving Service personnel from the Kill Devil Hills Lifesaving Station assisted Orville and Wilbur Wright during the world's first heavier than air flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, on 17 December 1903.

First Coast Guard Aviator: Elmer Stone, 1917

First enlisted Coast Guard aviator(s): Charles T. Thrun; Walter S. Anderson; Leonard M. Melka, 1917

First Coast Guard Air-Station: Morehead City, North Carolina; 24 March 1920 [closed due to a lack of funding the following year].

First use of a Coast Guard aircraft to chase rum runners was on 20 June 1925 [Vought UO-1 out of Ten Pound Island].

First seizure of a vessel with the assistance of an aircraft occurred on 24 June 1925 [Vought UO-1 out of Ten Pound Island].

First permanent Coast Guard Air Station: Cape May, New Jersey, 1926.

First Coast Guard aviator killed in the line of duty: CHGUN Charles T. Thrun, 1935.

Records for amphibian aircraft established by Coast Guard aircraft and aviators (records certified by the Federation Aeronautique International-FAI):

  • Speed: 191.734 miles per hour; record established on 20 December 1934; Coast Guard Grumman piloted by CDR Elmer Stone.
  • 173.945 miles per hour over a 100 kilometer course with a 500 kilogram load, record established on June 25, 1935; Coast Guard Grumman V-167 piloted by LT Richard L. Burke.
  • Altitude of 17, 877.243 feet with a 500 kilogram load, record established on 27 June 1935; Coast Guard Grumman V-167 piloted by LT Richard L. Burke.

First Coast Guardsmen to be awarded a Distinguished Flying Cross: LT C. B. Olsen on 12 May 1938.

First Coast Guard helicopter pilot: Frank A. Erickson, 1943.

First rescue mission by helicopter: Frank A. Erickson was an aviation pioneer who led the Coast Guard’s acquisition and development of rotary wing aircraft. On 3 January 1944 he piloted a HNS-1 helicopter through 25-knot winds to bring urgently needed plasma from Brooklyn to a hospital in Sandy Hook, New Jersey. The plasma was used to treat the survivors of the explosions aboard the destroyer USS Turner.

First helicopter take-off and landing aboard a ship underway at sea: LT Stewart R. Graham, on board the SS Daghestan, North Atlantic, 16 January 1944.

First Coast Guard helicopter pilot to rescue personnel from the open sea: LT Stewart R. Graham, off Manasquan, New Jersey, on 2 October 1944.

15 March - 27 July 1946: For the first time, Coast Guard aircraft supplemented the work of the Coast Guard patrol vessels of the International Ice Patrol, scouting for ice and determining the limits of the ice fields from the air.  [USCG Public Information Division News Release, 31 December 1946.]

15 January 1947: The first helicopter flight to the base "Little America" in Antarctica took place.  The pilot was LT James A. Cornish, USCG and he carried Chief Photographer's Mate Everett Mashburn as his observer.  They flew from the Northwind.

On 6 April 1949 a U.S. Coast Guard H03S-1 [tail number 234] helicopter, piloted by then-LT Steward Graham, completed the longest unescorted helicopter flight in the world to that date.  The flight was also the first unescorted transcontinental flight by a Coast Guard helicopter.  The trip from Elizabeth City, NC, to Port Angeles, WA, via San Diego, CA, a distance of 3,750 miles, took 10 1/2 days to complete and involved a total flight time of 57.6 hours.

1950: Then-LT Steward Graham became the first Coast Guard pilot to exceed 1,000 hours of flying a helicopter and was the third pilot in the United States to hold this distinction.

On 17 December 1951 President Harry Truman presented the Collier Trophy to the Coast Guard, the Department of Defense and the "helicopter industry" in a joint award, citing "outstanding development and use of rotary-winged aircraft for air rescue operations."  Coast Guard commandant VADM Merlin O'Neill accepted the trophy for the Coast Guard.

On 13 May 1952 the U.S. Coast Guard announced the establishment of an Organized Air Reserve Training Program, the first in U.S. Coast Guard history.  Morton G. Lessans was sworn in as the first member of the Organized Air Reserve on 12 December 1951.

Bobby C. Wilks was the first African-American Coast Guard aviator (Coast Guard aviator 735) and the first African American to command a Coast Guard air station [he was the CO of AIRSTA Brooklyn].  He was also the first African American to reach the rank of Captain.

Beginning in 1959, for the first time, the U.S. Coast Guard used a helicopter instead of a small fixed-wing aircraft to support law enforcement activities of the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax Division of the Treasury Department.  The helicopter proved to be considerably more effective than the fixed wing aircraft in locating illegal "stills."

Records for amphibian aircraft established by Coast Guard HU-16E 7255:

  • Speed over a 1,000 km closed course with a 1,000 kg load: Established by CDR Wallace C. Dahlgreen, USCG and CDR William G. Fenlon, USCG on 13 August 1962 at a speed of 201.5 knots.
  • Speed over a 1,000 km closed course with a 2,000 kg load: Established by CDR Wallace C. Dahlgreen, USCG and CDR William G. Fenlon, USCG on 13 August 1962 at a speed of 201.5 knots.
  • Speed over a 5,000 km closed course with a 1,000 kg load: Established on 15 and 16 September 1962 by two US Navy pilots flying Coast Guard HU-16E 7255 at a speed of 131.5 knots.
  • Altitude with a 1,000 kg load: Established on 12 September 1962 by two US Navy pilots flying Coast Guard HU-16E 7255 at the altitude 29, 475 feet.
  • Altitude with a 2,000 kg load: Established on 12 September 1962 by two US Navy pilots flying Coast Guard HU-16E 7255 at the altitude 27,405 feet.
  • Distance--non-stop: Established on 24 October 1962 on a flight from USCG AIRSTA Kodiak to the US Naval Air Station at Pensacola, a distance of 3,104 miles, by CDR William G. Fenlon, USCG, CDR Wallace G. Dahlgreen, USCG, LT W. Senn, USCG, and CPO W. Taggart, USCG.

CGC Mellon’s first commanding officer was CAPT Robert P. Cunningham, the first Coast Guard aviator to command a 378-foot cutter.

On 7 May 1969 Coast Guard HC-130 CG-1453 based out of AIRSTA Kodiak became the first Coast Guard aircraft to ever fly directly over the geographic North Pole.  The aircraft commander was LCDR Melvin J. Hartman and the copilot was LT Larry Minor.  The purpose of the flight was ice reconnaissance of a potential route for super tankers from the North Slope of Alaska to the east coast of the U.S.  According to a summary of the flight published in the Commandant's Bulletin (No. 21-69; 23 May 1969, p. 6): "COAST GUARD AIRCRAFT FLIES AROUND THE WORLD NONSTOP. . .During the course of this flight, the aircraft circled the north pole, crossing all meridians in eighty seconds."

USCG at the Aviation Training Center in Mobile, AL, was the first armed force to authorize instrument ratings based strictly on simulator flight time, 1973.

First female Coast Guard aviator was Janna Lambine, who graduated from naval aviation training at NAS Whiting Field, Milton, Florida on 4 March 1977.

First woman to graduate from the Aviation Machinist's Mate "A" School was Petty Officer Robyn L. Bregante.  She graduated from AD(A) School on 5 August 1977.

In 1977 AT2 Weldon "Diz" Rease became the first African-American enlisted navigator. The last Coast Guard enlisted aviator, ADCM (AP) John Pershing Greathouse, USCG, who retired in 1979.  He entered Coast Guard boot training in October, 1941, and as a Seaman 1/c served at the Fort Point Lifeboat Station, CA.  A year later, he entered flight training and graduated as an Aviation Pilot from the Naval Aviation Training Center, Pensacola, FL in August, 1943.  He was the first Coast Guard aviator to surpass 10,000 flight hours and he passed his own flight-time record of 12,000 hours in 1973.  By the time he retired he had accumulated a total of 14,146 flight hours.  He was also the first person to parachute from a helicopter (along with AD3 John Smith) when he bailed out of his "ailing" HOS-1G helicopter over Philadelphia on 25 September 1945.

After a month-long training program at AIRSTA Elizabeth City, four corpsmen from the Support Center became the first corpsmen to be designated as aircrewmen on the HH-3F.  They were HMC John Pettay, HM1 Jimmie Allen, HM3 David Lehmkuhl and HMS Johnny Midgett.

AD3 Carolyn DeLeo was the first woman to be awarded the Air Medal.  She received it for "Meritorious Achievement in aerial flight" in 1983.

The first Coast Guardsmen to become a NASA astronaut was LCDR Bruce E. Melnick, USCG, who was accepted by NASA in 1987.  He later went on to make two shuttle flights.

ASM1 Jeffery Tunks became the first Coast Guard rescue swimmer to be awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross after conducting a heroic rescue in December, 1987 in Alaskan waters.

Kelly Mogk, USCG was the first female rescue swimmer in the Coast Guard.  Additionally she was the first female to graduate from the Navy's Rescue Swimmer School when she graduated on 23 May 1986. She earned an Air Medal for her first rescue in January, 1989.

Marilyn Melendez Dykman became the first Hispanic-American female Coast Guard aviator when she earned her wings of gold on 24 May 1991.

On 6 May 1994 the Coast Guard retired the last active HH-3F Pelican helicopter in Coast Guard service. This ended the Coast Guard's amphibious-era, as no aviation asset left in service was capable of making water landings. The final Coast Guard HH-3 flight occurred on 10 May 1994 when the HH-3 was flown from CGAS Clearwater to the National Museum of Naval Aviation in Pensacola, Florida for use as a museum artifact.

First Cuban-born Coast Guardsman promoted to CWO (Aviation): Angel L. Martinez, 1999.

The first set of the newly authorized ‘helicopter rescue swimmer insignia, or ‘wings’, were presented to the senior rescue swimmer in the Coast Guard, Master Chief Aviation Survival Technician (AST) Keith Jensen, at Coast Guard headquarters in Washington, D.C. on 19 July 2001.

In September 2002 CDR A. J. Berghorn took command of VT-2, becoming the first Coast Guard officer to command a US Navy training squadron.

In 2002, the United States Coast Guard’s Helicopter Interdiction Tactical Squadron Ten or HITRON-10 for short became America’s first airborne law enforcement unit tasked with interdicting and stopping suspected drug-laden, high speed vessels known as ‘go-fasts.’

In December 2003 Coast Guard helicopter pilot LCDR Sidonie Bosin was recognized by the First Flight Centennial Commission's 100 Heroes Committee (formed for the commemoration of the Wright Brothers first powered flight) as being one of the "top 100 aviators of all time."  She was also the first female aviation officer in charge of air detachments deployed to the Coast Guard cutter Polar Sea in the Antarctic, including one made up of an all-female flight crew. 

On 24 June 2005 LTJG Jeanine McIntosh-Menze was awarded her wings at a ceremony at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, after completing training there.  She was the first African-American female Coast Guard aviator.

On 1 January 2008 CDR Jose (Tony) Saliceti became the Coast Guard's first qualified Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) pilot and was designated CG UAS Pilot No. 1.

In October 2010 LTJG La'Shanda Holmes became the first African-American female helicopter pilot in the Coast Guard.


Marine Safety & Security:

The first Cutterman and Chamorro (native Pacific Islander from the Mariana Islands) to be Captain of the Port was Juan T. Salas, Marine Safety Office Guam, 1992-1994.

In June, 2002, CAPT Jane M. Hartley, USCGR, was designated as the Commanding Officer of Marine Safety Office Wilmington, North Carolina and as such became the first woman in the Coast Guard to become Captain of the Port.

Then-LCDR Gerard A. Williams became the first African-American to command an MSST when he took command of MSST 91102 (Chesapeake) in 2004.

In 1962 YNC (CRXI) Frank Cook Sanders became the first African-American to be selected as a Coast Guard Intelligence and Law Enforcement Agent.  In 1968 he was designated as a Marine Investigating Officer while serving MIO San Francisco.  Chief Sanders retired in from the Coast Guard in 1968 and went on to another distinguished career, this time with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, where he retired in 1988.

In 2010 ME3 Michael Carpenter and David McIver became the first certified Precision Marksman - Observer Team (PM-OT) in the Coast Guard.


Aids to Navigation:

Lighthouse Facts:

  • First lighthouse - Boston, MA (1716)

  • Oldest original lighthouse in service - Sandy Hook, NJ (1764)

  • Newest shoreside lighthouse - Charleston, SC (1962)

  • Only triangular-shaped lighthouse tower - Charleston, SC (1962)

  • Only lighthouse equipped with an elevator - Charleston, SC (1962)

  • Tallest lighthouse - Cape Hatteras, NC (191 ft)

  • First American-built West Coast lighthouse - Alcatraz Lighthouse (1854)

  • First lighthouse to have a Fresnel lens installed - Navesink lights (First & Second Order lenses; 1841)

  • First lighthouse to use electricity - Statue of Liberty (1886)

  • First Great Lakes lighthouses - Buffalo, NY & Erie, PA (1818)

  • Most expensive lighthouse (adjusted cost) - St. George’s Reef, CA (1891)

  • First lighthouse built completely by the Federal Government - Montauk Point, NY (1797)

  • Founding of the U.S. Lighthouse Service - 7 August 1789

  • U.S. Lighthouse Service merged with the Coast Guard - 7 July 1939

  • Second most powerful lighthouse in the world (and most powerful in the Western Hemisphere) - Charleston, SC (1962)

On 11 June 1764 the Sandy Hook Lighthouse, at the south point of the entrance to New York Harbor, was first lighted. Today, its octagonal tower, built by Mr. Isaac Conro of New York City with money collected by a group of New York merchants, is the oldest original light tower still standing and in use in the United States.

In 1820 the first U.S. government lightship, a decked-over small boat, took station off Craney Island, Virginia.  

The lightship variously known as "ZZ", Aurora Borealis or "Northeast Pass" was the first U.S. lightship on an exposed station when it entered service in 1820 off the outside of the Northeast Pass entrance of the Mississippi River.  The 1822 edition of The American Coast Pilot by Edmund M. Blunt noted: "A vessel with a floating light is moored by a chain and anchor, 1 1/4 mile due south of the bar of the N. E. pass of the Mississippi, between Wallace's and Bird islands, in lat. 29° 8' 40" N. and 5 miles E. by N. 1/2 N. of the block-house at the Balize, and 1 3/4 mile E. by S. 3/4S. from the unfinished lighthouse on Frank's island, which station she will not leave unless driven by stress of the weather.  By day she will be known by having a white flag with a red cross hoisted upon her mainmast.  By night her lantern will be hoisted 45 feet above the level of the water upon her mainmast.  A large bell is suspended near the windlass of this light vessel, which will be kept tolling during foggy weather both night and day; this bell may be heard 6 miles with the wind, and 4 miles against it, in moderate weather."

Anthony Christy, keeper of the Christiana Lighthouse in Delaware, died on duty in September 1862 at the age of 105.  He was the oldest lighthouse keeper on record.

On 23 August 1893, the Lighthouse Board reported that "This was the first instance in the history of the United States Light-House Establishment in which a light-ship has foundered at her moorings," when Lightship No. 37 was lost in rough seas at her station at Five Fathom Bank off the entrance to Delaware Bay.

On 23 May 1946 Commodore Edward M. Webster, USCG, headed the U.S. Delegation to the International Meeting on Radio Aids to Marine Navigation, which was held in London, England.  As a result of this meeting, the principal maritime nations of the world would make an intensive study of the World War II-developed devices of radar, LORAN, radar beacons, and other navigational aids with a view to adapt them to peacetime use.  This was the first time that the wartime technical secrets of radar and LORAN were generally disclosed to the public. 

On January 31, 1948- Mrs. Fannie M. Salter, keeper of the Turkey Point Lighthouse in upper Chesapeake Bay since 1925 and the last woman keeper of a lighthouse in the United States, retired from active service. This ended nearly 150 years during which women were employed as keepers of United States lighthouses.

In 1956, Captain Gavin L. Field, Master of the Lightship Savannah, retired from the service at the age of seventy.  He was the last civilian master of a lightship to serve in the Coast Guard.  He joined the U.S. Lighthouse Service in 1937 and stayed in when the Lighthouse Service was merged with the Coast Guard in 1939.  He elected to remain in a civilian status during his Coast Guard career.

Keeper Joseph Hindley and his wife Charlotte were the last civilian lighthouse keepers in the Coast Guard.  They retired from service at the Nobska Lighthouse in November, 1973.  

CWO4 William Musual retired from the Coast Guard on 1 November 1973.  His last assignment was as the commanding officer of Station Castle Hill, RI.  He was the last uniformed active duty Coast Guardsmen who had also served in the U.S. Lighthouse Service.

1978/79: Jeanette Roberts Burr became the light-keeper of the New Dungeness Light Station, becoming the first uniformed Coast Guard woman to become a light-keeper.  She was the first woman light-keeper since Fannie Mae Salter (who retired in 1947), a civilian Coast Guard employee.  

On 31 December 1981 the 14 remaining LORAN-A stations closed down at midnight, ending Loran-A coverage, which began during World War II.  

Last lightship in the Coast Guard: Nantucket I, WLV-612; Decommissioned 29 March 1985.


Ocean/Weather Stations, Marine Science & Environmental Protection:

The first environmental protection mission assigned to the Coast Guard came in 1822 when Congress created a timber reserve for Navy shipbuilding and authorized the President to use whatever force was necessary to prevent cutting of live oak on public lands.  The President ordered that revenue cutters assist in enforcing the provision.

The ocean station program was formally established on 25 January 1940 under order from President Franklin Roosevelt. 

The cutters Duane and Bibb were the first cutters to undertake ocean-weather station patrols.  Their first transmissions regarding meteorological data were on 10 February 1940.

The Coast Guard's formal Ocean Station Program ended on 30 June 1974 with the closing of stations "Bravo" in the Atlantic and "November" in the Pacific.  Station "Hotel" remained active but was not considered part of the OS Program and remained in use until 1977.

The cutter Taney departed Ocean Station "Hotel" on 30 September 1977 when the station was closed and replaced by a buoy.  This was the final ocean station patrolled by a Coast Guard cutter.

An oil spill along the coast of California off San Francisco in 1998 was traced to a 717-foot Liberian-flagged tanker Command.  A Coast Guard boarding team took samples of her cargo and matched it to oil found along the coast.  A Coast Guard spokesman noted: "This is the first time the Coast Guard has pursued an oil spill investigation into the international arena to the extent of stopping and boarding a vessel on the high seas, with permission of the vessel's flag state."


Cutter, Tender & Small Boat Operations:

First cutter to be launched: Vigilant, launched in March, 1791. 

Although she was launched later than a number of other cutters, by tradition the cutter Massachusetts is considered to be the first to actually enter active service.

First commissioned Revenue officer: Hopley Yeaton, commission dated 21 March 1791.

First Revenue "squadron" cruise on record: Scammel sailed on patrol with Massachusetts in November, 1791.

On 16 December 1831 Secretary of Treasury John McLane ordered Revenue cutters to conduct "winter cruises."  The cutter Gallatin became the first cutter "directly authorized by the government to assist mariners in distress."

 

On 22 December 1837 Congress authorized President "to cause any suitable number of public vessels, adapted to the purpose, to cruise upon the coast, in the severe portion of the season, and to afford aid to distressed navigators." First statute authorizing activities in the field of maritime safety. Thus interjecting the national government into the field of lifesaving for the first time. Although revenue cutters were specifically mentioned, the performance of this duty was imposed primarily upon the Revenue Marine Service and quickly became one of its major activities.

 

First steam-powered cutter was the Legare, which entered service in 1844.

First U.S. ship to police U.S. continental waters on the Pacific coast was the cutter Lawrence in San Francisco harbor, 1849.  She reached the west coast by sailing around Cape Horn.

First Lieutenant Michael Healy became the first African-American to command a vessel of the United States Government when he was appointed as the commanding officer of the Revenue Cutter Chandler in 1877.

Last sailing cutter built for the Revenue Service: Chase, completed 6 August 1878.

On 3 May 1882 the Treasury Department reported that the crew of the Revenue Cutter Oliver Wolcott deserted their ship.  No reason was given for their desertion.  This was the first and only time a crew deserted their cutter.

The McCulloch was the first cutter to transit the Suez Canal when she sailed from the east coast to join the Navy's Asiatic Squadron in Hong Kong in the spring of 1898.

First cutter to use wireless telegraph: Grant in 1903.

Light Vessel No. 58 was the first U.S. vessel of any type to transmit a distress call by radio when on 10 December 1905, during a heavy gale, while relieving Nantucket LV 66, a serious leak developed in fire-room compartment; suction pumps clogged repeatedly; distress messages sent by radio were handled by Newport Naval Station in Rhode Island.  Rising water eventually extinguished the boiler furnaces and the ship was then bailed by hand for 24 hours.  Tender Azalea responded, arriving at 0400 on December 11 and started towing about 1100.  Heavy cross seas hindered the operation and about 4 hours later, the lightship signaled "must abandon".  Her crew was safely taken aboard Azalea and 10 minutes later LV 58, listing heavily to starboard, went down by the stern in 25 fathoms of water about 18 miles northwest of the station.

In 1921, the first synchro-turbo electric drive on ships in any of the U.S. services was introduced by Captain Quincy B. Newman, Engineer-in-Chief of the U.S. Coast Guard.  They were to be used in his Tampa-class cutters.  He designed both the Tampa-class cutters and their revolutionary drive systems.

Clarence Samuels assumed command of the Coast Guard Patrol Boat AB-15 on 18 July 1928, thereby becoming the first African-American to command a Coast Guard vessel.

The cutter Sea Cloud became the first U.S. military vessel to sail with a fully racially-integrated crew when it set sail in November 1943.  Approximately half of the crew, including three commissioned officers, were African-American.

On 22 August 1944 the Liberty ship SS Alexander V. Frazer, named for the "first" commandant of the service, was launched.

LTJG Clarence Samuels became the first African-American to command a cutter since Michael Healy and the first to achieve command during wartime when he assumed command of the Light Vessel No. 115 on 28 July 1944. 

The cutters Spar, Bramble, and Storis became the first U.S. vessels to transit the Northwest Passage in July 1957.  The Spar also became the first U.S. vessel to circumnavigate the North American continent as well.

In 1960-61 the icebreaker CGC Eastwind became the first cutter to ever circumnavigate the globe.  She departed Boston on 25 October 1960, transited the Panama Canal, crossed the Pacific Ocean, visited New Zealand and then participated in Operation Deep Freeze in Antarctica.  She sailed home via the Indian Ocean, Suez Canal, the Mediterranean Sea, through the Straits of Gibraltar, and arrived back at Boston in May, 1961.

The icebreaker CGC Eastwind was the first cutter to ever circumnavigate Antarctica.  She accomplished this historic feat during Operation Deep Freeze 1967.  Eastwind was also the first ship to circumnavigate Antarctica since 1843.

On 13 October 1968 CGC Southwind departed Baltimore, Maryland for a seven-month deployment to Antarctica and other world-wide destinations.  By the time she returned to Baltimore on 7 May 1969 she had become only the second cutter in Coast Guard history to circumnavigate the globe.

CGC Mellon’s first commanding officer was CAPT Robert P. Cunningham, who was the first Coast Guard aviator to command a 378-foot cutter.

In 1976 CGC Boutwell rolled 68-degrees in a storm on her way to Alaska for a fisheries patrol--the greatest roll on record for any cutter.

The first woman to command a U.S. "military vessel" was Beverly Kelley, who took command of the CGC Cape Newagen on 12 April 1979.

LTJG Mary Jane East Wixson was the third female Coast Guardsman and the first female Coast Guard Academy graduate to command a cutter when she took command of the Cape Straight.

In 1981 Cecelia (Oakes) Stoutamire became the first African-American female assigned to an icebreaker.

The icebreaker CGC Polar Star became the second cutter to circumnavigate Antarctica in 1982.

The first Chamorro (native Pacific Islander from the Mariana Islands) to command a cutter was Juan T. Salas when he took command of CGC Lipan (WMEC 85) in 1986.

The first enlisted woman Officer in Charge of a cutter was Chief Boatswains Mate Diane Bucci who commanded the Capstan commencing in September 1988.

First woman chief petty officer to serve afloat: YNC Patricia Stolle, USCG, on board the Mellon in 1982.

First female to command a Coast Guard cutter in the Great Lakes: Sandra Stosz took command of the CGC Katmai Bay at Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, 10 August 1990.

CAPT Joseph H. Jones: First African-American to Pre-Com a cutter -- PRECOMDET NEAH BAY -- Portsmouth, VA; First African-American to command a 140 foot ice breaking tug in the Great Lakes --- NEAH BAY; First African-American to Command a 210 foot Medium Endurance Cutter -- CGC RELIANCE in New Castle, NH; First African-American to Command a 378 foot High Endurance Cutter -- CGC DALLAS in New York, NY.  Also, he had command of three cutters, XO, OPS, DWO -- assigned to 6 cutters: OWASCO -- HEC; VIGOROUS --WMEC; NEAH BAY -- WTGB; UNIMAK -- WHEC; RELIANCE -- WMEC; DALLAS -- WHEC.

CGC Cape Hatteras (WPB 95305), decommissioned on 18 March 1991, was the last 95-foot patrol boat in the Coast Guard. (She was then transferred to Mexico).

In 1991 LTJG Katherine Tiongson (nee Faverey) took command of CGC Bainbridge Island, becoming the first Hispanic-American female to command an afloat unit.  She was also the first Hispanic-American female intelligence officer in the Coast Guard.

On 16 November 1992 CGC Storis became the cutter with the longest service in the Bering Sea, eclipsing the U.S. Revenue Cutter Bear which had held that distinction since 1929. The Bear was decommissioned in 1929 after serving in the Bering Sea for 44 years and two months.

In 1993 BM2 Kathy Niles was the first woman to qualify on the 47-foot MLB (47200).

On 15 December 1994 BM2 Jeralyn L. Mandell became the first female surfman qualified on the 52-foot MLB (she also qualified on the 44-footer).

CGCs Monomoy and Pea Island became the first WPBs to integrate women in the crew.  To that time women had only been part of the WPBs' command cadre.

The icebreaker CGC Polar Sea became the first U.S. surface vessel to reach the North Pole on 22 August 1994.  She sailed with the CCCS Louis S. Ste. Laurent.

Bryon Ing was the first Chinese-American Coast Guardsman  to command a Medium Endurance Cutter when he commanded CGC Venturous from 1995-1997. 

