callout

Pea Island Lifesavers Commemoration Papers


On March 5, 1996, Richard Etheridge and his crew of six from the Pea Island Lifesaving Station, the only African American U.S. Life-Saving Service crew in the nation's history, were honored posthumously with a Gold Lifesaving Medal of Honor. Virtually ignored for almost a century, it took the tenacity of a 15 year-old middle school student from Washington, N.C. to help shed light on their brave efforts. Kate Burkhart not only wrote an award-winning essay addressing the slighted crewmen, but she also lobbied members of Congress and President Bill Clinton to honor the members of the Pea Island station.The collection consists of correspondence, invitations, speeches, magazines, newspaper clippi ... (more below)

Title

Pea Island Lifesavers Commemoration Papers

Collection Number

33MSS-65

Date(s)

1995 - 1999

Language

English

Physical Description
Cubic feet
.4
Physical Description
Boxes
1.00
Folders
20.00
Abstract

On March 5, 1996, Richard Etheridge and his crew of six from the Pea Island Lifesaving Station, the only African American U.S. Life-Saving Service crew in the nation's history, were honored posthumously with a Gold Lifesaving Medal of Honor. Virtually ignored for almost a century, it took the tenacity of a 15 year-old middle school student from Washington, N.C. to help shed light on their brave efforts. Kate Burkhart not only wrote an award-winning essay addressing the slighted crewmen, but she also lobbied members of Congress and President Bill Clinton to honor the members of the Pea Island station.

The collection consists of correspondence, invitations, speeches, magazines, newspaper clippings, programs, photographs and a video.

Physical Location

For current information on the location ofthese materials, please consult the Outer Banks History Center.

Creator

Outer Banks History Center

Repository

Outer Banks History Center


The Pea Island Commemoration Papers are arranged by series and document type.


Available for research.


Copyright is retained by the authors of these materials, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law (Title 17 US Code). Individual researchers are responsible for using these materials in conformance with copyright law as well as any donor restrictions accompanying the materials.


Processed by Christine A. Dumoulin, 2006

Encoded by Stuart Parks II, November 2008


The Pea Island Lifesaving Station Gold Lifesaving Medal Ceremonies video has been moved to the A/V Cabinet, third drawer, third tie


In 1878, the Pea Island Lifesaving Station was established near Cape Hatteras, N.C. along one of the most treacherous shorelines on the East Coast, known as  "The Graveyard of the Atlantic." For the first ten years, the Pea Island station had an all-white crew or a crew of black men with white surf men, whose jobs ranged from patrolling the sands to assisting ships in distress. In 1880, Richard Etheridge, who served in the Thirty-sixth Infantry Regiment, United States Colored Troops division during the Civil War, took over as keeper and commanded the first all-African American lifesaving station in the country.

The lifesavers at Pea Island quickly gained the reputation of being among the best. Their most heroic effort was rescuing nine people, including the captain's wife and daughter, from the sinking  E. S. Newman on October 11, 1896. The three-masted schooner had run aground during a hurricane, and Etheridge and his crew, which consisted of Benjamin Bowser, Lewis Wescott, Dorman Pugh, Theodore Meekins, Stanley Wise and William Irving, braved the darkness and rough water to bring the passengers to shore. Etheridge ordered two of his men to tie themselves together with thick line. Carrying another line, which was payed out by their comrades on shore, the men would struggle two by two and swim through brutal wind, waves and currents. Upon reaching the ship, they secured the line and began carrying the passengers one by one to shore.

Kate Burkart was an 8th grade student from Washington, N.C. when she became interested in the Pea Island Station and its crew for a history club project. In her research, she was astonished to learn that the men had never been honored for their heroic rescue. At the insistence of her parents, Burkart wrote letters and sent her paper to President Bill Clinton and U.S. Senator Jesse Helms asking for their help to honor the men involved in the rescue of the  E. S. Newman. She also discovered that Stephen Rochon, an African American Coast Guard Commander, was working towards the same goal. On March 5, 1996, almost 100 years later, the men of Pea Island were remembered with honor and distinction. Richard Etheridge and his crew of six from the Pea Island Lifesaving Station were awarded, posthumously, with a Gold Lifesaving Medal of Honor.


[Identification of item], 33MSS-65, Pea Island Lifesavers Commemoration Papers, Outer Banks History Center, Manteo, N.C., U.S.A.


Various donors: various patrons brought articles or papers pertaining to the event to the Outer Banks History Center over a period of months or years. OBHC staff gathered those materials into this artificial collection.


Additional information on topics found in this collection may be found in the Manuscript and Archives Reference System (MARS)  http://www.ncarchives.dcr.state.nc.us.


This collection of material consists of correspondence, invitiations, speeches, magazines, newspaper clippings, programs, photographs and a video.

The Pea Island Commemoration Papers are arranged by series and document type.


This collection of material consists of correspondence, invitiations, speeches, magazines, newspaper clippings, programs, photographs and a video.


  • Bowser, Benjamin J.
  • Burkart, Kate
  • Etheridge, Richard, 1842-1900
  • Irving, William
  • Meekins, Theodore
  • Pugh, Dorman
  • Rochon, Stephen W.
  • Wescott, Lewis
  • Wise, Stanley
  • E. S. Newman (Schooner)
  • United States. Army. African Brigade (1863-1865)
  • United States. Army. Colored Infantry Regiment, 36th (1864-1866)
  • United States. Life-Saving Service
  • African Americans--North Carolina--History
  • Lifesaving Stations--North Carolina--Pea Island--History
  • Shipwrecks--North Carolina--Pea Island
  • Pea Island (N.C.)

Physical Description
1 box, 20 folders
Physical Description
Boxes
1.00
Folders
20.00

Folder: 1:1.1  
Finding Aid

Folder: 1:2.1  
Audio-Visual

Pea Island Lifesaving Station Gold Lifesaving Medal Ceremonies, March 5, 1996

7324
Correspondence

Folder: 1:3.1  
Burkhart, Katie
Folder: 1:3.2  
Burkhart, Pamela
Folder: 1:3.3  
Hardee, Debra
Folder: 1:3.4  
Recommendation and Announcements

7329
Manuscripts

Folder: 1:4.1  
Forgotten Legacy: African American Storm Warriors, Katie Burkart
March 4, 1995
Folder: 1:4.2  
Speech to the Gold Lifesaving Medal Ceremony, CDR Stephen W. Rochon, USCG.
March 5, 1996
Folder: 1:4.3  
Speech for the Pea Island Lifesaving Station Gold Lifesaving Medal, Kate Burkart
March 5, 1996

7333
Research Material

Folder: 1:5.1  
Gardiner Pea Island Research
Folder: 1:5.2  
USLSS Records
Folder: 1:5.3  
Pea Island Lyle Gun No. 212: A History and Description

7337
Commemoration Memorabilia

Folder: 1:6.1  
Invitations
Folder: 1:6.2  
Media Advisory
Folder: 1:6.3  
Pamphlet
Preserve Your Naval Heritage
Folder: 1:6.4  
Programs
U.S. Navy Memorial and Naval Heritage Center 1996 Spring Event Schedule
100-Year Commemoration of M/VE.S. Newman Rescue and Dedication of Gold Lifesaving Medal Exhibit
Presentation of the Gold Lifesaving Medal to the crewmen of U.S. Life-Saving Station Pea Island
Folder: 1:6.5  
Gold Lifesaving Medal Citation

7347
Publications

Folder: 1:7.1  
Magazines
Coastwatch
May/June 1995
Xavier Gold
Fall 1996
The Coast Guard Reservist
October 1996
The Retired Officer
August 1997
American History
February 1999
American Legacy
Summer 1999
Folder: 1:7.2  
Newspaper Clippings

Folder: 1:8.1  
Photographs