In the fall of 1996, CGC Morgenthau was the first U.S. Coast Guard Cutter to deploy to the Arabian Gulf. Participating in Operation Vigilant Sentinel, Morgenthau enforced Iraq’s compliance with United Nations sanctions.

CGC Ironwood (WLB-297) was the last commissioned U.S. vessel still in service that earned the Korean Service Medal.

CGC Forward became the first medium endurance cutter to circumnavigate South America when it deployed for four months to South America in 1999.

LTJG Kathy Niles became the first woman to command an 87-foot WPB in 1999 when she took command of CGC Stingray at Mobile, Alabama.

CGC Sherman became the third cutter to circumnavigate the globe when she returned on 13 July 2001 from a six-month deployment to the Arabian Gulf--the first was Eastwind in 1960.

Coast Guard Auxiliarist Robert D. Dittman, a public affairs staff officer with Flotilla 74, Eighth Coast Guard District, became the first sightless Coast Guard employee to serve on board a cutter.  He sailed aboard CGC Dallas on 22 May 2002.

CGC Matagorda, a 110-foot Island Class patrol boat, became the first cutter to begin the Integrated Deepwater System modernization and life extension overhaul when she was decommissioned on 7 February 2003 at the Bollinger Shipyard in Lockport, LA.

LT Jorge Martinez assumed command of CGC Maui on 5 June 2003, becoming the first Cuban-American to command a Coast Guard cutter.

CGC Aquidneck was the first cutter to enter a drydock availability in war zone since the Vietnam war.  The availability occurred in 2003 and was held in the Kingdom of Bahrain  The Port Engineer assigned to oversee the critical availability was MKCS Della Rocco.  The successful availability became the template for the dozens of Coast Guard availabilities that followed.

CAPT Patrick Trapp was the first Korean-American commanding officer of a cutter - the 82-foot patrol boat CGC Point Camden, out of Long Beach, California.  CAPT Trapp was also the first Korean-American to command a sector.

CAPT Jeffrey Lee was the first Korean-American to graduate from Coast Guard OCS (1983).  CAPT Lee was the first Korean-American commanding officer of a 95-foot cutter - CGC Cape Cross (WPB-95321).  CAPT Lee was the first Korean-American commanding officer of an icebreaking tug, the 140-foot Biscayne Bay (WTGB-104).  CAPT Lee was the first Korean-American executive officer of a 378-foot cutter, the Hamilton (WHEC-715).  CAPT Lee was the first Korean-American to teach at the Leadership Development Center.  CAPT Lee was the first Korean-American to command a high endurance cutter, the Hamilton, taking command on 19 June 2006.

LTJG Angelina Hidalgo became the second Hispanic female to command an afloat unit, 2002.  She was also the second Hispanic female intelligence officer.

The first active-duty women in the Coast Guard to serve in a combat zone occurred when CGC Boutwell served in the Northern-Arabian Gulf in support of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom from January 2003 to June 2003.

CAPT Charley L. Diaz assumed command of USCGC Sherman in 2005, becoming the first Hispanic-American to command a 378-foot cutter.  While under his command in March, 2007, Sherman seized the M/V Gatun with nearly 20 tons of cocaine on board, the largest maritime drug smuggling bust in U.S. history.

LT Rachel Lewis was the first African-American female officer to serve aboard USCGB Eagle as Command Cadre (Operations Officer), 2006-2008.

In 2006 CGC Sequoia made a port call at Shanghai in support of the IALA conference, becoming the first cutter since World War II to visit a Chinese port.  The CGC Rush made a port call in China one week later.

CWO2 Apple G. Pryor, assigned as the Main Propulsion Assistant onboard the CGC Boutwell, was the first African-American female Naval Engineering Chief Warrant Officer of the Coast Guard, 2006.

In 2008, CAPT Jeffrey Lee retired.  CAPT Jeffrey Lee was the first Korean-American to go through and graduate Coast Guard OCS (1981).  He became the first Korean-American to command a 95-footer, an icebreaker, and a High Endurance Cutter.  He commanded CGC Hamilton when the cutter seized more than 1.6 billion dollars worth of contraband in the Eastern Pacific Ocean and also shared in the largest drug bust in maritime history by capturing 19.5 metric tons of cocaine.

LT Felicia Thomas took command of the CGC Pea Island on 19 June 2009.  She is the first African-American female commanding officer of a Coast Guard cutter. 

LT Carrie Wolfe and LT Olivia Grant became the first African-American female Engineering Officers on a major cutter when they reported on board CGC Spencer and CGC Venturous respectively in the summer of 2009.


SAR & Medals & Awards:

On 16 December 1831 Secretary of Treasury John McLane ordered Revenue cutters to conduct "winter cruises."  The Revenue Cutter Gallatin became the first cutter "directly authorized by the government to assist mariners in distress."

On 22 December 1837 Congress authorized President "to cause any suitable number of public vessels, adapted to the purpose, to cruise upon the coast, in the severe portion of the season, and to afford aid to distressed navigators." First statute authorizing activities in the field of maritime safety. Thus interjecting the national government into the field of lifesaving for the first time. Although revenue cutters were specifically mentioned, the performance of this duty was imposed primarily upon the Revenue Marine Service and quickly became one of its major activities.

On 3 March 1847 Congress appropriated $5000 "for furnishing lighthouses on the Atlantic Coast with means of rendering assistance to shipwrecked mariners."  It was not used until 1849 when it was turned over to Massachusetts Humane Society for boathouses on Cape Cod.  On the same date, an item added to the lighthouse appropriation bill for 1848 (9 Stat. L., 175, 176) provided for "furnishing the lighthouses on the Atlantic coast with means of rendering assistance to shipwrecked mariners." These were the first appropriations by the national government for rendering assistance from the shore to the shipwrecked.

Keeper Malachi Corbell saved two African-American fishermen whose boat capsized near Caffey's Inlet, North Carolina and in June 1877 became the first member of the U.S. Life-Saving Service to win the Congressional life-saving medal.  He was awarded a Silver Lifesaving Medal.

In 1875 the first Gold Life Saving Medal ever awarded was presented to Captain Lucien M. Clemens of the U.S. Life-Saving Service in Marblehead, Ohio, who was captain of one of the first life saving stations on the Great Lakes.  Medals were also given to his brothers, Al and Hubbard.  They rescued six crew and a female cook from the sinking schooner Consuelo in an open rowboat.

"To evaluate its use in lighthouse work, radio equipment was installed experimentally on Nantucket Lightship in August of 1901. On December 10, 1905, while riding out a severe gale, Lightship No. 58 on the Nantucket Shoals Station sprang a serious leak. There being no recognized radio distress signal at that time, the operator could only repeatedly spell out the word "help". Although no reply was received Newport Navy station (radio) intercepted the call and passed it on to the proper authorities. The lightship tender Azalea was dispatched to the assistance of Lightship No. 58, and upon arrival at the scene passed a towline. The long tow to a safe harbor began, but after a few hours it was quite evident that Lightship No. 58 was sinking. Azalea took off her crew of thirteen men only minutes before she sank. This pioneer use of radio had indeed proved Its worth in rescue operations."

SPAR Marjorie Bell Stewart was awarded the Silver Lifesaving Medal by CAPT Dorothy Stratton, becoming the first SPAR to receive the award.

The Coast Guard Medal was established on 4 August 1949.  It is the highest award for heroism not involving combat with an enemy that can be awarded by the Coast Guard.

Boatswain's Mate 3/c Raymond A. Johnson and Engineman 3/c were the first Coast Guardsmen to be awarded the Coast Guard Medal.  They received the new medal on 13 June 1958.

On 28 April 1960 LTJG Kenneth R. Rider was awarded the Coast Guard Medal, the first Coast Guard officer to receive the award.

On 6 September 1966 GM1 Lester K. Gates was awarded the Bronze Star Medal with a combat "V" device for "meritorious service and action against the enemy" while serving on board Point White (WPB-82308) in Vietnam.  The Point White attacked and captured a Viet Cong junk while patrolling the Soi Rap River.  GM1 Gates was the first enlisted Coast Guardsman to be awarded the Bronze Star since World War II.

4 April 1972: BMC (later BMCM) Thomas D. McAdams became the first Coast Guardsmen to receive the new Coxswain insignia.  Then-Commandant Chester Bender presented the insignia to Chief McAdams at a ceremony at the Coast Guard's Small Boat School in Ilwaco, Washington, where McAdams was the OIC.

On 21 June 1979, SN Ina J. Toavs was awarded the Coast Guard Medal, the first woman to receive the award.

ASM1 Jeffery Tunks became the first Coast Guard rescue swimmer to be awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross after conducting a heroic rescue in December, 1987 in Alaskan waters.

Kelly Mogk, USCG was the first female rescue swimmer in the Coast Guard.  Additionally she was the first female to graduate from the Navy's Rescue Swimmer School when she graduated on 23 May 1986. She earned an Air Medal for her first rescue in January, 1989.

In 1995 BM2 Kathy Niles became the first woman to win the Munro Award.

On November 24, 1995, Dauntless rescued 578 migrants from a grossly overloaded 75 foot coastal freighter, the largest number of migrants rescued from a single vessel in Coast Guard history.

The first set of the newly authorized ‘helicopter rescue swimmer insignia, or ‘wings’, were presented to the senior rescue swimmer in the Coast Guard, Master Chief Aviation Survival Technician (AST) Keith Jensen, at Coast Guard headquarters in Washington, D.C. on 19 July 2001.

LT Nicole Carter was the first African-American female officer to receive a permanent Cutterman's Pin.

On May 5, 2004 the Coast Guard presented the Purple Heart to BM3 Joseph Ruggiero in Miami for injuries sustained while defending the Khawr Al Amaya Oil Terminal in Iraq on April 24, 2004.  Ruggiero, the first Coast Guard recipient of the Purple Heart since the Vietnam War, received the award from VADM James D. Hull, Commander Coast Guard Atlantic Area.  Ruggiero's shipmate, DC3 Nathan Bruckenthal was killed in this same bombing and was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart.


Ice & Arctic Operations:

15 March - 27 July 1946: For the first time, Coast Guard aircraft supplemented the work of the Coast Guard patrol vessels of the International Ice Patrol, scouting for ice and determining the limits of the ice fields from the air.  [USCG Public Information Division News Release, 31 December 1946.]

December 1946-January 1947: CGC Northwind became the first Coast Guard cutter to cross the Antarctic Circle.  Northwind's crew also managed to rack up a number of other firsts for their voyage south: First ever baseball game played that far south; first double-header played that far south (and without the aid of electric lights); the first golf tournament played on Antarctica; and the first helicopter flight to the base "Little America," the pilot was LT James A. Cornish, USCG and he carried Chief Photographer's Mate Everett Mashburn as his observer.

In July, 1957 CGCs Spar, Bramble, and Storis become the first U.S. vessels to transit the Northwest Passage.  Spar became the first U.S. vessel to circumnavigate the continent during the year as well.

Eastwind made history when she became the first cutter to ever circumnavigate the globe in 1960-61.  She departed Boston on 25 October 1960, transited the Panama Canal, crossed the Pacific Ocean, visited New Zealand and then participated in Operation Deep Freeze in Antarctica.  She sailed home via the Indian Ocean, Suez Canal, the Mediterranean Sea, through the Straits of Gibraltar, and arrived back at Boston in May, 1961.

CGC Eastwind was the first cutter to ever circumnavigate Antarctica.  She accomplished this historic feat during Operation Deep Freeze 1967.  Eastwind was also the first ship to circumnavigate Antarctica since 1843.

On 7 May 1969 Coast Guard HC-130 CG-1453 based out of AIRSTA Kodiak became the first Coast Guard aircraft to ever fly directly over the geographic North Pole.  The aircraft commander was LCDR Melvin J. Hartman and the copilot was LT Larry Minor.  The purpose of the flight was ice reconnaissance of a potential route for super tankers from the North Slope of Alaska to the east coast of the U.S.  According to a summary of the flight published in the Commandant's Bulletin (No. 21-69; 23 May 1969, p. 6): "COAST GUARD AIRCRAFT FLIES AROUND THE WORLD NONSTOP. . .During the course of this flight, the aircraft circled the north pole, crossing all meridians in eighty seconds."

On 25 August 1971 the Secretary of Transportation announced the awarding of a contract to the Lockheed Shipbuilding and Construction Company of Seattle, WA, "to build the world’s most powerful icebreaker for the US Coast Guard," Polar Star, the first of the Polar-Class of icebreakers.

On 29 July 1970 CGC Vigorous became the first 210-foot cutter to cross the Arctic Circle.  This took place while she was part of the 1970 Cadet Cruise Squadron.  At the time, CDR George Wagner, USCG, was the commanding officer.

SN Cecelia M. (Oakes) Stoutamire became the first African-American woman to be assigned to an icebreaker when she reported aboard CGC Glacier in 1981.  She also became the first African-American woman to participate in an Operation Deep Freeze cruise while aboard, participating with Glacier during Operation Deep Freeze 1981.

In 1982 CGC Polar Star became the second cutter to circumnavigate Antarctica.

CGC Polar Sea became the first U.S. surface vessel to reach the North Pole on 22 August 1994.  She sailed in concert with the CCCS Louis S. Ste. Laurent.

AMT1 Mark R. Mobley, USCG, was the first active duty Coast Guardsman to stand on the North Pole, August 22, 1994.  He was assigned to the Aviation Attachment on board CGC Polar Sea during its historic 1994 voyage to the North Pole.


Law Enforcement:

The first recorded narcotics seizure by a cutter occurred on 31 August 1890 when the USRC Wolcott, stationed in the Straits of Juan de Fuca, boarded and discovered a quantity of undeclared opium on the U.S. flagged steamer George E. Starr.  The cutter seized both the vessel and the opium for violations of Customs laws.

First use of a Coast Guard aircraft to chase rum runners was on 20 June 1925 [Vought UO-1 out of Ten Pound Island].

First seizure of a vessel with the assistance of an aircraft occurred on 24 June 1925 [Vought UO-1 out of Ten Pound Island].

CGC Vigorous was the first cutter to make a seizure of a foreign-flag fishing vessel in the high seas when she seized the Italian fishing vessel Tontini Pesca Cuarto for illegally taking lobster on 31 January 1975.  All of the other fishery seizures prior to this were of vessels that had violated territorial seas (TS) or Contiguous Fishing Zone (CFZ).  At the time, Vigorous was under the command of CDR Paul Welling, USCG.  The arresting officer was ENS S.T. Fuger, Jr., USCG.

CGC Sherman set the record for the largest USCG maritime-marijuana seizure to date when she seized the M/V Don Emilio on 13 October 1976 100 miles off the coast of Acklins Island, Bahamas.

In April of 1977 CGC Decisive made the first seizure of a foreign-flag vessel under the new Magnuson Fisheries Conservation and Management Act of 1976 [FCMA] when she seized the 275-foot Soviet trawler Taras Shevchenko on Georges Bank with a cargo of illegally caught fish.  After spending a month detained in Boston, the Taras Shevchenko forfeited her cargo and paid $250,000 in fines before being released.

On 6 June 1979 CDR George R. Rinch was the first Coast Guardsman to graduate from the FBI National Academy at Quantico, Virginia.

On 1 March 1982 CGC Vigilant seized the fishing vessel Lady Jay on Georges Bank for violating the FCMA which prohibited fishing in the area for cod, haddock and yellowtail flounder during the spawning season, from March to May.  It was the first Coast Guard seizure of a domestic vessel made under the FCMA.

On 9 August 1982- The Department of Defense approved the use of Coast Guard law enforcement detachments (LEDETs) on board Navy vessels during peace-time.  The teams conducted law enforcement boardings from Navy vessels for the first time in U.S. history.

On 1 November 1984 the largest USCG maritime-marijuana bust to date in West Coast history took place as CGC Clover seized the 63-foot yacht Arrikis 150 miles southwest of San Diego.  The yacht was loaded with 13 tons of marijuana.

On 4 November 1984 CGC Northwind seized the P/C Alexi I off Jamaica for carrying 20 tons of marijuana, becoming the first icebreaker to make a narcotics seizure and breaking the record set by CGC Sherman in 1976.

CGC Taney seized the M/V Sea Maid I on 4 October 1985 300 miles off Virginia.  Sea Maid I was towing a barge loaded with 16 tons of marijuana.  This seizure tied the record set by CGC Sherman in 1976 but did not surpass CGC Northwind's record marijuana seizure of 20 tons set the year before.

On 8 May 1987 Coast Guard units, including CGC Ocracoke, made the largest seizure of cocaine by the Coast Guard to date: 1.9 tons.

1988: LTJG John T. Broadway became the first African-American OIC of a LEDET when he took command of Group Cape Hatteras LEDET in September, 1988.

On 19 August 1994, Operation Able Vigil commences during a massive influx of Cuban migrants fleeing Cuba.  It was the "largest joint peace-time operation" in Coast Guard history, according to the then-commandant, ADM Robert Kramek.

1995: LT Ricky Sharpe became the first African-American CO of a TACLET when he took command of TACLET Gulf.  In July 1995, one of his LEDET's, under the command of LTJG Robert Landolfi out of Mobile, seized the F/V Nataly I when the team discovered 24,325 pounds of cocaine hidden on board, making this the largest U.S. maritime seizure of cocaine to date.

On November 24, 1995, CGC Dauntless rescued 578 migrants from a grossly overloaded 75 foot coastal freighter, the largest number of migrants rescued from a single vessel in Coast Guard history.

LT Jose L. Rodriguez was the first Hispanic to command a TACLET when he took command of TACLET South, 1996-1998.

On 1 October 1996, Operation Frontier Shield commenced.  It was the largest counter-narcotics operation in Coast Guard history to-date.

In June, 1998, the cutters Boutwell, Jarvis, Polar Sea, Coast Guard aircraft, along with two Russian fisheries patrol vessels seized a total of four Chinese fishing vessels suspected of high-seas driftnet fishing.  This was the largest high-seas driftnet fisheries bust ever for the Coast Guard.

Lucille "Pam" Thompson became the First African-American woman to serve as a Coast Guard Special Agent.  She served as a Special Agent from July, 2000 to July, 2004.

On 28 April 2001 a LEDET assigned to the USS Rodney M. Davis, with later assistance from the Active (based in Port Angeles, WA) made the largest cocaine seizure in maritime history (to date) when they boarded and seized the Belizean F/V Svesda Maru 1,500 miles south of San Diego.  The fishing vessel was carrying 26,931 pounds of cocaine.

CGC Dauntless became the first cutter in history to seize one million pounds of marijuana, an accomplishment signified by a large gold marijuana leaf painted on her superstructure.  As of 2002, Dauntless had over 85 illegal narcotics "busts" to her credit, more than any other cutter.

Special Agent Andrew B. Clapp, Coast Guard Investigative Service, was the first (and to date, the only) Coast Guard agent to achieve: Honor Graduate of the Year, Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in Glynco, Georgia, for the year 2002.  Preceded by Honor Graduate of the Criminal Investigator Training Program at FLETC (2002, class number CITP-222).

In 2004 the Coast Guard made the largest cocaine seizure in its history (to date) when Coast Guard and Navy forces located and seized 30,000 pounds of cocaine aboard the fishing vessel Lina Maria approximately 300 miles southwest of the Galapagos Islands.  LEDET 108, embarked aboard the USS Curts, made the seizure.  A second Coast Guard and Navy team intercepted the Lina Maria's sister ship, the fishing vessel San Jose, 500 miles west of the Galapagos, and discovered and seized 26,250 pounds of cocaine.

On 18 March 2007 the Coast Guard made the largest cocaine seizure in its history (to date) when CGCs Hamilton and Sherman seized 42,845 pound of cocaine aboard the Panamanian-flagged M/V Gatun off the coast of Panama.  The Gatun was first located by an HC-130 on 17 March.

On 15 June 2009 law enforcement officers from the 14th Coast Guard District reported aboard the USS Crommelin (FFG-37) to support U.S. Coast Guard fisheries enforcement in Oceania in an operation called the "Fight for Fish" mission.  It marked the first time a Navy warship was utilized "to transit the Western Pacific enforcing fishing regulations in a joint effort with the Coast Guard to stop illegal fishing in this region."


National Defense & Military Preparedness:

On 10 October 1798, Secretary Stoddert, first Secretary of the Navy, sent first instructions to cutters acting in cooperation with Navy via collectors of customs.  This was in the beginning of the first "war" fought by the United States: The Quasi-War with France.  The U.S. only had the revenue cutters as a naval force ready to meet French navy warships and privateers as there was as yet no warships in the Navy.  The cutters, with privateers, first upheld the new nation's dignity on the high seas in this war.

The Revenue Cutter Service cutter Harriet Lane fired the first naval shot of the Civil War on 12 April 1861 when she stopped the steamer Nashville with a shot across the bow when the Nashville refused to show her colors off Charleston.  The Harriet Lane was under the command of Revenue Captain John Faunce and the famous shot was fired by Revenue Lieutenant Daniel D. Thompkins.

On 13 August 1864 Revenue Captain Thomas M. Dungan became the first Revenue officer to be killed in action against the enemy.  He was the commanding officer of the cutter Reliance and perished during an attack on Confederate forces when the cutter was five miles up the great Wicomico River (as per William R. Wells, II "Who's on First").

First vessel to carry the news of Admiral George Dewey's victory over the Spanish fleet at Manila was the Revenue cutter McCulloch, which carried news of the victory from Manila to Hong Kong, where it was put out via telegraph.  In joining Dewey's fleet the McCulloch made a number of firsts, including being the first cutter to transit the Suez Canal and the first to sail in the western Pacific.

The Coast Guard made the first capture of enemy forces by any U.S. service in World War II when the cutter Northland seized the Norwegian vessel Buskoe off the coast of Greenland.  The Norwegians were in the service of Nazi Germany and were attempting to establish a weather station along the Greenland shore.

Signalman 1/c Douglas Munro was the first and only Coast Guardsman to be awarded the Medal of Honor.

On 17 April 1943, Lieutenant Ross P. Bullard and Boatswain's Mate First Class C. S. "Mike" Hall boarded the U-175 at sea after their cutter, the Spencer, blasted the U-boat to the surface with depth charges.  They were part of a boarding party sent to seize the U-boat before the crew could scuttle it.  The damage to the U-boat was severe, however, and it sank after both had boarded it and climbed the conning tower.  Both men ended up in the water as the U-boat slipped beneath the waves.  Nevertheless, they carry the distinction of being the first American servicemen to board an enemy warship underway at sea since the War of 1812.

Lieutenant Junior Grade Clarence Samuels became the first African-American to command a major vessel since Michael Healy and the first to achieve command during wartime when he assumed command of the Light Vessel No. 115 on 28 July 1944. 

The Coast Guard Cutter USCG 83434 became the first and only cutter to host an official surrender ceremony when Imperial Japanese Army Second Lieutenant Kinichi Yamada surrendered the garrison of Aguijan Island on board the cutter, 4 September 1945.   Rear Admiral Marshall R. Greer, USN, accepted the surrender for the United States.

On 6 September 1966 GM1 Lester K. Gates was awarded the Bronze Star Medal with a combat "V" device for "meritorious service and action against the enemy" while serving on board CGC Point White (WPB-82308) in Vietnam.  The Point White attacked and captured a Viet Cong junk while patrolling the Soi Rap River.  GM1 Gates was the first enlisted Coast Guardsman to be awarded the Bronze Star since World War II.

Lieutenant Commander Vivien Crea became the first woman from any service to serve as the Presidential Military Aide.  She carried the "football" for President Ronald Reagan for three years.

Lieutenant Glenn Sulmasy became the first Coast Guardsman to participate in Operation Desert Shield when the Dwight D. Eisenhower Battle Group went "on scene" after Iraq invaded Kuwait.  Sulmasy was assigned to the battle group.

On 15 September 1990 the Secretary of Transportation and the commandant committed the first-ever deployment of a Coast Guard Reserve port security unit overseas: Port Security Unit 303.

Lieutenant Commander Everett F. Rollins III was the only Coast Guard officer assigned to JTF Proven Force which was the northern Iraq component of Operation Desert Shield, and the only Coast Guard officer assigned to Operation Provide Comfort.

The first Coast Guardsmen to enter Kuwait after its liberation were Wayne Chamberlain and MCK Monez of PSU 302.  Both were assigned to a Navy MUIW unit that swept Kuwait harbor for mines.  They also connected about 20 of the port city's street lights to a generator and were therefore the "first" to bring power to the city.

A USCG tactical port security boat ("Raider") [TPSB] of PSU 301 (B), stationed in Al Jubayl, Saudi Arabia, was the first boat in the newly reopened harbor, Mina Ash Shuwaikh in Kuwait City, Kuwait during Operation Desert Storm.  The USCG TPSB led a procession of multinational vessels into the harbor on 21 April 1991.

During Operation "Uphold Democracy" in 1994, Telecommunication Specialist First Class Jerry D. "Burly" Burleson was the first Coast Guardsman to enter Port Au Prince, Haiti.  PO Burleson and two other members, TC3 James "Jim" Bell and TC3 Robert "Rob" Sherlin provided communications support for port security units and the Navy commodore assigned to the Haitian theater.  Using satellite telephones, high-frequency and line-of-site equipment, vital information was delivered to the communications staff for relay.  The days consisted of long hours and very hot days because of the situational requirement to maintain full body armor and log sleeve BDU's.

First Coast Guard person to command a U.S. Marine Corps unit: Jose L. Rodriguez took command of the Riverine Training Center, Special Operations Training Group, II MEF at Camp Lejeune, North Carolina in July 1999.  The first Hispanic-American Coast Guardsman to earn his Gold Navy/Marine Corps jump wings while in the Coast Guard and assigned to a Jump Billet (USMC Majors Billet at Special Operations Training Group II MEF) was Jose Rodriguez in 1999.

Six U.S. Navy Cyclone-Class patrol coastal warships were assigned to Operation Noble Eagle on 5 November 2001.  This was the first time that U.S. Navy ships were employed jointly with the U.S. Coast Guard to help protect our nation's coastline, ports and waterways from terrorist attack.

The first active-duty women to serve in a combat zone happened when CGC Boutwell served in the Northern-Arabian Gulf in support of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom from January 2003 to June 2003.

USCGC Aquidneck (WPB 1309) was the first CG cutter to enter a drydock availability in war zone since the Vietnam war.  The availability occurred in 2003 and was held in the Kingdom of Bahrain.  The Port Engineer assigned to oversee the critical availability was MKCS Della Rocco.  The successful availability became the template for the dozens of Coast Guard availabilities that followed.

LCDR Daniel Clark, USCGR, was the first Coast Guardsmen assigned directly to the United Nations for a staff position in a mission.  He was assigned in 2004 as the Maritime Operations Officer for the UN's Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH).

First MSSTs ever commissioned were commissioned by two Hispanics: first two COs of MSSTs 91101 and 91102 (East and West Coast) were LCDR Ramon Ortiz and LCDR Jose Rodriguez.

On May 5 2004 the Coast Guard presented the Purple Heart to BM3 Joseph Ruggiero in Miami for injuries sustained while defending the Khawr Al Amaya Oil Terminal in Iraq on April 24.  Ruggiero, the first Coast Guard recipient of the Purple Heart since the Vietnam War, received the award from VADM James D. Hull, Commander Coast Guard Atlantic Area.  Ruggiero's shipmate, DC3 Nathan Bruckenthal was killed in this same bombing and posthumously received the Purple Heart.


Public Affairs:

The first officially appointed "public relations officer" for the Coast Guard was Commander Le Roy Reinburg, who assumed this collateral duty while stationed at Headquaters in 1933.


Commandants:

On 12 April 1843 Revenue Captain Alexander V. Fraser, Revenue Cutter Service, was appointed Chief of the newly created Revenue Marine Bureau of the Treasury Department, thereby becoming the "first" Commandant.  

First head of service to be dismissed from the service: Revenue Captain Alexander V. Fraser on 14 August 1856 (as per William R. Wells, II "Who's on First").

The first Revenue Cutter Service cadet to be reprimanded for "licentious conduct" was Cadet Orin D. Myrick, on 4 July 1877 while aboard the training ship Dobbin.  Cadet Worth G. Ross (who later became Commandant) received the same charge on 20 July 1877 (as per William R. Wells, II "Who's on First").

First to become Commandant the day after being promoted to the rank of Revenue Captain: Captain Charles F. Shoemaker, 19 March 1896.  He became the first commandant to take command of a cutter (the Windom in 1897) while still serving as commandant and was the first commandant to visit the west coast (as per William R. Wells, II "Who's on First").

Worth G. Ross was the first Commandant to make an inspection of the service in the 20th century when he began his inspection tour in 1905 (as per William R. Wells, II "Who's on First").

On 15 June 1905 Revenue First Lieutenant John E. Reinburg became the first officer assigned as an aide to the Commandant on a full-time basis (as per William R. Wells, II "Who's on First”).

Revenue Second Lieutenant Russell R. Waesche was the first officer who would later become Commandant to serve aboard a cutter that was lost at sea.  He was aboard the cutter Perry when it was lost on 27 July 1910 (as per William R. Wells, II "Who's on First").

LCDR Alfred C. Richmond, who later served as Commandant from 1954-1962, graduated from George Washington University's law school in 1938 and became the Coast Guard's first "legal specialist."


Legal:

The first Revenue Cutter Service court martial occurred on 7 December 1793 aboard the cutter Massachusetts.  The offender, Third Mate Sylvanus Coleman of Nantucket, was summarily dismissed from the service for "speaking disrespectfully of his superior officers in public company. . . .insulting Captain John Foster Williams [the commanding officer] on board, and before company. . . .for keeping bad women on board the cutter in Boston and setting a bad example to the men by ordering them to bring the women on board at night and carrying them ashore in the morning. . . ." and for writing an order in the name of the commanding officer.

The first Revenue Cutter Service cadet to be reprimanded for "licentious conduct": Orin D. Myrick, on 4 July 1877 while aboard the schoolship Dobbin.  Cadet Worth G. Ross (who later became commandant) received the same charge on 20 July 1877 (as per William R. Wells, II "Who's on First").

The first Revenue Cutter Service cadet charged with drunkenness: James H. Scott on 21 January 1891 (as per William R. Wells, II "Who's on First").

In 1929, Horace Alderman, convicted of murdering two Coast Guardsmen and a Secret Service agent in 1927, was hanged at Coast Guard Base 10 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.  He was the only person ever executed by the government on a Coast Guard base.

Coast Guard attorney LCDR Robert W. Bruce, Jr., became the first member of the armed forces to argue a case before the Supreme Court in uniform when he represented the Coast Guard in Solorio vs. United States on 24 February 1987. 


Personnel:

Oldest Coastie?  Anthony Christy, keeper of the Christiana Lighthouse in Delaware, died on duty in September 1862 at the age of 105.  He was the oldest lighthouse keeper on record.

On 21 March 1791, President George Washington commissioned Hopley Yeaton of New Hampshire as "Master of a Cutter in the Service of the United States for the Protection of the Revenue." This first commission of a seagoing officer of the United States was signed by George Washington and attested to by Thomas Jefferson. Twelve other commissions of other officers of revenue cutters were signed on the same date. Yeaton was subsequently assigned to the revenue cutter Scammel whose station was Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

The first warrant officers of the service received their appointments on 5 March 1830.  They were: Beverly Diggs, Thomas Sands, and William Maurice.  Congress first authorized warrant officers in December of 1829.  George Hayes became the first warrant officer to be commissioned as a regular officer when he was promoted from warrant to Revenue second lieutenant on 31 December 1832.  Thomas Sands closely followed Hayes when he was promoted to second lieutenant on 3 January 1833 (as per William R. Wells, II "Who's on First").

On 30 April 1832 all commissions of naval officers in the Revenue Cutter Service were revoked. Vacancies were thereafter filled by promotion for the first time.

On 20 August 1835 Revenue Captain Thomas M. Randolph died while on active service at Key West (he was not aboard a cutter).  He is the first recorded Revenue officer to die while on active duty (as per William R. Wells, II "Who's on First").

On 8 September 1835 Revenue Second Lieutenant William M. A. Moore died while aboard the revenue schooner Ingham, probably from yellow fever.  He was the first Revenue officer to die on active service while aboard a cutter (as per William R. Wells, II "Who's on First").

On 13 August 1864 Revenue Captain Thomas M. Dungan became the first Revenue officer to be killed in action against the enemy.  He was the commanding officer of the cutter Reliance and was killed during an attack on Confederate forces when the cutter was five miles up the great Wicomico River (as per William R. Wells, II "Who's on First").

D. F. A. de Otte signed aboard a cutter as an ordinary seaman on 17 August 1886.  He remained in the service and became the first officer in the 20th century to rise from the ranks (as per William R. Wells, II "Who's on First").

The first surgeon (medical doctor) to receive a regular commission in the Revenue Cutter Service was S. J. Call.  He received a commission as a Revenue First Lieutenant on 20 March 1905 (as per William R. Wells, II "Who's on First").

The first recorded instance of a Revenue officer being murdered while on active duty was Revenue First Lieutenant William A. Whittier, who was murdered on 20 August 1911 while he was on liberty in Boston  (as per William R. Wells, II "Who's on First").

First commissioned SPAR: Dorothy Stratton, USCGR.

First SPARs to enlist for duty in World War II: Theodora Jennings [Banner], & Dorothy Tuttle.

On 14 April 1943 Joseph C. Jenkins graduated as ensign in the Coast Guard Reserve, becoming the first commissioned African-American officer in the Coast Guard.

On 1 June 1943 the Coast Guard promoted warrant officer Clarence Samuels to Lieutenant, Junior Grade, making him the first African-American officer to reach that rank in the Coast Guard. 

Lieutenant Junior Grade Clarence Samuels became the first African-American to command a cutter since Michael Healy and the first to achieve command during wartime when he assumed command of the Light Vessel No. 115 on 28 July 1944. 

On September 27, 1944 Clarence Samuels was promoted to the rank of lieutenant, the first African-American to reach that rank in the Coast Guard.

On January 31, 1948- Mrs. Fannie M. Salter, keeper of the Turkey Point Lighthouse in upper Chesapeake Bay since 1925 and the last woman keeper of a lighthouse in the United States, retired from active service. This ended nearly 150 years during which women were employed as keepers of United States lighthouses.

Justo Gonzalez became the first Hispanic-American to make the rank of chief petty officer when the Coast Guard promoted him to Chief Machinist's Mate (acting) on 16 February 1944.  The promotion was made permanent on 16 October 1948.

In 1962 YNC (CRXI) Frank Cook Sanders became the first African-American to be selected as a Coast Guard Intelligence and Law Enforcement Agent.  In 1968 he was designated as a Marine Investigating Officer while serving MIO San Francisco.  Chief Sanders retired in from the Coast Guard in 1968 and went on to another distinguished career, this time with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, where he retired in 1988.

James W. Parks became the first African-American Gunner's Mate in the Coast Guard when he made GM3/c on 16 April 1949.  He became the first Coast Guard African-American Chief Gunner's Mate when he was advanced to GMC on 1 November 1956 and the first Senior Chief Gunner's Mate on 1 April 1965.  He retired from the Coast Guard after twenty years honorable service in 1967.

First Coast Guardsman to earn an advanced degree under U.S. Coast Guard sponsorship through night class attendance: Lieutenant F.  X. Riley.  He received his M.A. in Public Administration from the American University on 29 May 1949.

In 1956, Captain Gavin L. Field, Master of the Lightship Savannah, retired from the service at the age of seventy.  He was the last civilian master of a lightship to serve in the Coast Guard.  He joined the U.S. Lighthouse Service in 1937 and stayed in when the Lighthouse Service was merged with the Coast Guard in 1939.  He elected to remain in a civilian status during his Coast Guard career.  

First Coast Guard SPAR advanced to warrant officer: Elizabeth Splaine, 1958.

Master Chief Yeoman Jack Kerwin became the first Coast Guardsman to advance to E-9 when he was advanced on 1 November 1958.  A few months later a second group of chiefs from the February 1959 examinations were elevated to E-8 and E-9 effective on 16 May 1959.

First SPAR advanced to E-7: Pearl Faurie, 1962.

In 1962 LTJG Arthur H. Bleich was the first (and, to date, only) Coast Guardsman to win the title of Military Photographer of the Year awarded by the National Press Photographers Association.

First woman to make master chief petty officer: YNCM Pearl Faurie, USCGR, 1967.

First woman to retire from the Coast Guard with full retirement benefits: Mary Ashley, 1968.

First SPAR to be sworn into the regular Coast Guard: Alice Jefferson, 1973.

CWO4 William Musual retired from the Coast Guard on 1 November 1973.  His last assignment was as the commanding officer of Station Castle Hill, RI.  He was the last active duty person who had also served in the U.S. Lighthouse Service.

The first group of women ever enlisted as " regulars" in the U.S. Coast Guard began their 10-weeks of basic training at the Coast Guard Training Center in Cape May on 15 January 1974.  Thirty-two women were in the initial group and formed Recruit Company Sierra- 89.

SN Debbie Atkin became the first woman graduate of the Reserve Training Center's Boatswain's Mate School in 1974.

On 22 June 1977 Secretary of Transportation Brock Adams introduced Ensign Beverly G. Kelley and Boatswain's Mate 3/c Debra Lee Wilson during a press conference as two of 14 women who were assigned to sea duty.  "This is the first time in Coast Guard history that women have been sent to sea."  Both women had orders to report of the USCGC Morgenthau later that year.

First woman to graduate from the Aviation Machinist's Mate "A" School: Petty Officer Robyn L. Bregante.  She graduated from AD(A) School on 5 August 1977.

First African American to make the rank of captain: Bobby C. Wilks was promoted to O-6 on 1 September 1977.  He was also the first African American Coast Guard aviator and the first African American Coast Guardsman to command a Coast Guard air station [AIRSTA Brooklyn].

First female company commander at Cape May: YNC Holly, 1978.

LT Kay Hartzell became the first female commanding officer of an isolated duty station when she took command of LORAN Station Lampedusa, Italy in 1979.

First female Boatswain's Mate First Class (BM1): Debra Chambers Buchanan, 1979.

First Class Storekeeper Mary Alice "Mike" Shaffer retired in 1981 from the Coast Guard Reserve after 34 years of service.  She was the last World War II-era SPAR to retire from the service and was probably the only former SPAR to leave in compliance with legal maximum age requirements.

First female quarters manager was Petty Officer Beth L. Suher.  She was at Elizabeth Dole's dining room as well as ADM Paul Yost's quarters in the early 1980s.  She received her training at the Culinary Institute of America.

Petty Officer Otis Tukes was the first black Coast Guardsman to receive training at the Culinary Institute of America in the Coast Guard's equivalent to the Navy's White House Program of Chef Training and Service.

First African-American female to be advanced to E-7: Edith S. Brown, 1 March 1981.

First active-duty woman to be advanced to chief petty officer: PAC Day Boswell, USCG, 1982.

Lia deBettencourt became the first woman to make Coast Guard Person of the Year for an entire District (D-5 in 1983 and D-3 in 1985).

First woman Coast Guard diver: BM2 Linda Moroz, 1984 (she was assigned to the National Strike Force Dive Team, Elizabeth City, NC).

First female MSTC: Lia deBettencourt, 1986.

First woman promoted to CWO (PERS): Pamela Jones, 1986.

First Coast Guardsmen to become a NASA astronaut: Lieutenant Commander Bruce E. Melnick, USCG.  He later went on to make two shuttle flights: selected in 1987.

First woman promoted to CWO (F&S): Ellen Terrill, 1987.

First woman promoted to CWO (MED): Connie Swaro, 1987.

First African-American OIC of a LEDET: LTJG John T. Broadway when he took command of Group Cape Hatteras LEDET in September, 1988.

First African-American female engineer advanced to E-7: Pamela Autry, 1988.

First Asian-American female warrant officer: Grace Parmalee, 1988.

LT Monyee Kazke and LT Jody Turner were assigned to 270s in 1989 as EOs, becoming the first female EOs of a Coast Guard cutter.  LT Kazek was assigned in 1987 as the Pre-commissioning EO of the CGC Thetis.

The first Chamorro (native Pacific Islander from the Mariana Islands) to graduate from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy and from any military service academy was Juan T. Salas, Class of 1968.  He was also the first Chamorro to command a cutter, USCGC LIPAN (WMEC 85) 1986-1988.  Additionally he was the first Cutterman to be Captain of the Port, Marine Safety Office Guam, 1992-1994.

YNC Joyce M. Harrell became the first African-American female Officer in Charge of a recruiting office when she took command of Recruiting Office San Francisco Bay in 1989.

Boatswains Mate 1/c Krystine Carbajal became the first female Officer in Charge of a Coast Guard Station when she took command in March 1989.

First active-duty woman to make senior chief petty officer: Connie Swaro (1 September 1981)

First woman promoted to CWO (ELC): Lauren Cantatore, 1989.

First woman promoted to CWO (COMMS): Robin Patton, 1989.

First African-American female reservist to be advanced to E-7, 1/1/90: Mary Hughes Holmes

First woman promoted to CWO (BOSN): Anne Visser, 1990.

First woman promoted to SSC(FS): Karen Nault, 1990.

First African-American Command Master Chief Petty Officer: Stephen Spencer, 1991.

First African-American CO of a TACLET: ENS Ricky Sharpe, 1991.

First Hispanic-American female advanced to E-7 was YNC Grisel Hollis, who was advanced on 1 May 1991.  The second was Sonia Colon, who was advanced in 1992.  Hollis was later promoted to CWO(PERS) on 1 June 1995 while assigned to the USCGC Hamilton as the YNC.

First active-duty woman to make master chief petty officer: YNCM Patricia Stolle, USCG, 1993.

First woman advanced to MUCM: Constance I. Coghlan; also the first female member of the Coast Guard Band.

First woman advanced to Chief Telephone Technician (TTC):  Tammie Bustamante, 1 June 1993.

First enlisted woman since the SPARs to be advanced to E-9: Patricia Stolle, 1993.

First military woman assigned as Chief Judge of the Coast Guard: Lane McClelland, 1993.

First woman advanced to E-7 in a weapons rating: Jo Wildman, 1993.

First African-American to become the commanding officer of a TACLET: LT Ricky Sharpe, 1995.  He took command of TACLET Gulf.

First active duty African-American woman to be promoted to warrant officer: Doris Hull, 1995.

First woman advanced to SSCS (FS): Karen Naulty, 1995.

First female admiral appointed from the Public Health Service to head the Health and Safety Directorate of the Coast Guard: Joyce Johnson, 1997.

First woman command master chief: Both YNCM Patricia Stolle and BMCM Diane Bucci, 1998.

First woman promoted to CWO (WEPs): Jo Wildman, 1999.

First African-American admiral: Erroll M. Brown, 1998.

First African-American Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard: Vincent Patton, III, 1998.

First woman advanced to FSCM: Karen Naulty, 1999.

First woman advanced to MKC: Gayla Thompson, 1993.  She was also the first female who held the qualifications for EPO Ashore/Afloat.

First women promoted to CWO (ENG): Gayla Thompson & Karyn Terry, 1999.

ASM1 Terry Hallmark made over 1,200 jumps under orders while he was assigned to the CG ASM instructor at NAS Lakehurst, NJ.

ASM1 Terry A. Hallmark was the first Coast Guardsman to earn the gold Navy/Marine Corps parachute "jump" wings.  He was assigned to NAS Lakehurst, NJ as a ADM-A school instructor from 1977 to 1980 and earned his wings and navy jumpmaster rating.  He performed numerous parachute demonstrations and made over 1,200 jumps under orders until his retirement in 1987.  ASM1c Hallmark designed the parachute air delivery system (PAS) that is used by the U.S. Coast Guard today.

The first Coast Guardsman to "earn jump wings while on active duty at Fort Benning, Georgia Airborne School" was Jose L. Rodriguez on 1 October 1999. 

First woman promoted to flag rank in the Coast Guard: RADM Vivien S. Crea, 2000.

In 2000 GM3 Tajuana Usry became the first African-American woman to receive the Small Arms Instructor (SAI) designation.

First African-American woman to serve as a Coast Guard Special Agent: Lucille "Pam" Thompson, who served as a Coast Guard Special Agent from July, 2000 to July, 2004.

First woman to command the Coast Guard Recruiting Command & first female School Chief of the Coast Guard Officers' Candidate School: Captain Jody A. Breckenridge.

First active-duty Asian-Pacific-Islander-American to attain the rank of 0-6 in the Coast Guard: Captain Juan Salas.

First Japanese-American to attain the rank of O-6 in the Coast Guard: Captain Gilbert Kanazawa.

CAPT Earl R. Fox, USPHS was the oldest person on active duty with any of the uniformed services and was the last World War II veteran on active duty prior to his retirement on 19 November 1999.  His last assignment was as the Senior Medical Officer at the Coast Guard Military Personnel Command.  He had served in the U.S. Navy during World War II.

First Cuban-born Coast Guardsman promoted to CWO (Aviation): Angel L. Martinez, 1999.

First woman promoted to CWO (Aviation), Deborah Walsh, 1 June 2000.

On 1 November 2000 Angela McShan became the first African-American woman to advance to master chief.

First female Reserve officer promoted to flag rank: RADM Mary P. O'Donnell, USCGR, 2000.

CDR Sharon Donald-Baynes was the first African-American woman to command an operations ashore unit.  She commanded, beginning in 2001, Group Lower Mississippi River, Memphis, Tennessee.  Additionally, she was the senior African-American woman in the Coast Guard as of 2001.

With his promotion to rear admiral, Kenneth Stevens Harrison, USCGR, Chief Counsel of the U. S. Coast Guard, became the first flag officer ever appointed in the U.S. Coast Guard Reserve.

Brothers Richard Atteberry and Carl Atteberry were both advanced to Chief Petty Officer on 1 August 2001.  They were initiated at the same time except they were stationed on opposite coasts.

CWO2 Thomas Keenan was the first Coast Guardsman to hold the designation as a U.S. Air Force C-12 crewmember (designation began on 1 November 2001).  He was the first Coast Guardsman to work PCS at an embassy in Latin America under Defense Intelligence Agency auspices -- he transferred to Colombia on 19 October 2001.

CAPT Joseph H. Jones, USCG: First African-American to Pre-Com a cutter -- PRECOMDET NEAH BAY -- Portsmouth, VA; First African-American to command a 140-foot ice breaking tug in the Great Lakes -- NEAH BAY; First African-American to command a 210-foot Medium Endurance Cutter -- CGC RELIANCE in New Castle, NH; First African-American to Command a 378-foot High Endurance Cutter -- CGC DALLAS in New York, NY. Captain Jones commanded three cutters, he also served as XO, OPS, DWO -- Capt Jones was assigned to 6 cutters: USCGC OWASCO -- WHEC; USCGC VIGOROUS --WMEC; USCGC NEAH BAY -- WTGB; USCGC UNIMAK -- WHEC; USCGC RELIANCE -- WMEC; USCGC DALLAS -- WHEC; Captain Jones was the First African-American to be assigned as Executive Assistant to an Assistant Commandant; Captain Jones was the First African-American to be assigned as the chief of operations of a CG District (District Seven, Miami, Florida); Captain Jones was the First African-American tactics officer at the USCGA; Captain Jones was the First O-6 CG-man in the Defense Attaché System served as the Senior Homeland Security Rep at the US Embassy in Mexico City, MX; Captain Jones was the second African-American Security Assistance Officer accredited to Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea.

Coast Guard Auxiliarist Robert D. Dittman, a public affairs staff officer with Flotilla 74, Eighth Coast Guard District, became the first sightless Coast Guard employee to serve on board a cutter.  He sailed aboard Dallas on 22 May 2002.

In September 2002 CDR A. J. Berghorn took command of VT-2, becoming the first Coast Guard officer to command a US Navy training squadron.

On 16 May 2003 LT Greg Duncan became the first African-American Coast Guardsman to successfully complete the scuba diver course at the Navy Dive and Salvage Center in Panama, Florida.

LT Jorge Martinez assumed command of the Maui (WPB-1304) on 5 June 2003, becoming the first Cuban-American to command a Coast Guard cutter.

In July 2003 Coast Guard Auxiliarist Robert Dittman completed the Coast Guard's Reserve Enlisted Basic Indoctrination course at Coast Guard Training Center, Cape May, New Jersey.  He was the first Auxiliarist and first blind person to go through such a training program in any of the five branches of the U.S. military.

First African-American Female Coast Guard officer to earn a 20-year retirement: LCDR Rhonda Fleming-Makell, 2004. 

YNC Crystal A. Sparks was the first female to be the Company Commander School Chief (training Company Commanders) at TRACEN Cape May, 2004.

CAPT Patrick Trapp, the commanding officer of Group Portland, Maine, was the senior Korean-American in the Coast Guard.  He was the first Korean-American commanding officer of a cutter - the 82-foot patrol boat Point Camden (WPB-82373), out of Long Beach, California.  He was also the first Korean-American to graduate from the Coast Guard Academy (1981).  CAPT Trapp was the first Korean-American commanding officer of a Coast Guard station -- first at Station Grays Harbor, Washington then at Station Sandy Hook, New Jersey.  CAPT Trapp is the first Korean-American to attain the rank of O-6.  He was also the first Korean-American to command a sector.

CAPT Jeffrey Lee was the first Korean-American to graduate from Coast Guard OCS (1983).  CAPT Lee was the first Korean-American commanding officer of a 95-foot cutter - the Cape Cross (WPB-95321).  CAPT Lee was the first Korean-American commanding officer of an icebreaking tug, the 140-foot Biscayne Bay (WTGB-104).  CAPT Lee was the first Korean-American executive officer of a 378-foot cutter, the Hamilton (WHEC-715).  CAPT Lee was the first Korean-American to teach at the Leadership Development Center.  CAPT Lee was the first Korean-American to command a high endurance cutter, the Hamilton, taking command on 19 June 2006.

YNCM Pamela J. Carter was the first female active duty master chief petty officer to retire with 30 years of active-duty service when she retired on 1 June 2004.

First female commanding officer of the Coast Guard Institute: Theresa Tierney, August, 2004.

On 24 June 2005 LTJG Jeanine McIntosh-Menze was awarded her wings at a ceremony at Naval Air Station Corpus Christi, after completing training there.  She is the first African-American female Coast Guard aviator. 

In May of 2006 Senior Chief Boatswains Mate Emmanuel Zambrana became the Officer-in-Charge of Station San Juan, Puerto Rico.  He was the first Puerto Rican to command the Puerto Rican-based CG Small Boat Station.  He transferred in June 2007 after his promotion to CWO.

First woman warrant boatswain to command a Coast Guard station: CWO3 Mary Ward commanded Station Port Canaveral until her retirement on 16 June 2006.

CWO2 Apple G. Pryor, assigned as the Main Propulsion Assistant onboard the CGC Boutwell, was the first African-American female Naval Engineering Chief Warrant Officer of the Coast Guard.

Bryon Ing was the first Chinese-American Coast Guardsman to command a Medium Endurance Cutter when he commanded USCGC Venturous from 1995-1997.  He also commanded CGC Nunivak from 1988-1990.  He was the first Chinese-American and Coast Guard Liaison Officer to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (J7-Doctrine) in 1997.  He was the first Chinese-American DAWIA/DHS Level III Certified Systems Acquisitions (2002).  He was the first Chinese-American DHS Certified Level III Acquisitions Program Manager (PM) (2005) leading the Response Boat-Medium (RB-M) acquisition (2002-2006), awarding the contract for the 45’ RB-M replacement vessels for the 41’ UTB in 2006.   

Martha E. Utley became the first female master chief for the Hospital Corpsman/Health Services Technician rating as of 1 June 2007.  On 1 June 2010 she became the first female to serve as Command Master Chief for the USCG HSWL Service Center.

Mary Cunningham became the first African-American female and the first active-duty female to make Chief Damage Controlman when she was advanced from DC1 to DCC on 1 August 2007.  

ISCM David Rochefort (Rating Force Master Chief), ISCM Mark Pearson (Rate Training Master Chief), and ISCM Brian Lincoln (Signals Intelligence Training Manager) became the first Coast Guard Intelligence Specialists when they were inducted into the new IS Rating on 23 April 2007.

On 11 March 2008, ENS Mark A. Unpingco became the first Chamorro (native Pacific Islander from the Mariana Islands) Dive Officer of the Coast Guard after graduating from the Marine Engineering Dive Officer (MEDO) course at the U.S. Navy Dive and Salvage Training Center in Panama City, FL.

Jennifer Lowden became the first female school chief for Training Center Yorktown on 01 June 2008.  She also became the first female MKCS in the Coast Guard when she was advanced on 01 August 2008. 

CWO Melvin W. Williams, Jr., USCG (Ret) was the first African-American male to make Chief in the rate of then-Aviation Survivalman (ASM) and then from ASMC to Chief Warrant Officer (CWO2) before retiring.  While serving as an ASM1 he was credited with the development of the Float Strobe Light.  He was the first African-American male to make parachute jumps at NAS Lakehurst while undergoing Parachute Rigger training in the CG transition of combining CG Aviation Ordnanceman with CG Aviation Parachute Rigger, performed three CPRs, rigged, loaded and dropped the ADAPT system, nighttime helo rescue of two missing divers with the aid of the Night Sun CGAS Miami.  He was awarded the Sikorsky Winged "S" on 23 February 1974 for rescues flying in CG HH-52s stationed at CG Air Station Miami.

In April 2008 OSC Patrick Hagan became the first Coast Guardsman to receive a National Operations Security (OPSEC) Award.

MECM Randy Krahn (Chief, ME "A" School), MECM Steven Lowry (Rate Training Master Chief), MECM Gorgon Muise (Rating Force Master Chief) & MECM William "Sam" Allred (PS Rating Force Master Chief) became the first Coast Guard Maritime Enforcement Specialists when they were inducted into the new ME rate in December, 2008.

LT Felicia Thomas took command of the CGC Pea Island on 19 June 2009.  She is the first African-American female commanding officer of a Coast Guard cutter. 

LT Carrie Wolfe and LT Olivia Grant became the first African-American female Engineering Officers on a major cutter when they reported aboard the CGC Spencer and CGC Venturous respectively in the summer of 2009.

First woman ISS Warrant Officer: Ronetta G. McNeill, 1 June 2010.

On October 1, 2019 LT Christine Igisomar was promoted to LCDR, becoming the first Chamorro (native Pacific Islander from the Mariana Islands) woman to achieve this rank.


Coast Guard Academy:

On 25 May 1877 training of first class of Revenue Cutter cadets began on the schoolship Dobbin at Curtis Bay with nine cadets, three officers, one surgeon, six warrant officers and 17 crew members.

On 12 December 1876, the first examination for Revenue Cutter cadets was held in Washington.

The first cadet to be reprimanded for "licentious conduct": Orin D. Myrick, on 4 July 1877 while aboard the schoolship Dobbin.  Cadet Worth G. Ross (who later became commandant) received the same charge on 20 July 1877. 

The first cadet to die on active service was Cadet Maurice M. Holmes who died on 7 December 1878 at Vineyard Haven, Massachusetts.

The first cadet charged with drunkenness: James H. Scott on 21 January 1891.

The cadet with the shortest career as a cadet: Walter Seely.  He was only enrolled as a cadet from 12 to 16 January 1894.

The first Hispanic-American graduate of the Coast Guard Academy was Paul Powers Perez, Class of 1945.

The first Chinese-American graduate of the Coast Guard Academy was Jack Jones, Class of 1949. 

The first native Chinese-born graduate of the Coast Guard Academy was Kwang-Ping Hsu, Class of 1962. 

The first African-American graduate of the Coast Guard Academy was Merle Smith, Jr., Class of 1966.

The first Chamorro (native Pacific Islander from the Mariana Islands) to graduate from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy and from any military service academy was Juan T. Salas, Class of 1968.

In 1978 Cadet 1/c Manson K. Brown became the first African-American brigade commander at the Coast Guard Academy.

In 1979 Cadet 1/c Linda Johansen became Regimental Commander of the Cadet Corps, the first woman to win Corps command at any of the four service academies.

The first Korean-American graduate of the Coast Guard Academy was Pat Trapp, Class of 1981.

The first female African-American graduates of the Coast Guard Academy were Angela Dennis and Daphne Reese, Class of 1983.

The first female Hispanic-American graduates of the Coast Guard Academy were Jacqueline A. Ball and Deborah R. Winnie, Class of 1983.

The first Chinese-American commissioned officer to serve in the Rotating Commissioned Teaching Corps who taught an academic subject at the Coast Guard Academy was T. L. Mar.  He taught during the 1988-1989 academic year.

Allen L. Thompson, III graduated from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy.  His father, Allen L. Thompson, Jr. graduated from the Academy in 1974.  They were the first African-American father and son graduates of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy.

Captain Joseph H. Jones was the first African-American tactics officer at the Coast Guard Academy.

ENS Andrea Parker is the first African-American female to graduate with an engineering degree from the Coast Guard Academy, 2001.

Cadet 1/c Sarah Salazar became the first Hispanic Regimental Commander at the Coast Guard Academy, 2002.

Kjell Rommerdahl was the first Coast Guard Academy graduate to have two Coast Guard enlisted parents: PO1 Linda Rommerdahl (USCGR, Ret.) & MCPO Kurt Rommerdahl, USCG.

CAPT Steven H. Ratti, a graduate of the Academy Class of 1978, was promoted to RADM on 2 November 2007.  His father, RADM Ricardo A. Ratti, was a 1944 Academy graduate. They were the first father-son Academy graduates to make flag rank.

LTJG Miguel Augustin was recognized as the 2009 Leon Y. McGaughey Adult Military Learner of the Year by the Commission on Military Education and Training, the first member of the U.S. Coast Guard and the first African-American Coast Guardsman to receive this award.  He also received an honorable mention as the 2009 Coast Guard Collateral Duty Education Service Officer of the Year.

The first father-daughter graduates of the Academy were Captain Edward B. Holtzman (Class of 1957) and Ensign Virginia Kerr Holtzman (Class of 1981).  Captain Holtzman presented his daughter her commission when she graduated from the Academy on 21 May 1981.  Also present at Ensign's Holtzman's graduation were her grandfather, Captain George W. Holtzman (Class of 1933) and her sister, Cadet Helen L. Holtzman (Class of 1983).

Sandra L. Stosz was promoted to RADM, becoming the first female graduate of the Coast Guard Academy to reach flag rank.


General & Miscellaneous Firsts:

Vice Commandant-select RADM R. H. Scarborough, then-commander of the Ninth District, personally swore-in the first set of quadruplets to enlist in a U.S. military service when he gave the oath to the "Guinnane quads, Gerard, Paul, Vincent and Peter of Detroit" on 20 March 1978.

Jeffrey LaCava and Charlene LaCava were reportedly the first married couple to go through boot camp together.  They began basic training in 1979.

Anthony John Cipriani, Jr. and his son, Michael Anthony Cipriani, became the first father/son to enlist in the Coast Guard Reserve when they signed their enlistment contracts on 18 April 1989.

BM3 Emmanuel Garcia became the first Coast Guardsman to be married by proxy when he wed FN Chelsea Jayne Garcia on 7 September 2004.  Garcia was stationed at STA Sabine Pass and his wife was "on her way to 'A' school."

SN Michael Christensen, stationed with PATFOR SWA in Bahrain, became the second Coast Guardsman to be married by proxy when he wed Jennifer Rivard, who was in Washington state, on 8-9 August 2006.  Although the state of Washington does not permit such marriages, officials there made a one-time exception for SN Christensen and his bride. 

On 31 March 1995, Coast Guard Communication Area Master Station Atlantic sent a final message by Morse Code and then signed off, officially ending more than 100 years of telegraph communications.  [Three operators used their skills to regretfully end a tradition of Coast Guard communications services to all nations.  The operator's names and ranks were: Telecommunication Specialist First Class Jerry D. "Burly" Burleson; Telecommunication Specialist Second Class Timothy L. Hilf; Telecommunication Specialist Third Class Sergio M. Morales.  At 010030Z APR 95 the last message was delivered to those that were copying the Morse code signals by the three operators. Once completed, the operator's secured the equipment carrying out the order given by the Commanding Officer Captain Freddy L. Montoya.  The official logs and Morse code hand keys are on display at CAMSLANT Chesapeake ending the era of pounding brass and sparking clicks.]

In 2010 ME3 Michael Carpenter and ME1 David McIver became the first certified Precision Marksman - Observer Team (PM-OT) in the Coast Guard.

 

 What celebrities or other famous persons once served in or were associated with the Coast Guard?
  • Derroll Adams, Folk Musician
  • Nick Adams, Actor
  • Lou Ambers, Professional Boxer & World Light-Weight Boxing Champion
  • Gerald Arpino, Choreographer, Dancer, Artistic Director of the Joffrey Ballet
  • Al Barlick, Professional Baseball umpire, National Baseball Hall of Fame Inductee
  • Mike Barrier, Actor
  • Edward T. Barry, Professional Hockey Player
  • Tom Blake, Athlete, Professional Surfer, Inventor & Author
  • Frank Tucker Bobst, Artist & Activist
  • Humphrey Bogart, Actor
  • Lee Bonnell, Actor
  • Milton H. Bren, Producer ("Tars and Spars"), Writer, Director
  • Beau Bridges, Actor
  • Jeff Bridges, Actor
  • Lloyd Bridges, Actor
  • Frank Brimsek, Professional Hockey Player, National Hockey Hall of Fame Inductee
  • Danny Joe Brown, Musician ("Molly Hatchet")
  • Tim Burton, Musician ("Mighty Mighty Bosstones"); Coast Guard Auxiliarist
  • Sid Caesar, Comedian
  • Robert Maurice Campbell, Producer, Director
  • Lou Carnesecca, College Basketball Coach
  • Gower Champion, Dancer, Actor, Director
  • Howard Coble, Congressman (NC)
  • Hamilton Cochran, Writer 
  • Johnny Colan, Professional Boxer, Heavyweight
  • Chris Cooper, Actor
  • Art Coulter, Professional Hockey Player, National Hockey Hall of Fame Inductee
  • Warren Covington, Musician, Band Leader (took over Tommy Dorsey's Orchestra).
  • Walter Cronkite, Newscaster
  • John F. DeCuir, Jr., Art Director, Production Designer
  • William D. Delahunt, Congressman (MA)
  • Jack Dempsey, Professional Boxer
  • Peter R.J. Deyell, Actor, Writer, Makeup Artist, Producer, Director
  • Marlene Dietrich, Actress
  • Don "The Dragon" Wilson, Martial Arts Master, Actor
  • Donald Duck, Actor, Comedian, Cartoon Character
  • Vernon Duke, Composer, Song Writer ("Tars and Spars")
  • Buddy Ebsen, Actor
  • Blake Edwards, Writer, Director, Producer
  • Perry Ellis, Fashion Designer
  • Thomas Farris, Professional Football Player (Green Bay Packers, Chicago Bears)
  • Arthur Feidler, Conductor
  • Anton Otto Fischer, Artist
  • Preston Foster, Actor
  • Elizebeth Smith Friedman, Cryptographer
  • Neal Gay, Professional Rodeo Hall of Fame Inductee
  • Charles Gibson, Newscaster
  • Burton Gilliam, Boxer, Actor
  • Arthur Godfrey, Entertainer
  • Gale Gordon, Radio, TV & Movie Actor
  • Otto Graham, Professional Football Player and Coach
  • Jimmy Grier, Musician, Jazz Band Leader (worked with Rudy Vallee in the Coast Guard during World War II).
  • Alan Hale, Jr., Actor
  • Alex Haley, Writer
  • William F. "Bull" Halsey, Jr., Fleet Admiral, U. S. Navy
  • Wynn Handman, Actor, Director & Founder of the American Place Theatre
  • William O. Harbach, Producer
  • Edith Head, Academy Award-winning costume designer (designer of USCG women's uniforms in the 1970s)
  • Jim "Shanty" Hegan, Professional Baseball Player & Coach
  • Roland Hemond, Professional Baseball Player
  • Tommy Henrich, Professional Baseball Player
  • Christopher Hibler, Producer, Director
  • Clarke Hinkle, Professional Football Player (Green Bay Packers)
  • Robert Horton, Actor
  • Tab Hunter, Actor
  • Charles Isaacs, Writer
  • Wesley Jansen, Actor (retired BM1)
  • Lew "Sweetwater Swatter" Jenkins, Professional Boxer & World Lightweight Champion
  • Victor Jory, Actor
  • Duke Paoa Kahanamoku, Athlete, Surfer, Actor
  • Michael Kilian, Author, Chicago Tribune Columnist, "Dick Tracy" Comic Strip Writer (Coast Guard Auxiliarist)
  • Jack Kramer, Tennis Professional
  • Jacob Lawrence, Artist
  • Raymond Loewy, Industrial Designer (designed USCG's racing stripe)
  • Alex Lukachik, Professional Football Player (Pittsburg Steelers)
  • Guy Madison, Actor
  • Nathan Mann, Professional Boxer, Heavyweight
  • Monte Markham, Actor, Producer
  • John Mariucci, Professional Hockey Player, National Hockey Hall of Fame Inductee
  • Rube Marquard, Hall of Fame Professional Baseball Player
  • Arthur Marx, Tennis Player, Biographer, Writer (Stage & Screen); Son of Groucho Marx
  • Victor Mature, Actor
  • K. Gunn McKay, former Congressman (UT)
  • Lorin Michael, Director-Producer
  • G. William Miller, Businessman, Chairman of the Federal Reserve, Secretary of the Treasury
  • Bubba Morton, Major League Baseball Player (Detroit Tigers, Milwaukee Braves & California Angels)
  • Frank Murkowski, Governor of Alaska & former Senator (AK)
  • Sam Nunn, former Senator (GA)
  • Edwin O'Connor, Pulitzer Prize-winning author
  • Thomas F. O’Neil, Executive
  • Arnold Palmer, Professional Golfer
  • Edmund K. Parker, Kenpo Martial Arts Master & Founder of the American Kenpo Karate
  • George S. Patton, Jr., General, U.S. Army
  • Claiborne Pell, former Senator (RI)
  • Eulace Peacock, Athlete (100-yard dash co-record holder with Jesse Owens & ISA Track & Field Hall of Fame)
  • Jose "The Punisher" Perez, Jr., Boxer
  • John Perry, Producer
  • Tom Philpott, Editor, Navy Times Magazine
  • Jim Pollard, Professional Basketball Player (Minneapolis Lakers)
  • Popeye, Cartoon Character
  • J. D. Power, III, Businessman
  • Pluto, Cartoon, Actor
  • Richard Quine, Actor
  • Ford Rainey, Actor
  • Caesar Romero, Actor
  • Harvey C. Russell, Jr. (first African-American to break the corporate color barrier when he became Vice President of Corporate Planning for Pepsi in 1962).
  • Walter Sande, Actor
  • Chiao-Shun Soong, Businessman, Chinese Patriarch
  • Chester R. Simmons, Sports Broadcasting Executive, First USFL Commissioner
  • Joe Simon, Comic Book Artist, Writer & Editor (creator of "Captain America")
  • Sibby Sisti, Professional Baseball Player
  • Ted Steele, Radio Personality, Song Writer & Band Leader
  • Robert Stevens, Actor
  • Gene Taylor, Congressman (MS)
  • Emlen Tunnel, Professional Football Player
  • Ted Turner, Businessman
  • Rudy Vallee, Entertainer
  • Tom Waits, Actor, Singer, Song Writer
  • James J. "Big Jim" Walker, Head Coach, Central State (Ohio) University
  • Patrick Wayne, Actor
  • Ralph Weigel, Professional Baseball Player
  • Henry Wilcoxon, Actor
  • Sloan Wilson, Writer (The Man in the Grey Flannel Suit, among others)
  • Kai Winding, Musician
  • Lothar Wolff, Producer, Director
  • Gig Young, Actor


Cutters

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What is a cutter? What does the "W" in Coast Guard hull designations stand for? What's a WHEC? WMEC?

What is a Cutter?

The Revenue Marine and the Revenue Cutter Service , as it was known variously throughout the late 18th and the 19th centuries, referred to its ships as cutters.  The term is English in origin and refers to a specific type of vessel, namely, "a small, decked ship with one mast and bowsprit, with a gaff mainsail on a boom, a square yard and topsail, and two jibs or a jib and a staysail." (Peter Kemp, editor, The Oxford Companion to Ships & the Sea; London: Oxford University Press, 1976; pp. 221-222.)   The Royal Navy's definition of a cutter was a small warship capable of carrying 8 to 12 cannons.*** 

By general usage, the term cutter came to define any vessel of Great Britain's Royal Customs Service and the term was adopted by the U.S. Treasury Department at the creation of what would become the Revenue Marine.  Since that time, no matter what the vessel type, the service has referred to its largest vessels as cutters (today a cutter is any Coast Guard vessel over 65-feet in length).  

Coast Guard Cutter Classifications & Designations:

The Revenue Cutter Service designated its cutters and craft based on classes.  From about 1890 through the formation of the Coast Guard in 1915, the largest cutters were referred to as vessels of the 'First Class."  The smaller coastal cutters and larger tugs were vessels of the "Second Class," and the smaller tugs and cutters were designated as vessels of the "Third Class."  Finally, the small harbor craft were referred to as "Launches."

In 1915, the newly-formed Coast Guard began referring to all of its larger cutters as "Cruising Cutters."  At that time, most of the smaller vessels fell under the classification of "Harbor Cutter" and the smallest craft were known as a "Launches."  This changed in 1920 when the Coast Guard divided the "Cruising Cutter" designation into "Cruising Cutters" for the largest sea-going cutters and "Inshore Patrol Cutters" for those that were primarily coastal vessels.

In 1925, the designation changed once again.  Now the largest cutters were known as "Cruising Cutters, First Class," while the coastal cutters were "Cruising Cutters, Second Class."  With Prohibition enforcement becoming a major mission, the Coast Guard began adding numerous smaller patrol craft and these were grouped together under the classification of "Patrol Boats."  The service also acquired a large number of Navy destroyers to augment the fleet and these were known as, simply, "Coast Guard Destroyers."

In February, 1942 the Coast Guard adopted the Navy's ship classification system whereby a vessel was designated with a two-letter abbreviation based on the type of ship and its hull number.  Thus, the large, sea-going cruising cutters of the first class became gunboats, or "PG."  To differentiate them from their Navy counterparts, all Coast Guard cutters were given the prefix "W" at that same time.  No one knows for sure why the Navy and Coast Guard picked the letter "W" to designate a Coast Guard vessel although rumors abound.  One rather bureaucratic argument is that "W" was used during the 1930s as the routing symbol on Treasury Department correspondence to designate the Coast Guard.*  Another is that it stands for "weather patrol," one of the major tasks assigned to the Coast Guard.**  Still another notes that by international agreement regarding radio communications the United States was able to use the letters "A", "K", "N" or "W" and since "W" was unused at that time, it was chosen to designate a Coast Guard cutter.***  Finally one officer noted that "W" was chosen since it was unused and was also the first letter of the last name of the officer who attended the meeting when the designation was chosen!****  Or it may be as simple as the fact that "W" was an unused letter on the Navy's designation alphabet and was arbitrarily assigned to designate a Coast Guard cutter.  In any case, the practice stuck and each cutter still bears the "W."  

The service also began assigning an exclusive hull number to each cutter and craft at this time.  Prior to 1941, the Coast Guard and its predecessors never assigned hull numbers to its larger cutters or tenders, it simply referred to them only by their names.  Some were assigned builders' numbers prior to their construction but that number was never used to designate a cutter that was in commission.  The number was dropped after the cutter entered service.  There is an exception to this practice, however.  During the 1920s, patrol boats and the destroyers loaned to the Coast Guard by the Navy did receive hull numbers.  Those hull numbers were preceded by the letters "CG."  The destroyers kept their names as well and so were the first and only Coast Guard named-vessels, up to that time, that also had hull numbers.

After the end of the war and the Coast Guard's transfer back to the control of the Treasury Department, the Coast Guard continued to use the Navy's system.  The large, sea-going cutters were classified primarily as "WPG," "WDE", and "WAVP" (Coast Guard gunboats; Coast Guard destroyer escorts; and Coast Guard seaplane tenders).  This changed in 1965 when the service adopted its own designation system and these large cutters were then grouped together into one class that was referred to as Coast Guard High Endurance Cutters or "WHEC."  The coastal cutters once known as "Cruising cutters, Second Class" and then "WPC" (Coast Guard patrol craft) under the Navy system were now Coast Guard Medium Endurance Cutters, or "WMEC."  Patrol boats continued to be referred to by their Coast Guard/Navy designation, i.e. "WPB. "  These designations refer to the cutters' capabilities in regards to the length of time they may spend on patrol without replenishment.

Regardless of their changing designations, the cutters in the fleet have always been capable of handling a multitude of missions, sail in any weather, and persevere through any crisis the nation has had.  Most have been long-lived as well.

*Robert Scheina.  Coast Guard Cutters & Craft, 1946-1990.  Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1990, p. 169 (caption).

**HMC James T. Flynn, Jr., USNR (Ret.), "US Coast Guard 'W' Numbers: Where did they come from and where are they going?", p. 4; unpublished paper, USCG Historian's Office files.  Chief Flynn notes in the Navy's 1943 ONI-54 pamphlets that "Coast Guard types are prefixed by the letter 'G' . . . Scheina mentions this use of the letter 'G' prefix by the Navy and he further explains that the letter 'W' used by the Coast Guard can be traced back into the 1930s.  He also states that the Navy followed suit later in the war (using the W prefix for Coast Guard) when the letter 'G' was needed as a prefix for vessels transferred to Greece.", ibid., pp. 3-4.  

***BMC Joseph Noecker, USCG (Ret.) in an email to the Historian's Office, noted: ". . .cutters in the British man-of-war designations had 8 to 12 guns/cannon. . . Hull numbers [were] one way of calling a ship via radio.  Much the same as an aircrafts' tail number is used today.  By international agreement all U.S. radio call signs begin with A, K, N or W.  Army (and later Air Force) used A, Navy and private aircraft use N.  That, among other reasoning's, may have been the reason for the W."

****Tom Miles noted that VADM Robert Scarborough once related that while serving as the aide to then-Fifth District commander RADM [Russell E.] Wood that Wood told him he attended the meeting when this issue was decided and it ". . .Seems that 'W' clearly was not being used and (since it) was the first letter of his last name it seemed only logical (to him) that it be proposed.  Thus he did so!  Apparently no conferee disagreed so the deed was accomplished!"

 

What were the first ten cutters?

First Ten Cutters; The First Commissioned U.S. Revenue Cutters:

The North Carolina, purchased in 1792 for use as a revenue cutter, was not one of the first ten cutters asked for by Hamilton and whose funding and construction were authorized by Congress on 4 August 1790 and is therefore not included in this list.  There were a number of vessels, however, that served as revenue boats in the period prior to Congress' authorization to build the ten cutters.  Some were operated by the various states during the Confederation Period while others were operated by the federally appointed customs collectors in the ports after the formation of the federal government in 1789.  These "federal" revenue boats and craft varied in type and size, such as Philadelphia collector Sharp Delany's "barge with sails," that served before, during, and well after the General Green entered service in the waters around Philadelphia.  But such craft were not "sea-going" vessels capable of sailing well away from protected harbors as the cutters were specifically designed to do.   Therefore, the following list contains the "first" cutters as recognized by the U.S. Coast Guard.  Although the Revenue Cutter Vigilant was the first cutter to be launched records concerning when she actually entered service were lost in the fire at the Treasury Department in 1833.  Tradition has it that the cutter Massachusetts, launched in July 1791, was the first to actually enter service as a commissioned vessel of the U.S. government.

1) Vigilant

Launched in March of 1791, Vigilant may have been the first cutter hull to enter the water.  She was built at New York for service in New York waters.  Her first master was Patrick Dennis.  She was sold in November, 1798.

 

2) Active

Active launched on 9 April 1791 at Baltimore, Maryland.  She patrolled the waters of the Chesapeake under the command of Master Simon Gross.  She was sold in 1800.

 

3) General Green

General Green was launched on 7 July 1791 at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  She was assigned to the Pennsylvania station under the command of Master James Montegomery.  She was sold in December, 1797.

 

4) Massachusetts

Massachusetts was launched on 15 July 1791.  She was built at Newburyport, Massachusetts.  Her first master was John Foster Williams.  She was sold on 9 October 1792.

 

5) Scammel

Scammel was launched on 24 August 1791.  She was built at Portsmouth, New Hampshire.  Her first master was Hopley Yeaton.  She was sold on 16 August 1798.

 

6) Argus

Argus was launched sometime in 1791.  She was built at New London, Connecticut.  Her first master was Jonathan Maltbie.  She was sold in 1804.

 

7) Virginia

Virginia was launched sometime in 1791.  She was built at Norfolk, Virginia.  Her first master was Richard Taylor.  She was sold in 1798.

 

8) Diligence

Diligence was launched sometime in June or July of 1792.  She was built at Washington, North Carolina.  Her first master was William Cook.  She was sold in 1798..

 

9) South Carolina

South Carolina was launched in 1792.  She was built at Charleston, South Carolina for service in South Carolina and nearby waters.  Her first master was Robert Cochrane.  She was sold on 5 June 1798.

 

10) Eagle

The first Eagle was launched sometime in 1793.  She was built in Savannah, Georgia for service in Georgia's waters.  Her first master was John Howell.  She was sold on 14 September 1799.

 


History, Heritage & Traditions

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How many Coast Guard Districts are there?

Much like the Coast Guard’s organizational composition, the Coast Guard’s district system has gone through numerous iterations. The district system of organization was initially created for the Lighthouse Service. Established by an act of Congress on 7 June 1838, there were six districts on the Atlantic Coast and two on the Great Lakes. This number increased as the nation continued to grow with westward expansion and the acquisition of Alaska and Hawaii.

The creation of the Life-Saving Service also saw the adoption of the district system to facilitate administration. By 1881 the service had 183 stations organized into 12 districts. These were:

  • District 1 (Maine & New Hampshire),
  • District 2 (Massachusetts),
  • District 3 (Rhode Island & Long Island),
  • District 4 (New Jersey),
  • District 5 (Cape Henlopen to Cape Charles),
  • District 6 (Cape Henry to Cape Hatteras),
  • District 7 (eastern Florida),
  • District 8 (Gulf Coast),
  • District 9 (Lake Erie & Lake Ontario),
  • District 10 (Lake Huron & Lake Superior),
  • District 11 (Lake Michigan), and
  • District 12 (Pacific Coast).

While the USLSS used a district system, the US Revenue Cutter Service did not. Instead cutters were organized simply by the location of their home port.

With the merger of the two services to create the Coast Guard in 1915, however, the district system was adopted service wide. The only differences were the establishment of 13, instead of 12, districts with slightly different borders. This organization was maintained during the service’s attachment to the Navy during World War I and continued into the 1930s. By 1939 the district organization remained, but the borders were modified along with the names. So what once constituted the First District and most of the Third, became known as the Boston District. With war on the horizon, the Coast Guard was again attached to the Navy in November, 1941. As a result the Coast Guard districts became part of the Naval District System. By 1944 the districts were again re-organized and the numerical designation re-established. This time, however, there were 14 districts with the territories of Alaska and Hawaii each constituting separate organizations.

This organization has been, more or less retained, with slight modifications. These include consolidations of districts and the creation of area commands. These area commands, initially known as the Eastern Area and Western Area, were renamed, in January, 1973, to Atlantic Area and Pacific Area, respectively. 

Over the years, the number of districts, through mergers, was whittled down to 10 by 1987.  On 30 May 1996 the 8th and 2nd Districts were combined to form the new 8th District. As such, the Coast Guard’s current district organization numbers 9 districts. Their designations and HQs are:

  • 1st (Boston),
  • 5th (Portsmouth, VA),
  • 7th (Miami),
  • 8th (New Orleans & St. Louis)
  • 9th (Cleveland)
  • 11th (Alameda, CA)
  • 13th (Seattle),
  • 14th (Honolulu), and
  • 17th (Juneau, AK)

Map of Coast Guard Areas and Districts:

 

What are some famous quotations about the Coast Guard?

“A few armed vessels, judiciously stationed at the entrances of our ports, might at a small expense be made useful sentinels of the laws."
- Alexander Hamilton, “The Utility of the Union in Respect to Revenue from the New York Packet,” The Federalist Papers, Tuesday, 27 November 1787.

“They will always keep in mind that their countrymen are freemen, and, as such, are impatient of everything that bears the least mark of a domineering spirit. They will, therefore, refrain, with the most guarded circumspection, from whatever has the semblance of haughtiness, rudeness, or insult. If obstacles occur, they will remember that they are under the particular protection of the laws and that they can meet with nothing disagreeable in the execution of their duty which these will not severely reprehend. This reflection, and a regard to the good of the service, will prevent, at all times a spirit of irritation or resentment. They will endeavor to overcome difficulties, if any are experienced, by a cool and temperate perseverance in their duty--by address and moderation, rather than by vehemence or violence.”
- Alexander Hamilton, Letter of Instructions to the Commanding Officers of the Revenue Cutters, 4 June 1791.

“The Blue Book says we've got to go out and it doesn't say a damn thing about having to come back.”
- Captain Patrick Etheridge, USLSS

"The lighthouse and the lightship appeal to the interests and better instinct of man because they are symbolic of never-ceasing watchfulness, of steadfast endurance in every exposure, of widespread helpfulness."
-
George R. Putnam, the first Commissioner of Lighthouses, U.S. Lighthouse Service, 1906-1935

"I am proposing something that may overtax our complement, but our training forms the habit of endeavoring to accomplish whatever is to be done with the with the tools that are given us, and our experiences teach us that a task is often less difficult in retrospection than in contemplation."
- Captain-Commandant E. P. Bertholf, USRCS, in a memo regarding the Revenue Cutter Service's ability to accept the new mission of the International Ice Patrol to Treasury Secretary Franklin MacVeagh.

"By evolutionary processes coincident with the steady growth of the Nation, additional duties were successively added to this service to meet the ever-increasing demands of the maritime interests in so far as they were connected with governmental functions, so that at the time of the passage of the act [. . .creating the Coast Guard] the Revenue-Cutter Service had become essentially an emergency service, specializing in the performance of governmental maritime duties
- Commandant E. P. Bertholf, USRCS, in the Annual Report of the United States Coast Guard, 1915, p. 43.

“The cat with nine lives is a piker compared to the Coast Guard. You can kick this old service around, tear it to pieces, scream from the house-tops that it is worthless, ought to be abolished or transferred to the Navy, have the people in it fighting among themselves and working at cross purposes and it bobs up serenely bigger and stronger than ever.”
- Rear Admiral R. R. Waesche, private letter, 1935

"I reasoned that I was a Coast Guard first class boatswain mate. My job was the sea and to save those in peril upon it."
-Bernard C. Webber, recounting the 1952 Pendleton rescue in Chatham: "The Lifeboatmen" (1985)

"The U.S. Coast Guard is a shining example of how well a Federal agency can perform with its flexibility, speed, and expertise."
- Representative Russ Carnahan (Democrat, Missouri), 2005

“While I recommend in the strongest terms to the respective officers, activity, vigilance, and firmness, I feel no less solicitude that their deportment may be marked with prudence, moderation and good temper. Upon these last qualities, not less than the former, must depend the success, usefulness, and consequently the continuance of the establishment, in which they are included.”
– Secretary of the Treasury William H. Crawford, Circular to the Captains of Revenue Cutters, 13 July 1819

"Commanding officers of the revenue service, of whatsoever grade or rank, are required and strictly enjoined to show in themselves a good example of virtue, honor patriotism, subordination, and of fidelity to the government and laws, and to be vigilant in inspecting the conduct of all persons under their command, and to guard, against and suppress all dissolute and immoral practices.”
- Article 67, Rules and Regulations for the Government of the U.S. Revenue Cutter Service, 1862.

“Keeping always under steam and ever ready, in the event of extraordinary need, to render valuable service, the cutters can be made to form a coast guard whose value it is impossible at the present time to estimate.” – Army & Navy Journal, 26 November, 1864

"When I am in charge of a vessel, I always command; nobody commands but me. I take all the responsibility, all the risks, all the hardships that my office would call upon me to take. I do not steer by any man’s compass but my own."
- Captain Michael Healy, USRCS, 1896

“The story of the Coast Guard at war is replete with incidents which, in combat or otherwise, demonstrated consummate skill, great devotion to duty, and heroism worthy of special mention in any wartime history of the Service.”
-
Malcolm F. Willoughby, USCGG, author of The U.S. Coast Guard in World War II

“Your gallant and desperate attempt to defend your vessel against more than double your number excited such admiration on the part of your opponents as I have seldom witnessed, and induced me to return you the sword you had so ably used in testimony of mine...I am at loss which to admire most, the previous arrangement on board the Surveyor or the determined manner in which her deck was disputed inch-by-inch.”
- Lieutenant John Crerie, RN, in a letter to Captain Samuel Travis, master of the cutter Surveyor, after that cutter’s capture by the Royal Navy, 1813.

"Upon the brilliant and successful consummation of your perilous mission I congratulate you and the Service in which you were even then distinguished officers, and I congratulate the country that produces such men. Future seekers for the record of heroic Americans will surely note with pleasure what was done…”
- Secretary of the Treasury Leslie M. Shaw regarding the Overland Expedition, 17 January 1899.

“These poor, plain men, dwellers upon the lonely sands of Hatteras took their lives in their hands, and, at the most imminent risk, crossed the tumultuous sea…, and all for what? So that others might live to see home and friends.”
- Annual Report of the Operations of the United States Life-Saving Service, 1885.

“To date there has been no Homer, Herman Melville, or Charles Dana to record their deeds so that Americans recognize that they have always had maritime heroes living among them. Until that time, if you wish to see ordinary men and women who perform heroic deeds, visit a U.S/ Coast Guard small boat rescue station.”
- Dennis L. Noble, Ph.D, USCG (Ret.), in Rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard: Great Acts of Heroism since 1878.

"I will ensure that my superiors rest easy with the knowledge that I am on the helm, no matter what the conditions."
-
Surfman's Creed

“The professional ability of the Coast Guard officers is evidenced by the fact that twenty-four commanded combatant ships in European waters, five vessels of the patrol force of the Caribbean Sea, and twenty-three combatant craft attached to naval districts. . .The Navy Department, naturally enough, assigned to the command of combatant ships only [to] officers whose experience and ability warranted such detail and only those officers in whom the Department had implicit confidence.”
-
Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels regarding the Coast Guard in World War I, published in his book Our Navy at War.

“. . .I will not attempt to recount now anything of the history of the Coast Guard. Officers of the Coast Guard should know the history and traditions of the Service and should see that the men under their command are conversant with them. It seems to me that it must be a source of great pride and satisfaction to any officer or man to consider that he belongs to a military organization with such an exceptionally long and honorable record of accomplishment, with such traditions and with such high standards of duty. There is not, to my knowledge, any other organization under our Government which may so properly and accurately be called “The Peace and War Service”. It is also the “Silent Service” whose record and work are not known as widely throughout the land as they should be.”
-
Assistant Secretary Edward Clifford, U.S. Treasury Department, 17 July 1922.

"Having fought as a part of the Navy in all our wars, and taking an especial pride in being fully prepared to perform credible service in the Navy whenever called upon, the officers and men of the Coast Guard are inspired not only by the high traditions and fine history of their own service, but also by the splendid traditions, history, and indoctrination of the United States Navy. They have thus two rich heritages to be proud of and two standards of the same lofty character to live up to."
- Rear Admiral F. C. Billard, USCG, as quoted in the U.S. Naval Institute Proceedings, May 1929.

“Most Citizens know about Uncle Sam’s ‘Devil Dogs,’ his ‘Gobs’ and ‘Dough Boys,’ buy how many know about his ‘Trouble Shooters’ of our U.S. Coast Guard?. . .These expert sea-lawyers aboard their [327]-foot, electrically-driven, 5 inch gun-armed Cutters, together with over 250 land stations, 19 wireless stations, disaster cars, mobile short wave radio trucks, 5000 mile telegraph, cable, telephone communications system, working in conjunction with their especially designed land and sea planes can do a thoroughly complete job of clearing trouble.”
David A. Devine in his book ‘Uncle Sam’s’ Trouble Shooters: An Historical Survey of the U.S. Coast Guard in Relation to Our National Defense, 1940, p. 7.

“To the Coast Guard is charged protection of life and ships upon the sea; to this end the Service bends its every energy, often at the expense of its other varied duties. ‘Humanitarian’ is the term that has been given to this phase of Coast Guard activity, and humanitarian the Service is. No night too stormy, no seas too high, no shoals too forbidding to restrain our cutters from their work of saving life. The same heroic spirit of self-sacrifice and disregard of personal danger that was fostered by our predecessors in the Service’s infancy pervades the Service to-day, not only on large, seaworthy cutters and powerful destroyers but also on the tiny egg-shell craft that patrol nearly every mile of our far-flung coast.”
- U.S. Coast Guard Academy, Tide Rips, 1927.

“Adaptability is a characteristic of the American fighting man that has enabled this country’s Armed Forces to emerge triumphant in every major war we have fought. Adaptability is synonymous with the operations of the United States Coast Guard.”
- Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, USN

“"I know of no instance wherein they did not acquit themselves in the highest traditions of their Service, or prove themselves worthy of their Service motto, Semper Paratus-'Always Ready'"
-Chester W. Nimitz, Fleet Admiral, U.S. Navy

“I want to make sure that the Coast Guard people in Vietnam know that I am hearing about them often and that I am pleased with what I hear.”
- General Wallace Greene, Jr., USMC, Commandant of the Marine Corps, August, 1967.

"Heroic Coasties have made their mark in every mission area and every era of our service.  We are the heirs of their legacy.  We walk in the footsteps of heroes past, and some of those footprints are very fresh."
- Admiral James Loy, USCG.

 

 

What are some of the traditions of the Coast Guard? Why does the Coast Guard have two official flags?

 

What are the lyrics to Semper Paratus? Why is Semper Paratus the Coast Guard's official motto?

Semper Paratus” (Always Ready)

The Official Coast Guard Marching Song

Words and Music
by Captain Francis Saltus Van Boskerck, USCG

Words and Music Copyright by Sam Fox Publishing Co, Inc.

Current Version:

First Verse:

From Aztec Shore to Arctic Zone,
To Europe and Far East,
The Flag is carried by our ships
In times of war and peace;
And never have we struck it yet
In spite of foemen's might,
Who cheered our crews and cheered again
For showing how to fight.

Chorus:

We're always ready for the call,
We place our trust in Thee.
Through surf and storm and howling gale,
High shall our purpose be.
"Semper Paratus" is our guide,
Our fame, our glory too.
To fight to save or fight and die,
Aye! Coast Guard we are for you!

Second Verse:

SURVEYOR and NARCISSUS,
The EAGLE and DISPATCH,
The HUDSON and TAMPA,
These names are hard to match;
From Barrow's shores to Paraguay,
Great Lakes or ocean's wave,
The Coast Guard fights through storms and winds,
To punish or to save.

Third Verse:

Aye! We've been always ready!
To do, to fight, or die
Write glory to the shield we wear
In letters to the sky.
To sink the foe or save the maimed,
Our mission and our pride.
We'll carry on 'til Kingdom Come,
Ideals for which we've died.

Previous Versions (see below)


Captain Francis Saltus Van Boskerck & Semper Paratus

No one seems to know exactly how Semper Paratus was chosen as the Coast Guard’s motto. But there is no doubt as to who put the famous motto to words and music.  Captain Francis Saltus Van Boskerck wrote the words in the cabin of the cutter Yamacraw in Savannah, Ga., in 1922. He wrote the music five years later on a "beat-up old piano" in Unalaska, Alaska. At that time it was probably the only piano in the whole long chain of Aleutian Islands.  Van Boskerck received his commission in the Revenue Cutter Service May 20, 1891. 

A photo of Francis Saltus Van BoskerckRight: First Lieutenant Francis Saltus Van Boskerck, USRCS, circa 1907.

In 1917 he was Captain of the Port in Philadelphia and an aide for the fourth naval district at the American routing office in Philadelphia. He was also censor for the district, and was the first Coast Guard officer to report a German submarine on the Atlantic coast. After the war, Van Boskerck transferred to the Puget Sound Navy Yard to supervise repairs on the famous cutter Bear. He commanded Bear on the 1920 summer cruise to the Bering Sea and Arctic Ocean.

In 1922, as commander of Yamacraw, Van Boskerck was stationed at Savannah and chased rum-runners off the coast of the Carolinas and Florida. In 1923 he went to the Naval War College at Newport, R.I., and in 1924 became District Commander of the Great Lakes District. Van Boskerck was commissioned Captain in 1925.

"Captain Van," as he was known to his many friends, was next ordered to Seattle as Assistant Inspector of the Northwest District. In 1925 and 1926 he was Commander of the Bering Sea Forces, headquartered at the remote port of Unalaska. It was here that he found time to fit the words of his song to music with the help of two Public Health dentists, Alf E. Nannestad and Joseph O. Fournier.  Mrs. Albert C. Clara Goss, the wife of a fur trader, let them use the beat-up piano on which the song was written. For probably as long as Captain Van Boskerck could remember, Semper Paratus had been a Revenue Cutter and Coast Guard watchword. The words themselves, "always ready" or "ever ready," date back to ancient times.

No official recognition was given to the Coast Guard motto until it appeared on the Captain-Commandant's official stationery* in 1910 on the ensign. Captain Van Boskerck hoped to give it as much recognition as "Semper Fidelis" of the Marines and "Anchors Aweigh" of the Navy.


Original Version (circa 1927):

First Verse:

From Aztec Shore to Arctic Zone,
To Europe and Far East,
The Flag is carried by our ships
In times of war and peace;
And never have we struck it yet,
In spite of foemen's might,
Who cheered our crews and cheered again,
For showing how to fight.

Chorus:

So here's the Coast Guard marching song,
We sing on land or sea.
Through surf and storm and howling glae,
High shall our purpose be.
"Semper Paratus" is our guide,
Our fame, our glory, too,
To fight to save or fight and die!
Aye! Coast Guard, we're for you.

Second Verse:

SURVEYOR and NARCISSUS,
The EAGLE and DISPATCH,
The HUDSON and TAMPA,
These names are hard to match;
From Barrow's shores to Paraguay,
Great Lakes or ocean's wave,
The Coast Guard fights through storms and winds,
To punish or to save.

Third Verse:

Aye! We've been "Always Ready"
To do, to fight, or die
Write glory to the shield we wear
In letters to the sky.
To sink the foe or save the maimed,
Our mission and our pride.
We'll carry on 'til Kingdom Come,
Ideals for which we've died.


 

Second Version (circa 1943):

First Verse:

From North and South and East and West
The Coast Guard's in the fight.
Busting subs and landing troops
The Axis feels our might.
For we're the first invaders
On every fighting field.
From Arctic zone to tropic shore
You'll find our Silver Shield.

Chorus:

So here's the Coast Guard battle song,
We fight on land or sea.
Through howling gale and shot and shell
To win our victory.
Semper Paratus is our guide,
Our pledge, our motto, too.
We're "always ready", do or die
Aye, Coast Guard we fight for you!

Second Verse:

SURVEYOR and NARCISSUS,
The EAGLE and DISPATCH,
The HUDSON and TAMPA,
These names are hard to match;
From Barrow's shores to Paraguay,
Great Lakes or ocean's wave,
The Coast Guard fights through storms and winds,
To punish or to save.

Third Verse:

Aye! We've been "Always Ready"
To do, to fight, or die
Write glory to the shield we wear
In letters to the sky.
To sink the foe or save the maimed,
Our mission and our pride.
We'll carry on 'til Kingdom Come,
Ideals for which we've died.


Chorus Rewrites
(The first line of each chorus was changed in 1969):

Chorus for 1927 version:

We're always ready for the call,
We place our trust in Thee
Through surf and storm and howling gale,
High shall our purpose be.
"Semper Paratus" is our guide,
Our fame, our glory too,
To fight to save or fight and die! Aye!
Coast Guard we are for you.

Chorus for 1943 version:

We're always ready for the call,
We place our trust in Thee.
Through howling gale and shot and shell
To win our victory.
"Semper Paratus" is our guide,
Our pledge, our motto, too.
We're "always ready", do or die!
Aye! Coast Guard we fight for you.

 

What are the lyrics to the Coast Guard Hymn?

Coast Guard Hymn

 

Eternal Father, Lord of Hosts

Watch o'er the ones who guard our coasts

Protect them from the raging seas

And give them light and life and peace.

Grant them from thy great throne above

The shield and shelter of thy love.

Lord, guard and guide the ones who fly

Through the great spaces in the sky

Be with them always in the air,

In darken storms or sunlight fair,

Oh, hear us when we lift our prayer,

For those in peril in the air!

Grant to them Your eternal peace, Oh Lord,

For they have followed your commandment,

That No Greater Love has he, who would give up his life for another.

Amen

The Coast Guard hymn, “Eternal Father, Lord of Hosts,” used to conclude every chapel service at the Academy, was written in 1955 by CWO George H. Jenks, Jr., USCG; and has become the personal prayer of many a Coast Guardsman ever since.  Chief Warrant Officer Jenks was serving as the bandmaster of the Coast Guard and the originator and director of cadet musical activities at the Academy at the time the hymn was written.  The hymn, while used throughout the Coast Guard, was not printed in any hymnal until the publication of the Book of Worship for United States Forces in 1974.  In that hymnal it is included as stanza 10 of hymn number 196, “Eternal Father, Strong to Save.”

 

 

What were some Coast Guard innovations developed by the service?

U.S. Coast Guard Lessons Learned Locker

The results from over 200 Years of Innovation

Lesson Learned

"I have not failed 10,000 times. I have successfully found 10,000 ways that will not work." -Thomas A. Edison

 

“Adaptability is a characteristic of the American fighting man that has enabled this country’s Armed Forces to emerge triumphant in every major war we have fought. Adaptability is synonymous with the operations of the United States Coast Guard.” - Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, USN

 

This spirit of adaptability has been a vital part of the United States Coast Guard since the founding of its predecessor, the Revenue Cutter Service, in 1790.  Throughout its history the Coast Guard has been required to not only keep pace with technological change, but in many instances to lead its development. The spirit of innovation has generated new technologies and practices. Though there have been varying levels of success along the way, the Coast Guard continues to forge ahead in order to meet the many varied requirements as the nation's foremost multi-mission, maritime agency.


Directory:
 

 

 

When did the Coast Guard adopt the "racing stripe" for its cutters, boats, and aircraft?

The design consists of a wide red bar forward of a narrow blue bar both canted at 64 degrees above the horizontal with the Coast Guard emblem superimposed.  It was originally recommended in 1964 by the industrial design firm of Raymond Loewy/William Snaith, Incorporated and was adopted service-wide on 6 April 1967.

The color red used in the slash is Pantone 179.

The color blue used in the slash is Pantone 307.

The "U.S." was added in front of the "Coast Guard" lettering on each cutter hull beginning in 1990 as per the order of then-Secretary of Transportation Samuel Skinner.

 

 

Who was the first commissioned officer in the U.S. Revenue Cutter Service? What was the first commissioned vessel of the U.S. Revenue Cutter Service?

Who was the first commissioned officer in the U.S. Revenue Cutter Service?

Tradition has it that Captain Hopley Yeaton was the first commissioned officer of the Revenue Cutter Service--President George Washington signed his commission first on 21 March 1791.

 

What was the first commissioned cutter of the U.S. Revenue Cutter Service?

The Revenue Cutter Vigilant was the first cutter to be launched; she entered the waters of New York harbor sometime in March 1791.  But records concerning when she actually entered service were lost in the fire at the Treasury Department in 1833.

Tradition has it that the cutter Massachusetts, launched in July 1791, was the first to actually enter service as a commissioned vessel of the U.S. government.

 


History & Trivia

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Tars & Spars: The Coast Guard musical?

 

Does the Bermuda Triangle really exist?

The Bermuda Triangle or Devil’s Triangle is a mythical geographic area located off the southeastern coast of the United States. It is noted for an apparent high incidence of unexplained losses of ship, small boats, and aircraft.

The Coast Guard does not recognize the existence of the so-called Bermuda Triangle as a geographic area of specific hazard to ships or planes. In a review of many aircraft and vessel losses in the area over the years, there has been nothing discovered that would indicate that casualties were the result of anything other than physical causes. No extraordinary factors have ever been identified.

 

 

What famous Disney character did Walt Disney use for the logo of the Corsair Fleet in the Second World War?

The logo of the U.S. Coast Guard's Corsair Fleet
as drawn by Walt Disney

Donald Duck as a Corsair

FOR OFFICIAL U.S. COAST GUARD USE ONLY

 

 

What other animals have Coast Guard cutters and shore stations adopted as mascots?

Mascots

Famous Animals that served in and with the U.S. Coast Guard


Since mankind first took to the seas thousands of years ago early seafarers brought along members of the animal kingdom with them on board their ships.  The animals were brought along for many reasons--a source of food, to fight rodent infestations, to search for food on distant shores or for companionship.  Coast Guard crews have followed this ancient custom and adopted numerous varieties of mammals and birds, among others, as mascots and brought them along on their voyages.  Many times these animals were actually enlisted in the service, complete with service and medical records, uniforms, and their own bunks.  Here they were promoted for exemplary performance or were sent before a captain's mast to receive punishment from the skipper for some transgression or another and were "busted" back down to seaman.  Many actually saw combat against the enemy, some were wounded, some died, and many were decorated.  Quite a few even lived to a ripe old age and enjoyed a well-earned retirement ashore.  Many of the shore units too adopted a mascot to help them around the station or when they ventured out on a patrol or a rescue.  All Coast Guard mascots have served just as their human counterparts have, with courage, honor, and are "Always Ready" to go to those in need of assistance.

Here then is a sampling of some of those members of the animal kingdom who kept the crews of cutters and shore stations company, sharing in their hardships and dangers, and making life a little more tolerable just by being aboard.

Photographs

(click on the thumb-nail image)

Original photograph caption (if any) and description.

A photo of a Coast Guard mascot

Sinbad, the Coast Guard's most famous mascot. He was adopted by a crewman from the cutter Campbell prior to World War II. He was so beloved by the crew that they actually enlisted him in the Coast Guard. Sinbad served faithfully through thick and thin, surviving combat with the Germans and Japanese, causing a few international incidents with his antics, and even having a book written about him! Here he is at his battle station on board the Campbell, ready to take aim at a German U-boat!

Click here for more information and photos of this famous Coast Guard pup!

A photo of Coast Guard mascot Cecil on board USCGC Perseus and SN Roger Goad Here we have Dog First Class Cecil, of the cutter Perseus (WPC-114) about 1955. He's showing SN Roger Goad the way to the bridge.

Cecil was "supposedly" the son of Chief Dog Maxmillian, the famous mascot of the cutter Northwind, and an unnamed collie. Cecil had a distinguished career at sea on board Perseus from 1955-1958.

Our thanks to Roger for sending us this photo.
A photo of the mascot of CGC Spar, a dog named Maggie. Maggie, short for Magellan, is the mascot aboard the Coast Guard Cutter Spar. Here she stands watch aboard the bridge of the cutter while departing Womens Bay near Kodiak, Alaska, May 8, 2013. The Spar was underway to work buoys in the vicinity of Kodiak Island.

U.S. Coast Guard photo by Ashley Sloan.
USCGC SPAR mascot Magellan with LCDR Miclele Schallip Here is another photo of Magellan, known as "Maggie" to her friends. She's shown here with her best friend of 13 years, LCDR Michele Schallip. LCDR Schallip commanded the cutter Spar with Maggie's assistance.

Magellan has served with LCDR Schallip for her entire career!

(Our thanks to Spar's junior officer, ENS Paul Milliken for introducing us to Maggie.)
Magellan takes a break after a long day of fixing buoys Here Maggie takes a well deserved break while she's off duty. Working on a Coast Guard buoy tender is very hard work, especially in the waters off the coast of Alaska where the cutter Spar serves.

Maggie is a permanent Cutterman with over five years of sea duty!
A photo of Maggie on her cutter, the USCGC Spar. Maggie walks the decks of her cutter.

Click here for a more detailed story about Maggie, written by Coast Guard Public Affairs Specialist Third Class Jonathan Klingenberg.
Mascot Samantha on duty in Vietnam A pig on a cutter? Yes, that's Samantha, and she saw combat service on board the USCGC Point Glover in Vietnam.

Click here for more information on Samantha.

Breaker
Here we have Breaker, mascot of Coast Guard Station Fort Macon in Atlantic Beach, North Carolina, who has been serving the crew since June 2002. Breaker is a Black Lab and Border Collie Mix. Breaker was brought to Station Fort Macon after being orphaned and the sole survivor of his family; his five siblings and mother all died from Parvo. The school children know him by name because he is one of the most popular attractions during field trips to the Station. His medical care comes from the Army veterinarians at MCAS Cherry Point.

Breaker
Here's another photo of Breaker! His shipmates let us know that, for Breaker:

"A typical day for the 5 year old consists of watching out for new comers (he seems to have a distaste for Mustang Officers [these are commissioned officers who first joined the Coast Guard as enlisted persons]), basking in the sun, scoping the area for dog treats, and taking the occasional run or swim on the beach with the other crew members. He has been a part of the Coast Guard family since he was 7 weeks old and has provided the crew with a source of entertainment and relaxation.

A photo of Breaker
And another photo of Breaker -- it seems Breaker doesn't like boats though:

"He very seldom gets underway on the boats because of an accident he had when he was 9 months old, in which he fell in between the boat and the pier one day. But he is always there to see us off and can be counted on to be standing watch while waiting for our return. He has pretty much free run of the base and has most of the units trained on what type of treats he likes, as he makes his daily rounds each day. He was promoted all the way up to BM2, but lost a rank when he chased a raccoon over 2 miles down the beach and we had to send the GV out at 5 in the morning to find him to bring him back to the Station."

A photo of CBuoy Here is CBuoy, the mascot of Coast Guard Station Destin, Florida. They let us know that:

"Our station mascot is a AKC registered yellow lab named CBUOY but everyone calls him buoy. He was donated to the station as a puppy in June of 2002. He's a pretty famous dog in the local community, he's been in the paper several times. He had a torn ACL when he was a year old and the community started donating money and toys to him. At the current time he has his own morale checking account which is all donated funds from the community. We regularly conduct tours of the station for different children's groups and one of the things they love to see most is buoy jumping in the water to rescue Oscar. Buoy stays up with communication watch stander and provides security by making rounds of the station hourly."


A photo of Red Dog
Here we have Red Dog, the mascot of the famous Alaskan cutter Storis, which was in service longer than any other ship in the Coast Guard!

A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
Turk is a full blooded Golden Retriever and has been with Coast Guard Station Elizabeth City since 1996. So far he has achieved the rank of BMC (Chief Boatswain's Mate -- he's a Chief Petty Officer, one of the highest enlisted ranks!). Turk is considered to be a vital part of the crew at the station. He is taken care of through a military veterinarian, as well as the crew. His favorite past times are sleeping, playing with his Cong toy, chasing birds, and swimming.

Here is BMC Turk standing watch.

Our thanks to Sara Powell for letting us know about Turk!


Photo of Spike
Here we have Spike, the mascot of Coast Guard Station Willmette, visiting PSU 309 in Port Clinton, Ohio. Spike served as the mascot for Station Willmette from the fall of 1992 to the spring of 1994.

Photo of Spike
Here is Spike getting ready for action!

Spike retired from active duty and is now 14 years old and living with Lieutenant John Jacob.

Good luck, Spike!

A photo of a Coast Guard mascot A more recent Coast Guard mascot: Uri, the canine member of Coast Guard Station Calumet Harbor, sometime in the late 1990s, out on patrol. See Chicago in the background! Note that he is careful enough to wear his lifejacket, which is also known as a personal floatation device (PFD).

Our thanks to BMC Christopher Runt for letting us know about Uri.


Shamal's mascot camel
BMC Christopher Runt, the First Lieutenant on board the Coast Guard Cutter Shamal, sent us this photo of his cutter's mascot, a camel named Shamal. Chief Runt let us know that:

"Our mascot is a camel named Shamal (rhymes with camel). In this picture he is on a bale of marijuana [that we seized]. If you notice, the bale has 'Product of Columbia' on it. We thought that was ironic."

Thanks Chief!


A photo of Muttley
The mascot at Coast Guard Station Honolulu from March 2003 until April 2004 was "Seaman Muttley."

A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
Here we have Bear, the now-retired mascot of Coast Guard Station Kenosha, who served there from 1990 to 2000. Bear is a pure-bred Chocolate Labrador Retriever. BMC Chad Curth told us that Bear "was transferred from his kennel to Station Kenosha PCS on 4 June 1990 as a puppy. He loved to ride the Station's boats and even rode on the back of the Station's jetski. Kenosha's school children knew him by name because he was one of the most popular attractions at their yearly field trips to the Station. His medical care came from the Army veterinarians at the Great Lakes Vet Treatment Facility at Great Lakes Naval Training Center."

A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
Here's Bear patrolling the beach in front of the Kenosha Pierhead Lighthouse on a stormy day. Chief Curth noted that Bear "retired from Active Duty on 13 October 2000. He is still alive and will turn 14 this year [2004]. He lives on a government pension (in the form of my paycheck, he lives with me and my wife). . .he is as good a Coast Guard dog as I've known."

So Bear is enjoying his well-earned retirement after serving his country. Thanks for letting us know about Bear, Chief Curth!


A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
Here is Niki, a Husky puppy and mascot of the cutter Cape Carter (WPB-95309) in January, 1990.

A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
Here is Bud, a Black Labrador Retriever, posing for the camera. Bud was a mascot of Coast Guard Group Moriches in the 1990s.

Thanks to BMC Mike Flannery for letting us know about Bud.


A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
Another photo of Bud. He served for eight years at Group Moriches. A former crewmate of Bud's, Mike Flannery, told us that he was "donated as a pup from a crewmember enroute to a ship and just couldn't keep him. Bud was an active member at Group Moriches until he was diagnosed with cancer and passed away at the age of 8. I guess you could say he died on active duty."
A photo of a Coast Guard mascot Here is Sam, a member of Coast Guard Station Scituate, in Massachusetts, just waking up from a nap in the sun sometime in 1990.

A former crewmate, Rick Pearce, noted that Sam was "brought there as a stray sometime in the mid 70's by someone who was stationed there. I was stationed there from 1987-1990. At that time Sam was about 12-13 years old. Sam would wander around the station during the day, making sure everyone was staying busy. At night he would sleep in the radio room and keep us company on radio watch during the graveyard shift. Whenever we got a call and sounded the SAR (search and rescue) alarm, Sam would run upstairs to the rooms where everyone slept and run up and down the hall, barking to wake everyone up (as if that alarm wouldn't!). On nice days he would get underway with us and ride on the bow, as far forward as he could. He preferred the 41-footer to the 44, and I can't say I blame him. I am told in his younger years he would go on all the calls, but I guess age had caught up with him and he just wasn't up to it every time. But when he did go, he was the happiest Coastie on the boat!"

Thanks to Rick Pearce for letting us know about Sam!

A photo of a Coast Guard mascot Here we have Maximillian Talisman, Service Number 224-859, a pure-bred Boxer, who was a remarkable Coast Guardsman. He had a stellar career in which he was promoted to the rank of Chief Boatswain's Mate and served at sea on board a cutter for seven years (that's 42 human years)! He had enlisted in the Coast Guard in 1950 only three months after he was born. The photo's original caption read:

"Donald R. Haight, BM1 displays retirement orders of his old shipmate, Maxmillian Talisman, BMC/Dog. Max is retiring from active duty after some seven years aboard the Coast Guard Cutter KLAMATH. He will spend his time now at the home of BM1 Haight in Seattle. The 'chief' seems to be getting in some practice for those lazy retirement days ahead."


A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
BMC Maximillian Talisman meets his replacement. The original photo caption read:

"'I'll take care of this new seaman, boys' is what BMC Maxmillian Talisman seems to be saying here. The pup is the new mascot on board the Coast Guard cutter KLAMATH and is relieving Max who retires with more than seven years afloat. All of his time was spent on the KLAMATH."


A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
Here Max is "piped off" his cutter for the final time with full naval honors. During his seven-year Coast Guard career, Max never received a mark of less than 3.4 out of a total of 4.0 on his service record and never received a mark below 4.0 for conduct! He did well on his standard test scores, qualified as a bridge-lookout, crossed the International Date Line twice and the Arctic Circle once, and earned the United Nations Medal, Korean Service Medal, and the National Defense Service Medal!

A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
Here we have a mascot of the Revenue Cutter Thetis, somewhere up in Alaska in 1913. We don't know his name but we do know that by the time this photo was taken, he had served continuously at sea for 10 years -- making him the saltiest sailor-mascot to have served in the Coast Guard!

The Revenue Cutter Service was the forerunner of today's Coast Guard.


A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
Probably the largest mascot that ever served in the Coast Guard. Here is an unnamed black bear, another mascot of the cutter Thetis, taking a break from duty. He's cooling himself off by resting on a large piece of ice.

The Thetis served in Alaska waters, sailing on the Bering Sea Patrol.


A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
Here is the mascot of the Coast Guard icebreaker Northwind. Thanks to retired Coast Guard Lieutenant Jerry L. Echols, we know his name! Lieutenant Echols wrote:

"That dog is 'Oliver.' He was born aboard Northwind, in Greenland. His mother 'Dagmar' was the ship's dog before Oliver. I only had the pleasure of sailing with him for one Arctic patrol. He retired to an Oregon farm, in early 1954, when life at sea became a little to hard on him. He was relieved by 'Rosie.'"

Oliver sure looks outfitted for a trek through the arctic!

Thanks for letting us know about Oliver, Lieutenant Echols!


A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
Unfortunately we don't know the name of this mascot of the Coast Guard Cutter Northland. The photo was taken sometime in the 1930s. Note his unique uniform and studded collar!

A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
Here is Skunk, the mascot of the Coast Guard icebreaker Eastwind, sometime in 1947, standing watch. Note his properly fitting "dixie cup" hat!

A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
Here is the mascot for a cutter somewhere up in Alaska. It's an eagle! We're not sure how the crew managed to keep the winged predator on board.

A photo of a Coast Guard mascot

The Thetis crewmembers get the award for having the most mascots of the greatest variety! Here are two shipmates, an unnamed cat and dog, taking a break from duty somewhere up in Alaskan waters. They seem to be getting along well.

A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
An unnamed dog is making sure that the cat is not shirking its duty.

A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
Here, Mars III on the left, and Muggins, the feline to the right, sharing space on board a cutter sometime in the 1920s.

A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
Buccaneer, on patrol somewhere in Alaskan waters, enjoys a mid-day meal of canned shrimp.

A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
Cats seem to have been the more popular mascot for the cutters serving in Alaska! Here's an unnamed young fellow making sure this commander is keeping a steady course.

A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
The crew of the cutter Perry pose for the camera with their mascot, a very well-dressed goat with appropriate rank insignia and good conduct stripes.
A photo of a Coast Guard mascot A penguin joins the crew of the Coast Guard icebreaker Eastwind during Operation Deep Freeze I. The annual voyages to Antarctica were named "Operation Deep Freeze" for obvious reasons.

According to one of the Eastwind's crew, who shall remain anonymous: "this one penguin kept hanging out with various Eastwind crewmembers while they were ashore. They originally painted a bow tie around his neck and button on his chest in grease (the penguin happily complied). The penguin then wiped the bow tie away by turning his head (hence the smudge in the picture). They then painted USCG on its stomach. He apparently loved it, and held a higher place in the penguin flock because of it."


A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
The photo's original caption stated: "Speak, boy -- Coast Guardsman Raymond A. Wiascinski, engineman second class (right), and Seaman David E. Aikens try to coax friend Charlie into singing for part of his supper at Los Angeles Harbor Light. Charlie, a junior-sized California harbor seal, has been adopted by the station-keepers as their unofficial mascot."; 4 February 1966.

A photo of a Coast Guard mascot
"Chief Midgett clipping mascot dog at Coast Guard Lifeboat Station Chicamacomico [ North Carolina ]."; 15 June 1952.

 

 

What other characters did Walt Disney create for Coast Guard units?

Walt Disney and USCG Cutter 83359

A Walt Disney cartoon

FOR OFFICIAL U.S. COAST GUARD USE ONLY

In 1942, the commanding officer of Coast Guard Cutter 83359, an anti-submarine patrol "sub-chaser" based out of Staten Island, New York, wrote to Walt Disney directly, asking Disney to draw an emblem or insignia for his vessel.  He had heard that Disney was creating all kinds of illustrations for many different units in the armed forces.  He suggested that either "Pluto the Pup, Dumbo, [or] Oswald the Rabbit" be used, "clutching in one paw (hand) a can of T.N.T." and riding a sea horse.  

Disney was always happy to oblige.  Above is his creation for CG-83359 and her crew.

 

 

What was the Coast Guard’s role in the search for Amelia Earhart?

On 2 July 1937 at 0000 GMT (Greenwich Mean Time) Amelia Earhart and her navigator, Fred J. Noonan departed Lae, New Guinea for the next leg of her 29,000 mile around- the-world flight. The intended destination of this leg was tiny Howland Island, an atoll approximately 20 feet high, a few miles long, and 2,556 miles distant. Their last positive position report and sighting were over the Nukumanu Islands (about 800 miles into the flight). While engaged in a routine cruise to deliver food, water, and other supplies to U.Ss Department of the Interior personnel on Baker, Jarvis, and Howland Islands, the Coast Guard cutter Itasca was ordered to remain in the vicinity to serve as a radio beacon and plane guard for Earhart’s flight to Howland.

Earhart and Noonan, however, had little practical knowledge of radio navigation. The frequencies Earhart was using were not well suited to direction finding and the reception quality of her transmissions was poor. Furthermore, she left behind the lower-frequency reception and transmission equipment that might have enabled Itasca to locate her. As a result, contact was lost with Earhart after six hours of frustrating attempts at two-way communication.

A coordinated search led by the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Lexington and including Itasca found no physical evidence of either flyer or their plane. Modern analysis indicates that after passing over Nukumanu, Earhart began to vector off course, unwittingly heading for a point approximately 100 miles NNW of Howland Island. A few hours before their estimated arrival Noonan calculated a sun line, but without a successful radio-frequency range calculation, a precise fix on their location was impossible. Researchers generally believe that the plane ran out of fuel and that Amelia Earhart and Fred Noonan perished at sea.

A photo of the radio room aboard the USCGC Chelan, sister-ship to the Itasca

The radio room aboard the Itasca's sister cutter, CGC Chelan, in the mid-1930s.
 Itasca's radio room and the associated radio equipment would have been the same as appears here.

 

 

What was the Coast Guard’s role in the world's first heavier than air flight, made by the Wright Brothers, on 17 December 1903?

 

The Wright Brothers First Flight

The most famous aviation photograph ever taken.  The Wright biplane, piloted by Orville Wright, has just taken off from a monorail launching strip on a field at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina on 17 December 1903.   Wilbur Wright, running along the right side of the aircraft, held onto the wing to balance the machine until it left the monorail.  This is the only photograph of the world's first flight in a power driven heavier than air machine, which was invented by Wilbur and Orville Wright.  This picture was taken for the Wright Brothers, and posterity, by Surfman J. T. Daniels, a member of the crew of the Kill Devil Hills Lifesaving Station.  He and the other members of the crew assisted the brothers as described in the following article.  More importantly, they acted as eyewitnesses to the flight.  Who better to verify the flight than five employees of the U.S. Government?

Orville Wright wrote, in an article entitled "How We Made The First Flight,":

"We had arranged with the members of the Kill Devil Life-Saving Station, which was located a little over a mile from our camp, to inform them when we were ready to make the first trial of the machine.  We were soon joined by J. T. Daniels, Robert Westcott, Thomas Beacham, W. S. Dough, and Uncle Benny O'Neal of the station, who helped us to get the machine to the hill [Big Kill Devil Hill] a quarter of a mile away [This was the first trial flight which proved to be unsuccessful]. . .

During the night of December 16, 1903, a strong cold wind blew from the north.  When we arose on the morning of the 17th, the puddles of water which had been standing about the camp since the recent rains, were covered with ice.  The wind had a velocity of 10 or 12 meters per second [22 to 27 miles an hour].  We thought it would die down before long and so remained indoors the early part of the morning.   But when 10:00 o'clock arrived and the wind was as brisk as ever, we decided we had better get the machine out and attempt a flight.  We hung out the signal for the men of the life-saving stations.  By the time all was ready, J. T. Daniels, W. S. Dough, and A. D. Etheridge, members of the Kill Devil Life-Saving Station, W. C. Brinkley of Manteo, and Johnny Moore, a boy from Nags Head, had arrived.  One of the life-saving men snapped the camera for us, taking a picture just as the machine had reached the end of the track and had risen to a height of about 2 feet.  This flight lasted only 12 seconds, but nevertheless it was the first in the history of the world in which a machine carrying a man had raised itself by its own power in the air in full flight, and sailed forward without reduction of speed and had finally landed at a point as high as that from which it started."

In a statement made 32 years later on 12 March 1935, Mr. J. T. Daniels, then a member of the Nags Head Coast Guard Station, said that all he knew about the machine was that, in 1902, the Wrights were using a glider, which they used until 1903, when they made the machine and "put power in it."  He stated:

"Orville Wright made the first flight in the plane with the power in it, between then and eleven o'clock, the 17th of December, 1903, and he went some 100 feet.  Then we carried it back on the hill and put it on the track and Mr. Wilbur Wright got in the machine and went about one half mile out across the beach towards the ocean.  Then we carried the machine back to camp and set it down and the wind breezed up and blew it over and just smashed it to pieces with me hanging on to it.  The way they decided who was to make the first flight was as they were talking, Wilbur and Orville walked aside and flipped a coin, and Orville won the toss and he made the first flight."

Mr. A. D. Etheridge who was at the Nags Head Lifesaving Station on March 12, 1935, gave a few more details on the preparation for the flight in 1903 when he was stationed at the Kill Devil Lifesaving Station:

"We assisted in every way and I hauled the lumber for the camp.   We really helped around there hauling timber and carrying mail out to them each day.  It would come from Kitty Hawk by patrol each night.  In pretty weather we would be out there while they were gliding, watching them.  Then after they began to assemble the machine in the house, they would let us in and we began to become interested in carrying the mail just to look on and see what they were doing.  They did not mind us at all because they knew where we were from and know us.  We inquired what day they expected to fly.  Finally they told us the day.  Finally, on this day, the 17th of December, Daniels, Dough and myself were out there helping to get the machine out of the camp out on the track.  They started the motor, testing it out for quite a while.  Finally, they got to talking about getting together about flying and got it ready to turn loose.  Finally, they decided to try the flight and then they went on just about the way you have been told by Daniels.  They talked matters over---how delighted they were in what they had done in their flights and were expecting to try it---the machine---over and they gave up right then an packed up and went home.  They said they were very well satisfied with what they had done.  At that time they assembled everything they wanted to take away.  They said they were going to take the engine back with them and the wings of the plane they left with me.  Later I got a letter from a man in Philadelphia telling that Wilbur had written and told him that I had the old plane and that he wanted to buy it if I would dispose of it; so I wrote him a letter that I would sell it to him for $25.00.  He sent me a check for it, and it is right here that I lost a fortune if I had kept it."

The crew of the Kill Devil Hills Lifesaving Station

The crew of the Kill Devil Hills Lifesaving Station, circa 1903.   These men provided critical assistance to the Wright Brothers during their historic flight on 17 December 1903.  (Left to Right) Keeper Jesse E. Ward, Surfman William Thomas Beacham; Surfman A. D. Etheridge (?), Surfman John T. Daniels, and Surfman W. S. Dough.

Was there a "lighthouse connection" to the Wright Brothers flight?

A lighthouse keeper of the former Lighthouse Service, another fore-runner of the Coast Guard, also made claim to assisting the Wright brothers.  An article in the 2 January 1929 Lighthouse Service Bulletin (Vol. III, No. 61, pp. 272-273) explained:

"On December 17, 1928, the twenty-fifth anniversary of the first successful airplane flight, made by the Wright brothers, was commemorated by the laying of the corner stone for a national monument, which it is proposed will be surmounted by a light, on the summit of Kill Devil Hill near Kitty Hawk, NC, the point from which the Wrights started their gliding flights.  One of the active participants in these ceremonies was W. J. Tate, now keeper of Currituck Sound Lights, who assisted the Wright brothers in many ways during the period of their earliest flights at Kitty Hawk from 1900 to 1903.  Keeper Tate at that time lived at Kitty Hawk, and he has many interesting recollections and documents concerning those now historic events.

The first inquiries of the Wrights regarding Kitty Hawk were addressed to the postmaster.  Mr. Tate, acting for his wife who was then the postmistress, sent them full reports as to weather conditions and the lay of the land, on the basis of which Wilbur Wright came to Kitty Hawk on September 12, 1900.  He and his brother boarded with the Tates during their first stay in the vicinity.  Even today Kitty Hawk is a remote and comparatively inaccessible locality, but then it was reached by Wilbur Wright only after a 3-day trip in a 'miserable little flat-bottomed schooner'  called the Curlicue, and upon his arrival at Captain Tate's home he had been without food for 48 hours.

Keeper Tate states in a commemorative booklet compiled by him for the occasion of the twenty-fifth anniversary of the first successful airplane flight:

     The mental attitude of the natives toward the Wrights was that they were a simple pair of harmless cranks that were wasting their time at a fool attempt to do something that was impossible.  The chief argument against their success could be heard at the stores and post office, and ran something like this: 'God didn't intend man to fly.  If He did He would have given him a set of wings on his shoulders.  No, siree, nobody need not try to do what God didn't intend for him to do.'

     I recall, not once, but many times, that when I cited the fact that other things as wonderful had been accomplished, I was quickly told that I was a 'Darned sight crazier than the Wrights were.'

It was in Tate's yard at Kitty Hawk that the first experimental glider was assembled in 1900; concerning this Orville Wright wrote to Mr. Tate on November 30, 1927, as follows:

     All of the parts were built in Dayton and shipped to Kitty Hawk, excepting four spars, which were made and shipped in from Norfolk.  The ribs, struts, hinges, and end bows were all built complete at our shop in Dayton.  The wing coverings were also cut and sewed in Dayton, but on account of Wilbur's inability to get 20-foot spars at Norfolk, a change was necessary in the coverings.  I remember he said this work was done on Mrs. Tate's sewing machine.

In another letter he wrote:

     I do not think that the Department of Justice would expect you to know as much about our other machines as you do about the first one, because you saw more of the first one.  As I remember, when we came back to Kitty Hawk in 1901, Irene and Pauline were wearing dresses made from the sateen wing coverings of our first machine.

Mr. Tate frequently assisted the Wrights in the launching of the glider, and in many of the experiments of 1900 and 1901.  At the spot in this yard where the first glider was set up, there was unveiled on May 2, 1928, a commemorative marker constructed with contributions made solely by the citizens of Kitty Hawk, to whom the Wright brothers had endeared themselves during those years of trial and frequent discouragement.  Mr. Tate says:

     Ask any person who knew them and you will be told that they were two of the finest men that ever honored our community with their presence.  Their uniform kindness to everyone, their lack of that disposition of holding themselves aloof and above the ordinary man as well as their disposition always at all times to be ready to render every courtesy to everyone, no matter how humble or unlettered, endeared these men to our coast people forever.  Proud fathers have named their sons after them, and the names Wilbur and Orville will endure forever on our section of the North Carolina coastland.

To aid in the location of the exact spots to be marked, and insure historical correctness, keeper Tate this year got together all living eye-witnesses of the first flight, and assembled all available information.

Keeper Tate has kept up his friendship with Orville Wright, and his interest in matters pertaining to aviation.  He was the first to make an inspection of navigational lights by airplane, in 1920, his son-in-law being an aviator; he has a number of times rendered assistance to aviators in distress, and has rescued disabled airplanes in the vicinity of his station."

 

 

What was the Coast Guard's role in the SS St. Louis affair (otherwise known as the "Voyage of the Damned")?

In the years since the end of the Second World War, the exact role of the US Coast Guard in the so-called “Voyage of the Damned” has been a matter of some controversy. There has been a recent increase in interest regarding the subject. For this reason the US Coast Guard Historian’s Office has chosen to address some of the issues and lingering questions regarding the events of May-June 1939 and this shipload of passengers seeking refuge from persecution in Nazi Germany. 

On 13 May 1939 the passenger ship S.S. St. Louis of the Hamburg-Amerika Line steamed out of Hamburg bound for Havana, Cuba. Her passengers were 937 German Jews hoping to escape Nazi persecution and find refuge in Cuba. Just before the ship departed, however, the Cuban government changed the immigration laws (Decree 937). This effectively closed the loophole by which many of the passengers had hoped to enter the country. The new law required the payment of a 500-peso bond and before any alien could disembark and that person needed to have the written approval of the Cuban secretaries of state and labor. Most of the passengers on board St. Louis, however, only had tourist visas that they had purchased from the Hamburg-Amerika Line. Shortly before St. Louis was to arrive in Cuba, Gustav Schroeder, the ship’s captain, received a telegram from the shipping line official in Havana. It stated that the ship had to anchor at the roadstead instead of docking at the line’s pier in Havana harbor. The refugees on board were being denied entry into Cuba. 

The liner reached the roadstead on 27 May and Cuban officials boarded the ship. None of the passengers, however, were able to disembark. This precipitated negotiations between those who wished to see the passengers landed and the Cuban government of President Laredo Bru. The U.S. Ambassador to Cuba, exercising his own initiative, made inquiries regarding the status of the refugees with the Cuban government. Despite these efforts, the Cuban cabinet on 31 May decided to deny the majority of the passengers refuge. Twenty-two who had acquired immigration visas before departing Hamburg were allowed to disembark. The Cuban government then told Schroeder to leave Cuban waters. Schroeder replied that he had insufficient time to prepare for departure. The deadline was extended to 10:00 AM on 2 June. Under threat of removal by the Cuban Navy, Schroeder weighed anchor on the morning of 2 June. Although St. Louis had departed Havana, negotiations between the Cuban government and those who wanted the refugees landed continued. Instead of returning to Hamburg, Schroeder persisted in steaming off the Cuban coast. After a few days, he turned north toward Florida in the hope that the U.S. government would allow the vessel to make a landing. During this time off the coast of Florida St. Louis encountered a U.S. Coast Guard vessel. 

Later in his book, While Six Million Died: A Chronicle of American Apathy, Arthur D. Morse claimed that the U.S. Coast Guard cutter CG-244 “shadowed the St. Louis, with orders to prevent any refugees from jumping overboard and swimming ashore.”  In support of this claim, Morse cited contemporary newspaper accounts and two interviews. The first of these was with Cecilia Razovsky, a passenger on board St. Louis, the second was with Lawrence Berenson, the lawyer who negotiated with the Cuban government in Havana. These sources, however, could not possibly have known what CG-244’s orders were and therefore, Morse’s claims are fundamentally speculative and unsubstantiated by any official documentation. Despite this fact, Morse’s claims have been oft repeated in the subsequent secondary literature on the subject. 

Captain Schroeder, in his memoir Heimatlos auf hoher See, asserted that he intended to make an illegal landing along the Florida coast. He claimed, however, that when he attempted to do so Coast Guard vessels and planes arrived to prevent a landing. Faced with these purported measures, Schroeder decided to turn away. This assertion, however, is problematic for a number of reasons. First, the draft of St. Louis was 28 feet 4 inches. This would have significantly limited his options on where he could approach the shore. This is especially true as the maximum depth at high tide along most of the South Florida coast was only 6 fathoms (36 feet). This would have made any attempt to approach the shore hazardous at best. Second, without a port capable of handling a ship of that size, he would have to disembark the passengers via the lifeboats. Jumping overboard and swimming to shore was not a realistic option for the vast majority of passengers. 

With anchoring and off-loading the only real option, the logistics of such a situation, even in sheltered waters, would have been a considerable undertaking both in time and effort. This effort would be further complicated by the fact that the passengers would have undoubtedly wanted to take their luggage with them. The captain would also want to recover his boats and crewmen before departing. It is likely, however, that these men lacked the skill and the experience required to perform such a task in the surf without potential loss of boats, crewmen, and passengers. Finally, the fact that Schroeder’s memoir was published in 1949 is a matter of considerable historical significance. After all, the fates of many of his passengers in the Holocaust would have been known and it may very well have influenced his retelling of the

Hans Herlin in his book, Kein gelobtes Land: Die Irrfahrt die “St. Louis,” elaborated further on Schroeder’s claims. Basing his conclusions largely on Schroeder’s memoir, Herlin claimed that the captain was ready to land the passengers when two U.S. Coast Guard vessels appeared.  One was numbered 244.  The ship was then ordered to move beyond U.S. territorial waters (3 miles).  Despite Schroeder’s attempted ruse whereby he claimed that he had engine trouble, the order remained and the ship moved away from the coast. What is not clear, from either account, is where exactly did Schroeder attempt to make land? After all there were a number of U.S.  Coast Guard installations in south Florida.  Is it not possible that he unwittingly attempted to make a landing in the immediate vicinity of a Coast Guard station? Also, given the reported likelihood that the passengers on board may attempt to make land by jumping overboard, would it not also have been reasonable that these Coast Guard vessels were deployed in order to respond to a potential search and rescue situation? These are all potential explanations of the Coast Guard presence that Schroeder misunderstood and deemed as being counter to his intended course of action. 

In the end the claims of Morse, Schroeder, and Herlin are largely unsubstantiated by any official documentation. Consultation of U.S. Coast Guard records, U.S. State Department records, and U.S. Treasury Department records in the National Archives do not substantiate any claim that CG-244 or any other Coast Guard vessels had standing orders to interdict St. Louis should she attempt to make a run toward the Florida coast in an attempt to disembark her passengers.  Rather, official documentation provided by the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Presidential Library in Hyde Park, N.Y. indicates that the status of the St. Louis and her passengers was of considerable concern to Secretary of the Treasury Henry Morgenthau, Jr.

To wit, there were two conversations on the subject between Morgenthau and Secretary of State Cordell Hull. In the first, 3:17 PM on 5 June 1939, Hull made it clear to Morgenthau that the passengers could not legally be issued U.S. tourist visas as they had no return addresses.  Furthermore, Hull made it clear to Morgenthau that the issue at hand was between the Cuban government and the passengers.  The U.S., in effect, had no role.  In the second conversation at 3:54 PM on 6 June 1939, Morgenthau said they did not know where the ship was and he inquired whether it was “proper to have the Coast Guard look for it.” Hull responded by saying that he didn’t see any reason why it could not.  Hull then informed him that he did not think that Morgenthau would want the search for the ship to get into the newspapers.  Morgenthau said. “Oh no. No, no. They would just—oh, they might send a plane to do patrol work…There would be nothing in the papers.” Hull responded, “Oh, that would be all right.”

Immediately afterward, at 3:59 PM, Morgenthau contacted Commander Earl G. Rose at U.S. Coast Guard Headquarters Washington, DC. In this conversation, Morgenthau inquired as to the position and status of St. Louis. Informed that the USCG vessel had lost contact with the ship, Morgenthau wanted to know where the ship was. Furthermore, he wanted this information kept confidential, namely out of the newspapers. Rose gave his assurances that the instructions could be sent out in “a tight code” and safeguarded. He also made it clear that he wished to be notified immediately if the ship were found. Given these conversations it becomes quite apparent that there were no orders to interdict the ship and the US Coast Guard units were dispatched out of concern for those on board, not as is supposed by Morse, Schroeder, and Herlin, to interdict the refugees and prevent them from landing.

With no realistic options of landing in South Florida, Schroeder again turned toward Cuba in the hopes of landing on the island. Negotiations with the Cuban government, however, had ended with the passengers not being allowed to enter the country. With few alternatives, Schroeder and the passenger committee on board St. Louis decided to return to Europe. A number of countries, namely France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Great Britain, accepted groups of the passengers after the ship docked in Antwerp, Belgium. Those on board finally disembarked, bound for new homes. Thus, ended the ill-fated odyssey of the St. Louis.

For many of the passengers on St. Louis, unfortunately, refuge in France, Belgium, and the Netherlands provided only temporary relief from the Nazis. Within a year German armies invaded and conquered most of Western Europe. Many who had seemingly escaped the Nazis found themselves deported to concentration camps and ghettos in Eastern Europe. Most would perish in the Holocaust. 

SOURCES: 

Primary:
Franklin Delano Roosevelt Presidential Library, Hyde Park, NY 
-Henry Morgenthau Jr. Papers
-Volume 194 
National Archives, Washington, DC 
-Record Group 38 US Coast Guard Records 
National Archives II, College Park, MD 
-Record Group 59 US State Department Records
-File 837.55J (1930-1939) 
Schroeder, Gustav. Heimatlos auf hoher See (Berlin: Beckerdruck, 1949). 

Secondary:
Herlin, Hans. Kein gelobtes Land: Die Irrfahrt der “St. Louis.” (Hamburg: Nannen-Verlag, c. 1961). 
Morse, Arthur D. While Six Million Died: A Chronicle of American Apathy (New York: Random House, 1967).

 

What was the most famous dog to ever serve in the Coast Guard?

SINBAD, USCG (Ret.)
K9C (Chief Petty Officer, Dog)

The crew of the Coast Guard cutter Campbell adopted a mixed-breed puppy in 1938.  Little did they know that their canine companion would become a world famous Coast Guard veteran.  He was, literally, a member of the crew, complete with all the necessary enlistment forms and other official paperwork,  uniforms, and his own bunk.  He sailed on board the combat-tested cutter through World War II and saw much action, both at sea and in port.  As Life Magazine reported: "An Old Sea Dog Has Favorite Bars and Plenty of Girls in Every Port."  Until recently he had the honor and distinction of being the only Coast Guardsman to be the subject of a biography!  It was Sinbad of the Coast Guard, written by Chief Specialist George R. Foley, USCGR and published by Dodd, Mead and Company of New York during the war.  The book made him an international celebrity.

Although he served honorably, he did run into a bit of trouble on occasion, as any sailor might during a long career at sea.  He caused an international incident in Greenland, another in Casablanca, and was busted in rank a few times for minor infractions.  As another author noted:

"Sinbad is a salty sailor but he's not a good sailor.  He'll never rate gold hashmarks nor Good Conduct Medals.  He's been on report several times and he's raised hell in a number of ports.  On a few occasions, he has embarrassed the United States Government by creating disturbances in foreign zones.  Perhaps that's why Coast Guardsmen love Sinbad, he's as bad as the worst and as good as the best of us."

Regardless of the fact that he liked to blow off a little steam while on liberty, he was a brave and capable sailor when he was on duty.  He earned the respect and affection of his shipmates during one famous battle when the Campbell fought it out with the Nazi submarine U-606.  The cutter was severely damaged during the fight and the commanding officer ordered all but essential personnel off the ship.  They transferred to a nearby destroyer but a tough and hardy few stayed on board the Campbell while the cutter was towed to safety, patching her hull and ensuring that she stayed afloat during the voyage.  Among that few was Sinbad.  

He served faithfully on board Campbell for eleven years, garnering more sea time than most of his contemporaries, before finally retiring to the Barnegat Light Station.  He passed away 30 December 1951 and was laid to rest beneath the station's flagstaff. 


A photo of Sinbad.

Sinbad at general quarters!

 

 

A photo of Sinbad.

Sinbad and some of his shipmates on board the cutter Campbell in the North Atlantic, 1943.

 

 

A photo of Sinbad.

Sinbad racks out until his next duty watch.  On board the cutter Campbell, 1943, somewhere in the North Atlantic.

 

 

 

A photo of Sinbad with a monkey

Sinbad meets a monkey!  John Grey, Jr., sent us this photo of Sinbad.  Mr. Grey wrote: "My father, John Grey, who is on the left, got the monkey (Lucy) from another ship.  He had the monkey while serving on LCI-88.  He brought Lucy on board the Campbell to meet Sinbad when they tied along side her to take on a water supply."

 

 

A photo of Sinbad getting paw printed.

Sinbad is "paw printed" for his Coast Guard service record.

 

 

A photo of Sinbad.

Sinbad being interviewed about his combat experiences by ABC News.

 

 

A photo of Sinbad.

Sinbad on tour after the war, promoting his new autobiography.

 

 

A photo of Sinbad.

Sinbad meets one of his many admirers.  He wore his extensive collection of service ribbons and awards on his collar.  Sinbad earned each of the five ribbons he wore, just as his shipmates did.  These included the American Service, European Theatre,  and Pacific Theatre ribbons.  He survived attacks by U-boats and enemy aircraft.

 

 

A photo of Sinbad.

What every sailor is waiting to hear: liberty! liberty, liberty!  Let's go!  Sinbad only went AWOL once.  When he was returned to the ship by the Shore Patrol, he went to Captain's Mast and his punishment was "under no conditions was [he] to be permitted liberty in any foreign port in the future."  After that, Sinbad avoided all officers if he could.  As the crew noted, he held a "hearty distrust" of anyone wearing gold braid.

 

 

A photo of Sinbad.

The original caption stated: "Every Coastie has a favorite tavern.  Sinbad relaxes on the front steps of Kubel's Bar, Seventh, Street, Barnegat Light, NJ."  Sinbad was well known in waterfront bars around the world and he could handle his own when drinking with the saltiest sailors.

 

 

A photo of Sinbad.

The original caption stated: "A salty seafarer savoring his suds.  Sinbad, known in over one-hundred world ports for his ability to consume beer, enjoys a brew at Kubel's Bar, Seventh Street, Barnegat Light, NJ."  

Sinbad was known to appreciate a good shot of whiskey with a beer chaser.

 

 

A photo of Sinbad.

The original caption stated: "A sailor home from the sea.  Sinbad retires from active sea duty at ceremonies aboard the cutter Campbell on September 21, 1948.  Above crewmembers hear Commander Gilbert I. Lynch, USCG, the cutter's executive officer (now retired), read Sinbad his retirement orders.  Sinbad sailed with the Campbell eleven years before going to Barnegat Coast  Guard Station, Barnegat Light, NJ.

 

 

A photo of Sinbad.

Sinbad disembarks Campbell for the final time, ending eleven years of sea duty.

 

 

A photo of Sinbad.

Sinbad at his new home, the Coast Guard Light Station at Barnegat, New Jersey.  He had plenty of company in his retirement and although he missed his shipmates on board the cutter, duty at a light station wasn't too bad after all.

 

 

A photo of Sinbad.

Sinbad continued to serve his shipmates, the Coast Guard, and his country to the end.

 

 

A photo of Sinbads grave

Sinbad's headstone at the base of the flagpole of the now-decommissioned light station at Barnegat, New Jersey.

Courtesy of CDR Joe Dumas, USCGR.

 

 

What was the story behind the Coast Guard's championship hockey team, the Coast Guard Cutters?

U.S. Coast Guard Cutters
Uncle Sam's Best Hockey Team

Coast Guard Hockey Team


They came from Eveleth, Sault Ste. Marie and New York City.  They included a goalie called Mr. Zero, a menacing Italian -- Jewish defense combination, the captain of the last new York Rangers Stanley Cup winners, a National Hockey League referee and a graduate of the Long Island City YMCA Roller Hockey League.  A blend of amateur and professional players made up one of the finest hockey teams to represent Uncle Sam.  They even had a pair of championships to prove it.  They were the U.S. Coast Guard Cutters out of Curtis Bay, Maryland.

The brainstorm of a former Michigan hockey player-turned sailor, the Cutters were organized shortly after the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor.  They played through the 1942-43 and 1943-44 seasons in the Eastern Amateur Hockey League, considered to be one of the most competitive leagues of its time.

They also played a number of exhibition games and once, at Carlin's Iceland in Baltimore, their home ice, the Cutters went head-on against the Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings.  Although they were involved in only two full campaigns, the Cutters detonated more fights, filled more seats and generally raised more hell than the Eastern League has ever known.  "There was nothing like them, before or since," said the St. Louis Blues President Emile Francis, who was strafed by the Cutters while goal tending for the Philadelphia Falcons.

Ironically, the Cutters' most intense competition was amongst themselves.  "Our intra-squad games," said former Coast Guard star Bob Gilray, "were like bloody massacres."  A special ambiance surrounded the Cutters wherever they played.  They wore unusual red-white-and-blue, star-spangled jerseys with crossed anchors emblazoned on the front and, unlike any other hockey club, they were accompanied by a 30-piece marching band providing razzmatazz at every game.

"Whenever we scored," said Mike Nardell, a one-time roller hockey ace, "they'd strike up Semper Paratus, the Coast Guard marching song.  I loved that team so much I never wanted to take off my equipment.  Years later, when I played pro for the Clinton (N.Y.) Comets, I'd always wear my Coast Guard jersey under my Comets uniform."

Nardello was in select company.  Hall of Famer Frank (Mr. Zero) Brimsek, who orchestrated the Boston Bruins to a 1941 Stanley Cup title, was one of the three superb goalies on the Cutters along with Muzz Murray and Hub Nelson.

Coast Guard Hockey Team

 

The Coast Guard defense bristled with ex-Rangers' captain Art Coulter and Alex Motter of the Red Wings as well as the terrifying tandem of Chicago Black Hawks bruiser Johnny Mariucci and Manny Cotlow, a Jewish defenseman who would just as soon eat railroad spikes as T-bone steaks.  "Manny," said Gilray, "was responsible for one of the biggest riots in hockey history."

The eruption occurred at the Philadelphia Arena after Cotlow and Marty Madore of the Falcons clashed on the ice and, again, in the penalty box.  A posse of Philadelphia fans ambushed Cotlow, triggering a counter attack by Cotlow and Bob Dill.  Another battle started on the ice.  The official were soon on their knees in hand-to-hand combat with players from both teams.  A police riot squad was called in to subdue the battlers.

Although they reveled in rough play, the Cutters didn't have to fight to win.  The line of Gilray, Joe Kucler and Eddie Olson delivered a formidable offense and provided endless joy for Lieutenant Commander C. R. MacLean, a former player from Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, who fathered the team in 1942.  

MacLean, the Personnel Officer at the Curtis Bay Yard, encouraged American-born hockey players to join his unit.  The Canadian-born Coulter was an exception.  He had always wanted to obtain American citizenship and seized the opportunity when war broke out.  The Ranger stalwart enlisted in the Coast Guard, joined the Cutters and became a naturalized American citizen.

In time, MacLean had so many stick handlers he divided the Cutters into two teams -- the Clippers and the Cutters -- who competed against each other when they weren't involved in Eastern League action.

They once played a brutal four-game series which Cotlow described as "the most physical games of my life."  George Taylor, writing in the Baltimore News-Post, observed: "The rubber tilt was more exciting than the Stanley Cup playoffs."  

When the Clippers and the Cutters united against common ice foes, they were virtually unbeatable, winning the National Senior Open Championship of the Amateur Hockey Association in 1943 and 1944.  Former NHL referee Mel Harwood coached the Coast Guard skaters on both occasions.

The Cutters would play exhibition games against strong Canadian service teams liberally sprinkled with pros and invariably beat them.  Against the powerful Ottawa Commandos, who were led by ex-Rangers' stars Neil Colvile and Alex Shibicky, and Joe Coper of the Black Hawks, the Cutters triumphed, 5-2.

One of the Cutters' toughest games' was against the 1943 Stanley Cup champion Red Wings on January 6, 1944 before a capacity crowd in Baltimore.  With Brimsek in goal, the Cutters hung tough until well into the third period -- they trained 4-3 -- but were ultimately shellacked, 8-3.  "They didn't intimidate us," assures Cotlow, "But they were a little smarter."

Despite the Cutters' popularity in Boston and New York, were they regularly drew crowds of more than 12,000, they were criticized in some quarters and finally were disbanded in 1944.  "A lot of parents of servicemen couldn't understand why heir sons were overseas fighting while we were still playing hockey," said Kucler.  "The Coast Guard was under a lot of pressure to break us up."

The end was in sight one afternoon when an announcement blared over the Madison Square public address system while the Cutters were playing the New York Rovers.  Kucler, the club's leading scorer, was ordered to report for action after the match.  Olsen, now an official for the NHL, remembers the Cutters' end: "They said that Joe was playing his last game for us and then would be shipped out.  As soon as Joe left, they began getting rid of the other guys and, by then, we know the honeymoon was over."

After the war, Coutler retired but Mariucci and Brimsek returned to play several years in the NHL.  Others, such as Nardello, played minor league hockey.  "I kept wearing my jersey," said Nardello, "because it always gave me the feeling that those great guys -- Cotlow, Kucler and the rest -- were somehow around for another chorus of Semper Paratus."

Originally published in the #7-83 issue (March 28, 1983) of the Commandant's Bulletin, pages 18-19; reprinted there from the "Game Notes" section of a Los Angeles Kings' game program.

USCG Hockey Team, circa 1943, scan donated by Alan Tubbs


Sources:

Fischler, Stan. "The Coast Guard: Uncle Sam's Best Hockey Team." Rinkside #4 (1992-93), pp. 42-46.

"The Coast Guard on Ice: There Was Nothing Quite Like Them, Before or Since . . ." American Hockey & Arena (Summer, 1982), pp. 13-16.

"Frank Brimsek: The Bittersweet Mister Zero." Rinkside #4 (1992-93), pp. 47-48.

"On the Contrary: Cutters Were Best." The Hockey News (February 25, 1983), p. 5.

Helton, Gary. "The Cutters -- Baltimore's Forgotten Team." 1986-87 Baltimore Skipjacks Official Scorebook, pp. 2-4.

 

 The Coast Guard in Film: the Coast Guard appeared in what movies? 

The Coast Guard In Film

Sea Spoilers Movie Poster

Whether with or without the cooperation of the Coast Guard, the nation’s oldest sea-going service has been well-documented in Hollywood film throughout the years.  In feature films, serials, short subjects or cartoons the Coast Guard often has been portrayed as star material or as background.  With the advent of television the Coast Guard has starred in, co-starred in or been part of the cast, either in made-for-TV films or episodic TV shows.  The Coast Guard has participated in and provided background for music videos, children’s videos, documentaries, and educational programs.  Listed below for your entertainment are various titles of films where the Coast Guard was the principle protagonist along with some short subjects and documentaries.  The list is ever-growing and ever-changing, so from time to time this site will be updated.   Television appearances have not been included in this initial list.

Special thanks to Commander Ralph Judd, USCG (ret) who did the original research, published a book on the subject and provided the impetus for this project.  Lieutenant Sanford R. Sears, USCGR, researched and wrote the entries for this section of the website.

FEATURE FILMS:

The Yellow Traffic, 1914
A Blache Features, Inc.  A silent film starring Albert Lang as Tom Northrup, a Coast Guard officer.  Faye Cusick stars as Alice Rawley, stars as the daughter of a merchant shipmaster.  Captain Rawley is hijacked and forced to smuggle Chinese immigrants.  The Coast Guard and Tom Northrup retake the ship and Northrup and Alice Rawley live happily ever after.  This film is still available on video.

Patria, 1917

Activities on the Atlantic Coast, 1918

Outlaws of the Sea, 1923

Code of the Sea, 1924

Rugged Water, 1925
A Paramount Picture.  This drama about the U.S. Life-Saving Service is set at the "Setuckit" Life-Saving Station.  It stars Wallace Beery as Benoni Barlett. (Beery a flying enthusiast went on to fly and drill with the Naval Reserve.)  Barlett is a member of a neighboring life-saving station.  During a rescue all crew members but he are drowned while attempting a rescue.  He is named keeper of the station and is considered a hero by the townspeople.  What the public doesn’t know is that Barlett is a religious fanatic, suffering from guilt from his terrible experience, and is also somewhat of a coward.  Calvin Homer (Warner Baxter) is a member of the Setuckit Station and had originally been in line for promotion to keeper, until Barlett was promoted over him.  Homer has his own problems, he’s tricked into engagement with school teacher Myra Fuller (Phylis Haver) and he falls in love with Bartlett’s daughter Norma (Lois Wilson).  Calvin Homer, good man that he is, serves Bartlett well and does everything to cover up his weaknesses.  He rescues Norma in a terrible storm, ends up kissing her and realizes he must end his relationship with Myra.  In another storm, Bartlett’s cowardice gets the best of him and refuses to go out.  Calvin takes over command, rescues the sailors, ends his relationship with Myra, is given command of the station and is now engaged to Norma.  n a final storm Barlett is killed during the rescue and dies a hero’s death.

The Carnival Girl, 1926

Perils of the Coast Guard, 1926

Twelve Miles Out, 1927
A Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Picture starring John Gilbert as rum runner Jerry Fay.  His boat is driven ashore in a chase with a Coast Guard Cutter.  He then kidnaps Jane played by Joan Crawford in order to help elude the Coast Guard.  He vows to go straight after falling in love with Jane.  But his ship is later boarded by a rival gang disguised as the Coast Guard.  Jerry is killed in the ensuing gun battle and Joan Crawford is left alone.

The Royal American, 1927
A Rayart-State Rights film, The Royal American starred Reed Howes as Jack Beaton, a young Coast Guard officer.  Nita Martane stars as Gail Morton his girlfriend.  Ship’s master Captain Burke (J.P. McGowen) assaults Gail.  Jack defends her but Burke has his revenge when he shanghais Jack on his ship loaded with contraband arms and ammunition for rebels in South America.  Jack Beaton gains control of the ship, dispatches Captain Burke and turns the ship over to his commanding officer.

Heads Up, 1930

The Cohens and Kellys in Trouble, 1933

Men On Call, 1933

Dangerous Waters, 1936

Border Flight Movie PosterBorder Flight , 1936
A Paramount Picture, this one takes place at the United States Coast Guard Air Base in San Diego, California.  Starring John Howard as LT Dan Conlon, Grant Withers as LT Pat Tornell and Robert Cummings as LT Bob Dixon. Conlon (Howard) and Tornell (Withers) are rivals for Anne Blaine (Frances Farmer).  Newly arrived Dixon (Cummings) is shot down by smugglers.  At this point the Coast Guard wins permission to arm its planes with machineguns.  Latter in the movie Pat Tornell is killed in a heroic rescue mission and Dan and Anne find themselves together again without him between them.  This movie is still available on video format.  Click here for a publicity photograph.

Sea Spoilers Movie PosterThe Sea Spoilers , 1936
Possibly the first John Wayne Universal Film.  Wayne stars as Warrant Officer Bob Randall temporarily in command of a Coast Guard patrol boat plying the waters of Alaska in such of smugglers and seal poachers.  Commander Mays played by George Irving is base commander.  His son, LTJG Mays, played by William Bakewell and Coast Guard Academy graduate, is given command of the Patrol Boat over WO1 Randall (Wayne).  Typical friction develops between the experienced warrant officer and the Academy graduate LTJG.  The younger Mays also has a fear of the sea and is not an effective CO.  Finally he persuades his father to transfer him back to the Coast Guard air arm.  Wayne is again CO of the patrol boat and goes full force against a gang of seal poachers that have hijacked a yacht, killed the owner and kidnapped young LTJG Mays’ girlfriend.  This film is still available in video format.  Good action film and fairly good portrayal of pre-WWII Coast Guard.

Motor Madness, 1937

Sea Devils Movie PosterSea Devils , 1937
An RKO picture; Preston Foster and Victor McLaglen star in this film along with Ida Lupino and Donald Woods.   McLaglen, fresh from his Oscar for "The Informer," plays CPO William "Medals" Malone, father of Doris Malone, played by actress Ida Lupino.  Mike O'Shea (Preston Foster), a young petty officer, and Steve Webb (Donald Woods, another petty officer) battle between themselves for the attention of Malone.  CPO Malone favors Webb, but his daughter has eyes for O'Shea.  Good Coast Guard action between the brawling.  Very good special effects involving a yacht being pounded to pieces on a reef and the subsequent Coast Guard rescue.  Also of interest is the Coast Guard mission to explode and destroy icebergs. This film is still available in video format.

Sea Racketeers , 1937

Coast Guard, 1939

SOS Coast Guard Movie PosterSOS Coast Guard , 1942
A Republic serial from 1937 with 12 chapters.  Re-released in 1942 as a feature film of 69 minutes.  Exciting as both a serial or feature, the film stars Ralph Byrd as LT Terry Kent.  Byrd goes on to a career as Dick Tracy in Republic Films. In an unlimited supply of uniforms, he goes through each and every installment either dirtied, soaked, or blown up and yet each and every time a fresh uniform is available and he is ready to conform to Coast Guard regulations.  Bela Lugosi as the critically acclaimed evil scientist Boroff, has invented a gas that disintegrates almost everything.  Republic, deciding to cash on Coast Guard recognition, released the film again in 1942 as a feature.  Still available as serial in video format.

Dog of the Seven Seas, 1946
A Universal variety view.  Coast Guard dog Sinbad tells his story of how he entered the Coast Guard in 1937 as mascot on the cutter Campbell.  Sinbad is shown participating at battle stations and other shipboard life.  The film also focuses on his tour of Okinawa and Japan.  He returns to New York City and gets a "well done" from Admiral Smith.

Tars and Spars , 1946
Based upon the stage show Tars and Spars.  Produced in cooperation with the United States Coast Guard.  Stars Alfred Drake of Broadway fame, as S 1/c Howard Young, Janet Blair as SPAR Christine Bradley and comedian Sid Caesar who was already on active duty as Seaman Chuck Enders.  Chief Petty Officer Victor Mature was in the original stage version.  Tars and Spars launched the career of Caesar as a comedian.  Typical boy meets girl song and dance fare.

The Woman on the Beach, 1947
A RKO Picture starring Robert Ryan, Joan Bennet, Charles Bickford and Walter Sande. Robert Ryan plays a Coast Guard Officer on medical leave suffering from trauma from a wartime torpedoing.  Joan Bennet plays the wife of an artist (Charles Bickford) who was blinded in a drunken brawl.  Ryan sets out to prove that Bickford is not blind in order to justify his relationship with Bennet, but is unable to prove that the brooding and jealous Bickford is really blind.  He bows out of the relationship leaving Bennet with Bickford.

The Breaking Point, 1950

The Fighting Coast Guard, 1951

The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms, 1953
Taglines for The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms included: "Prehistoric sea-giant rages against city!"  "They couldn’t believe their eyes! They couldn’t escape the terror! And neither will you!"  "Cast of thousands! Over a year in the making!"  "The seas master beast of the ages-raging up from the bottom of time."  A Warner Brothers picture about a prehistoric monster frozen in time that is thawed out by an atomic blast. The monster starts to destroy shipping along the northeast sea corridor and the Coast Guard is assigned to do battle with the monster ending up in New York City where the Captain of the Port takes charge.  The beast is finally dispatched after the Army fires a radioactive isotope into it.  (The Coast Guard has no atomic specialists so the Army has to step in.)  This one starred Donald Woods as Captain Phil Jackson, USCG and Paula Raymond as Lee Hunter.  Written by Ray Bradbury.

Sea of Lost Ships, 1953
A Republic picture starring John Derek, Wanda Hendrix, Walter Brennan, Richard Jaeckel, Tom Tully, Barton MacLane, Erin O'Brien-Moore, Ben Cooper, Darryl Hickman, Roy Roberts, Tom Powers, Richard Hale, James Brown, Douglas Kennedy, Steve Brodie, John Hudson.  The plot revolves around the son (John Derek) of a deceased Coast Guard hero is raised by a Coast Guard non-commissioned officer who also has a son the same age.  When they get older both are accepted into the Coast Guard Academy, but the hero's son winds up being thrown out, bringing disgrace to his adopted family.  He then enlists in the Coast Guard and redeems himself during a dangerous rescue.  The technical advisor was LCDR Robert C. Cannom, USCGR.

Onionhead , 1958
Stars Andy Griffith who, as a country boy, joins the Coast Guard during World War II and is assigned to a buoy tender as a cook.  The movie was filmed at Coast Guard Base Alameda and Yerba Buena Island.

Love in a Goldfish Bowl, 1961

Around the World Under the Sea, 1965

Assault on a Queen, 1966
A Paramount picture.  Frank Sinatra plays an ex-submariner that is down on his luck.  He participates in a scheme to raise an old U-boat and disguise it as an experimental Royal Navy submarine--and use it to stop the RMS Queen Mary at sea and rob her.  The plan is thwarted when the USCGC Androscoggin shows up and rams and sinks the submarine -- click here for a still picture from the film.  Note the early variation of the Coast Guard's "racing stripe".

The Boatniks , 1970
Robert Morse stars as Ensign Thomas Garland.  A very young Stephanie Powers provides the love interest.  Also on hand are Don Ameche as Commander Taylor, Phil Silvers, Norman Fell, Wally Cox and Al Lewis (Grandpa Munster from "The Munsters").  Inept Morse is the son of a an outstanding World War II Coast Guard Officer known as "Torpedo Tommy".  Assigned to patrol Newport Beach, California, he constantly finds himself in mess after mess, only his dumb luck saves the day and his career.  Silvers and Fell are bungling jewel thieves.  A Walt Disney Picture, the Coast Guard declined script approval.  The movie is still available on video format.

Day of the Dolphin, 1973

Lucky Lady , 1975
Disappointing and ill contrived 1970s comedy about rumrunners Gene Hackman, Burt Reynolds and Liza Minnelli who go up against the Coast Guard and rival John Hillerman.  Hackman and Reynolds don Coast Guard uniforms in order to outwit the local Coast Guard Command and Hillerman.  Fairly good portrayal of pre-WWII Coast Guard and the Coast Guard’s perseverance to catch rumrunners.  Also fairly good portrayal of Rum Row mother ships and Coast Guard seventy-five foot patrol boats.

The Defection of Simas Kudirka, 1978

The Last Flight of Noah's Ark, 1980

The Island , 1981
Movie based on the best selling novel by Peter Benchley.  Pirate Chief David Warner leads a band of modern of pirates who raid yachts and sail boats of Caribbean vacationers.  Michael Caine plays a reporter who with his son investigates the reasons behind the disappearing boats.  Through his investigation he is unwillingly inducted into the pirate clan.  A Coast Guard "210" is sent to investigate and is boarded and overrun by the pirates.  USCGC Dauntless and Diligence provided platform and background shots.

The Lightship, 1985

Top Gun, 1986

Overboard, 1987

License to Kill, 1989

The Hunt for Red October, 1990

Captain Ron, 1992

Clear and Present Danger, 1993

The Beast, 1996

Daylight, 1996

White Squall , 1996
Based upon the true story about 13 prep school students who sign aboard the sailing ship Albatross, a brigantine, it is set in the 1960’s.  The movie stars Jeff Bridges as Christopher Shelden, captain, sailor, sailor, schoolmaster and stern disciplinarian.  The "White Squall" is a sudden storm that comes unaccompanied by clouds, and so it does, the Albatross sinks, and four students and two crewman die.  The Coast Guard conducts a hearing as to the expertise and conduct of Captain Shelden (Bridges).  Of note, as the film is set in the 1960’s, CG officers are dressed in Service Dress Khaki.  Unfortunately a supply of black shoulder boards and hat bands for combo hats were unavailable.  So instead, the public sees 60’s style uniforms with modern blue shoulder boards and hat bands.

Lethal Weapon 4, 1998

Double Jeopardy, 1999

The Perfect Storm, 2000

Bad Boys II, 2003

Yours, Mine & Ours, 2005

The Guardian, 2006

SERIALS:

Casey of the Coast Guard Serial PosterCasey of the Coast Guard, 1925
Ten Part Serial produced by Pathe, starring George O’Harra and Helen Ferguson.  George Casey (George O’Harra) is a Coast Guard officer stationed on Long Island Sound.  He is both hated and feared by a band of smugglers headed by "Diamond Kate".  The serial unfolds with the smuggler gang choosing their strike against Casey, the night of the Cadet Coast Guard Ball.  George’s brother Frank answers the call that night and is killed in action against the smugglers.  George Casey vows revenge for the death of his brother. Great action serial with much background of correct period uniforms, cadets in uniform and many shots of cutters and seaplanes.

 

SOS Coast Guard Serial Poster

SOS Coast Guard , 1937, 1942
A Republic serial from 1937 with 12 chapters.  Re-released in 1942 as a feature film of 69 minutes.  Exciting as both a serial or feature, the film stars Ralph Byrd as LT Terry Kent.  Byrd goes on to a career as Dick Tracy in Republic Films. In an unlimited supply of uniforms, he goes through each and every installment either dirtied, soaked, or blown up and yet each and every time a fresh uniform is available and he is ready to conform to Coast Guard regulations.  Bela Lugosi as the critically acclaimed evil scientist Boroff, has invented a gas that disintegrates almost everything.  Republic, deciding to cash on Coast Guard recognition, released the film again in 1942 as a feature.  Still available as serial in video format.

 

Don Winslow Movie PosterDon Winslow of the Coast Guard , 1943
CDR Don Winslow, USN distinguishes himself at Pearl Harbor.  He discovers his old archenemy the Scorpion is now aiding the Japanese.  Winslow played by Don Terry and his associate LT "Red" Pennington, played by Walter Sande are assigned to the Coast Guard to battle the Scorpion.  Typical "cliff hanger" serial, this one done by Universal.  The Scorpion with obvious German accent now associates himself with Japanese saboteurs who obligingly mark their submarines with a "U".  Either it was to make the Scorpion feel at home for his "Fatherland" or to be able to use stock footage of U-boats.  This film is still available in video format.

SHORT SUBJECTS:

United States Coast Guard, 1936

G-Men of the Sea, 1938

Cruising With the Coast Guard, 1940

Guardians of the Sea

A Ship is Born, 1942
A documentary short promoting recruiting in the U.S. Coast Guard.  Produced by the Coast Guard and distributed by the War Activities Committee.

Sailors All Movie PosterSailors All , 1943
Part of a 13 Chapter RKO Production "This Is America".  The "Sailors All" Chapter showed the U.S. Coast Guard Reserve and the Temporary Reserve in action.  Of particular note was the emphasis on the wartime activities of volunteer citizens who because they were over age or worked war essential jobs, were unable to serve on active duty.  Yet they still gave of their time to serve the United States Coast Guard.  This movie is still available in video format.

Sails Aloft, 1943

Screen Snapshots, 1943
A Columbia Production.  This 10 minute short shows actors Cesar Romero, Richard Quine, and Gig Young as they enter the Coast Guard.

Battle Stations, 1944
Narrators James Cagney and Ginger Rodgers outline the duties of a SPAR.  This documentary short film with a running time of 10 minutes showed the replacement of Coast Guardsman on home shore duty by SPARS during World War II.  This movie is still available in video format.

Beachead to Berlin, 1944
A Warner Brothers production in cooperation with the U.S. Coast Guard.  A Technicolor Special.  Narrated by Charles Linton Tedford.  A short film in tribute to U.S. Navy chaplains assigned to the Coast Guard.  The film shows chaplains providing comfort to the Coast Guardsmen assigned to the Normandy Invasion.  The New York Times commented about the film, "the footage photographed by the Coast Guard combat cameramen before and during the coastal invasion phase gives a most graphic comprehension of the assault on the beaches by seaborne troops".

Dogs for Show, 1944
A Universal production short. Featured in this film is handler Chief Boatswain’s Mate Walter Foster, USCG and his charge Warlord of Mazelaine, a champion boxer.  The basis of this movie is the preparation of this champion dog for the Madison Square Garden National Dog Show.

Rudy Vallee and the United States Coast Guard Band , 1944
Coast Guardsman Rudy Vallee directs the 11th District Coast Guard Band in this 10 minute short. Lieutenant Vallee and the Coast Guard Band play "Semper Paratus", "Wings of Gold", "Ship Ahoy", "Anchors Aweigh", the "Marines’ Hymn and the song of the Coast Guard Temporary Reserve, "The Silver Shield".  While the band is playing, scenes of the Coast Guard, Navy and Marines in action are shown on the silver screen.  This movie is available on video format.

Seeing Hollywood, 1944
A Columbia production, part of Screen Snapshots.  A short film narrated by Alan Mowbray featuring the closing program from "Tars and Spars."  Featured in the film were CPO Victor Mature, PO Sid Caesar, and PO Gower Champion.

Task Force, 1944
A Warner Brothers production in cooperation with the U.S. Coast Guard.  A Technicolor special.  Narrated by Jackson Beck, this short film was shot in color, instead of the typical black and white film used for shorts.  The film focuses around Coast Guard "Task Force" duty.  Besides operational glimpses, the viewer is treated to a snapshot of the life of a Coast Guardsman on and off duty.

Canine Patrol , 1945
A Walt Disney film that is still available in video format.  Pluto is assigned to the Coast Guard as a guard dog.  The film deals with Pluto’s trials and tribulations to keep a newborn turtle from trespassing into the restricted zone on the Beach that Pluto is guarding.  After Pluto falls prey to a patch of quick sand, he needs to rely on help from his former foe.

The Story of a Dog, 1945
A Warner Brothers production.  This 10 minute short narrated by Knox Manning, shows the training of dogs as members of the Coast Guard War Dog Unit at Curtis Bay, Maryland.  The film shows dogs as they go through training, including wall scaling, crawling under barbed wire and staying cool and calm under fire.  The film culminates with the graduation of handlers and dogs at the War Dog Training Center.

Dog of the Seven Seas, 1946
A Universal variety view.  Coast Guard dog Sinbad tells his story of how he entered the Coast Guard in 1937 as mascot on the cutter Campbell.  Sinbad is shown participating at battle stations and other shipboard life.  The film also focuses on his tour of Okinawa and Japan.  He returns to New York City and gets a "well done" from Admiral Smith.

Future Skippers, 1950

Cruise of the Eagle, 1958

Sea Devils Movie Poster


Researching Coast Guard History

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 How do you obtain a copy of a Coast Guard, lighthouse, or life-saving service logbook? 

Coast Guard logbooks are considered permanent records.   Depending on the time period you are interested in, these logbooks are stored in a number of locations.  Please read through the following to determine their location:

For copies of logbooks and any other documents, including reports, correspondence, etc. from the period 1790 to approximately twenty years ago from today, please contact to the National Archives:

National Archives I
7th & Pennsylvania Ave., SW
Washington, DC 20408

Or visit their website for further information:

http://www.archives.gov/research/military/logbooks/revenue-cutter-and-coast-guard.html

Life-Saving Service station logbooks and reports, 1871-1915:

These have been transferred to the regional national archive nearest the station's location.  Contact the main National Archives for further information:

National Archives I
7th & Pennsylvania Ave., SW
Washington, DC 20408

Or visit their website for further information:

http://www.archives.gov

 

Coast Guard Station logbooks and other records, 1915 to approximately twenty years ago from today:

National Archives I
7th & Pennsylvania Ave., SW
Washington, DC 20408

 

Logbooks from Cutters, Tenders, Stations and other reports created within the last twenty years:

NARA’s primary research facilities are those located in Washington, DC and College Park, MD. NARA, however, also maintains regional archives and federal records centers throughout the nation. For those locations you should consult the NARA website at www.archives.gov. It should be noted that some of the records contained at these regional repositories may still be under the control of the Coast Guard. Access can only be granted by the respective Coast Guard District’s FOIA Officer. For more information on the process for gaining access you should contact the Coast Guard FOIA officer by mail or fax at:

  • United States Coast Guard
    Attn: FOIA Officer (G-SII)
    2100 2nd Street, SW
    Washington, DC 20593
    (202) 267-4814 (fax)

Determine which homeport the cutter had or the location of the station and write to the corresponding Coast Guard District FOIA officer:

  • First CG District
    Attn: FOIA Officer
    Coast Guard Bldg.
    408 Atlantic Avenue
    Boston, MA 02110-3350
  • Fifth Coast Guard District
    Attn: FOIA Officer
    Federal Bldg.
    431 Crawford Street
    Portsmouth, VA 23704-5004
  • Seventh Coast Guard District
    Attn: FOIA Officer
    909 SE First Ave.
    Brickell Plaza Federal Bldg.
    Miami, FL 33131-3050
  • Eighth Coast Guard District
    Attn: FOIA Officer
    Hale Boggs Federal Bldg.
    501 Magazine Street
    New Orleans, LA 70130-3396
  • Ninth Coast Guard District
    Attn: FOIA Officer
    1240 East 9th St.
    Cleveland, OH 44199-2060
  • Eleventh Coast Guard District
    Attn: FOIA Officer
    501 W. Ocean, Suite 7170
    Long Beach, CA 90822-5399
  • Thirteenth Coast Guard District
    Attn: FOIA Officer
    Jackson Federal Bldg.
    915 Second Ave.
    Seattle, WA 98174-1067
  • Fourteenth Coast Guard District
    Attn: FOIA Officer
    Prince Kalanianole Federal Bldg.
    300 Ala Moana Blvd., 9th Floor
    Honolulu, HI 96850-4982
  • Seventeenth Coast Guard District
    Attn: FOIA Officer
    PO Box 25517
    Juneau, AK 99802-5517
 How do you obtain plans and blueprints of lighthouses, stations, cutters and other vessels? 
 
  • To obtain plans of a Coast Guard cutter that is still in commission, send a written FOIA request to:

U.S. Coast Guard
Engineering Logistics Center
Technical Information Management Branch (Code 05T), Mail Stop 25
2401 Hawkins Point Road
Baltimore, MD  21226

  • To obtain plans of a decommissioned Coast Guard cutter, Lighthouse Service tender, or Revenue Cutter, contact the Cartographics Division of the National Archives at College Park:

National Archives II
Cartographics Division
8601 Adelphi Road
College Park, MD 20740

  • To obtain plans of a lighthouse or life-saving station, contact the Cartographics Division of the National Archives at College Park:

National Archives II
Cartographics Division
8601 Adelphi Road
College Park, MD 20740

 

 How do you obtain the service record of someone who served in the Coast Guard and its predecessors (Life-Saving Service, Revenue Cutter Service, Steamboat Inspection Service, Bureau of Navigation or the Lighthouse Service), including information about cutter assignments and medals awarded?  What about records regarding former lighthouse keepers?  Crew lists and muster rolls? 

Personnel Records, Muster Rolls & Genealogical Research

Military Personnel Records (U.S. Coast Guard officers separated after 1928 and enlisted personnel separated after 1914):

If you would like to obtain copies of your own or a relative's Coast Guard service record (and they served in the Coast Guard sometime between 1914 to the present if they were enlisted or 1928 if they were a commissioned officer), which contains dates of service, station and cutter assignments, as well as medals and awards earned, you will need to contact the National Personnel Records Center, Military Personnel Records (NPRC-MPR).   Please see their website at the following URL:

http://www.archives.gov/st-louis/archival-programs/index.html

Or write to them directly at:

National Personnel Records Center, Military Personnel Records (NPRC-MPR)
National Archives & Records Administration
1 Archives Drive
St. Louis, MO  63138
Phone: (314) 801-0800


Civilian Personnel:

If the person you are researching served as a civilian in the Coast Guard or any of its predecessor agencies, you will need to contact the Civilian Records facility of the National Archives in St. Louis, Missouri:

National Personnel Records Center
National Archives & Records Administration
ATTN: Archival Programs
P. O. Box 38757
St. Louis, MO  63138

For more information: http://www.archives.gov/st-louis/civilian-personnel/faqs.html


Service prior to 1920:

If they served prior to 1928 or were keepers in the U.S. Lighthouse Service prior to 1919, the records will be in the headquarters branch of the National Archives.  Please visit their website for further information:

http://www.archives.gov/

Or write to them directly at:

National Archives and Records Administration
7th & Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC  20408


Lighthouse Keepers' Documentation:

Researching the career of anyone who served with the Lighthouse Service or the Coast Guard entails accessing documentation available at a number of different locations. Our office does not have any information on individual keepers. Personnel records for those who served in lighthouses prior to the Lighthouse Service's merger with the Coast Guard in 1939 need to contact the National Archives, which is the primary repository for all records concerning the Lighthouse Establishment & Service:

Write to them for further information:

National Archives and Records Administration
Textual Records
7th & Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20408

Or visit their website for further information:

http://www.archives.gov/

If the individual(s) served with the U.S. Lighthouse Service or the Coast Guard as a civilian, you will need to contact the National Archives branch in St. Louis, Missouri.  Please be advised that privacy restrictions apply to these records:

Civilian Employees (light keepers prior to 1939 were civilians, many stayed in as civilians after the Lighthouse Service merged with the Coast Guard after 1939):

National Archives & Records Administration
ATTN: Archival Programs
P.O. Box 38757
St. Louis, MO  63138


Crew Lists, Personnel Rosters & Muster Rolls:

If you would like to order copies of any station or cutter crew lists (muster rolls) and you are interested in a time period after 2005, please visit the U.S. Coast Guard Personnel Service Center Records Branch (MR) at their website's contact page here:

Records Branch: https://www.dcms.uscg.mil/Our-Organization/Assistant-Commandant-for-Human-Resources-CG-1/Personnel-Service-Center-PSC/BOPS/PSC-BOPS-C/PSC-BOPS-C-MR/

Include the cutter's or station's name and the month and year you are interested in. 

If you are looking for records from 1950-2005, please submit a FOIA request to the Coast Guard via:

https://www.dcms.uscg.mil/Our-Organization/Assistant-Commandant-for-Engineering-Logistics-CG-4-/FOIA/

If you are looking for records prior to 1950, please contact the National Archives:

http://www.archives.gov/contact/


Locating a Coast Guard Retiree:

You will need to contact the Coast Guard Pay and Personnel Center.  Due to the Privacy Act, however, they cannot provide home addresses.  Nevertheless, if you would like to contact a Coast Guard retiree, send an envelope addressed to:

COMMANDING OFFICER (RPD)
U.S. Coast Guard Pay & Personnel Center
444 SE Quincy
Topeka,  KS  66683-3591

Enclose in this envelope your correspondence (your letter to the retiree you wish to contact) inside another stamped envelope with the retiree's full name on it.  The Pay and Personnel Center will look through their files, add the retiree's address, and forward your correspondence on to the retiree.  Please include a telephone number where you may be reached--since there may be more than one retiree by the name you are seeking, they may need to contact you.

 Want to research Coast Guard history?  Where are the primary sources for Coast Guard History? 


Miscellaneous

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 May I dive on the wreck of a Coast Guard cutter or aircraft lost at sea?  Does the Coast Guard have a policy on recovering wrecks of cutters or aircraft?  May I remove an artifact off a Coast Guard wreck? 

Who owns U.S. Coast Guard ship and aircraft wrecks?

The United States of America holds legal title to the wreck.  The U.S. Coast Guard is the Federal agency that retains custody for the wrecks unless specific, formal action is taken to dispose of them. The administrative act of striking an aircraft or ship from the active list does not constitute disposal.  Even aircraft and ship wrecks that are stricken from the active list remain the property of the United States until such time affirmative action is taken to dispose of these properties in accordance with law.  Coast Guard vessels sold to commercial businesses or private citizens are no longer U.S. Government property.  Vessels and aircraft sunk as artificial reefs have been transferred to other agencies; the Coast Guard does not own or manage these ships or aircraft.

 

What do I do if I want to dive on Coast Guard ship or aircraft wrecks?

Divers may dive on Coast Guard ship and aircraft wrecks at their own risk.  However, federal property law dictates that no portion of a government wreck may be disturbed or removed.  Unauthorized removal of any property from a U.S. Coast Guard wreck is illegal.  Sections of the U.S. Code have been successfully applied in prosecuting individuals who violate Coast Guard wreck sites.  Coast Guard wrecks may contain unexploded ordnance and other hazards and should be approached with the utmost caution.  The Coast Guard strongly encourages cooperation with other agencies and individuals interested in preserving our maritime and aviation heritage.  The diving public is encouraged to report the location of underwater ship and aircraft wreck sites to the Coast Guard Historian Office.  Documentation of these wreck locations allows the Coast Guard to evaluate and preserve important sites for the future.

 

What if I witness another diver removing parts from a Coast Guard wreck?

If you witness the theft of material from a Coast Guard wreck, report it to the U.S. Coast Guard and to your State Historic Preservation Officer or State Underwater Archaeologist.  Vandalism of U.S. Government property is illegal and leads to the destruction of historically valuable underwater sites.

 

What if I want to recover a Coast Guard-owned wreck?

Recovery of historic ship, aircraft wreck or associated components will be considered only for educational or scientific purposes.  It is unlikely the Coast Guard will recommend the disposal and sale of historic ship or aircraft wrecks.  The Coast Guard is currently working on an official policy in this regard, which will likely follow the U.S. Navy’s policy.  It has been Navy policy not to dispose of historic ship and aircraft wrecks for the following reasons:

  • Congress has mandated through the NHPA that Federal Agencies make every effort to preserve their historic cultural resources.
  • The remains of crew members, if any, deserve respect and should remain undisturbed unless proper retrieval and burial become necessary.
  • There is a possibility that live explosives or ordnance may still be on board.
  • Arbitrary disposal and sale of wrecks may foster commercial exploitation of cultural resources.
  • Abandonment of wrecks will deplete a finite inventory of significant cultural resources.

 Under no circumstances should salvage of Coast Guard ship or aircraft wrecks be undertaken without prior and specific written approval by the Coast Guard Historian's Office!

Can I penetrate a Coast Guard ship or aircraft wreck?

No, the Sunken Military Craft Act, Pub.L. 108-375, Div. A, Title XIV, Sections 1401 to 1408, Oct. 28, 2004, 118 Stat. 2094, provides that no person may engage in or attempt to engage in any activity directed at a sunken military craft that disturbs, removes, or injures any sunken military craft except as otherwise authorized by law. Further, no person may possess, disturb, remove, or injure any sunken military craft in violation of this Act or any prohibition, rule, regulation, ordinance, or permit that applies under any other applicable law. 

Justification: Throughout history, warships and other craft in the service of the government have been accorded special protection under the concept of sovereign immunity, which exempts a warship or other governmental vessel in noncommercial service from the jurisdiction of any other state. In the modern era, this doctrine has been accepted as customary law by the courts in most jurisdictions as well as having been memorialized in articles 95 and 96 of the 1982 UN Law of the Sea Convention. 

Sunken military vessels often contain military or diplomatic material and naval technological modifications of a sensitive nature which may compromise national security. They also often contain the remains of naval personnel, which entitles them to the same protection as military gravesites on land. There are safety concerns, both for divers and the surrounding environment, in that careless activity could trigger off unexploded ordnance or release of fuel or other hazardous material into the ocean environment. Additionally, several articles in UNCLOS recognize the need for all States to cooperate to protect archaeological and historical objects found at sea.

The United States has been very aggressive in using this doctrine as a rationale for protecting our sunken warships and denying access to them or the pursuit of salvage claims against them since the nineteenth century.

 

What about wreck sites that are debris fields rather than whole aircraft or ships?

Wreck sites that are not entire aircraft or ships, but are parts strewn in a debris field are considered archaeological sites.  Such sites still contain U.S. Government property and must be managed by the Coast Guard in accordance with the National Historic Preservation Act.  Contact the Coast Guard directly for further information.

Federal Laws and Regulations Relating to U.S. Coast Guard Submerged Ship and Aircraft Wrecks

  • Antiquities Act (16 U.S.C. 433).

  • National Historic Preservation Act of 1966(16 U.S.C. 470).

  • Archaeological and Historic Preservation Act of 1974 (16 U.S.C. 469).

  • Archaeological Resources Protection Act of 1979 (16 U.S.C. 470aa).

  • Theft of Government Property (18 U.S.C. 641).

  • Abandoned Shipwreck Act of 1987 (43 U.S.C. 2101).

  • Documents, Historical Artifacts, and Condemned or Obsolete Combat Material: Loan, Gift, or Exchange (10 U.S.C. 2572).

  • Archaeological Resources Protection Act Final Uniform Regulations (32 CFR 229).

  • Protection of Historic Properties (36 CFR 800).

  • Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Historic Preservation Projects (36 CFR 68).

  • Abandoned Shipwreck Act Guidelines (55 FR 50116).

  • National Register of Historic Places (36 CFR 60).

  • Determinations of Eligibility for Inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places (36 CFR 63).

  • Recovery of Scientific, Prehistoric, Historic, and Archaeological Data (36 CFR 66)

  • Curation of Federally-Owned and Administered Archaeological Collections (36 CFR 79).

  • Sunken Military Craft Act (Pub.L. 108-375, 10 U.S.C. 113 Note & Stat. 2094-2098, Title XIV)

       

 

For further information, contact the Coast Guard Historian’s Office at:    

COMMANDANT (CG-09231)
ATTN: HISTORIAN'S OFFICE
US COAST GUARD STOP 7031
2703 MARTIN LUTHER KING JR AVE SE
WASHINGTON DC 20593-7031    

Email: History@uscg.mil