HIGH HEAD STATION CREW.

CAPT. CHARLES P. KELLEY, KEEPER OF HIGH HEAD.

Captain Kelley was attached to the Peaked Hill Bars Station for about three years, during which time he had a number of thrilling experiences and narrow escapes from death in the performance of his duty.

At the time of the wreck of the sloopC. M. Trumbull, on Peaked Hill Bars, Captain Kelley was in the life-boat with Captain Atkinsgoing off to the rescue of the imperiled crew, when the latter and two members of the crew lost their lives.

It was Captain Kelley who discovered the sloop stranded on the bars. The life-boat was quickly manned and put off to the wrecked vessel, and in a short time three of the crew were landed on the beach. A second trip through the breakers was safely made, and the boat was alongside the sloop, ready to take off the remaining two members, when the boom of the sloop caught the life-boat under the belt, and capsized it, throwing all hands into the boiling sea.

The night was intensely dark and the weather freezing cold. Captain Atkins was never seen, and the other two members of the boat’s crew perished after repeated attempts to get into their boat.

Captain Kelley, surfman as he was then, together with “Sam” Fisher, now keeper of the Race Point Station, and Isaiah H. Young reached the shore after a terrible struggle, and were pulled out of the surf by the members of the crew who had remained ashore.

All three were more dead than alive. The bodies of Captain Atkins and the two members of the crew, Elisha Taylor and Frank A. Mayo, were afterwards found on the beach by the life savers of an adjoining station.

Captain Kelley had been in the service but about a year when he passed through this terrible experience, yet he remained at the dangerous Peaked Hill Bars Station for three years under the late Capt. Isaac G. Fisher, being transferred to the High Head Station as keeper when the station was first manned in 1883.

Captain Kelley had such a wide and varied experience when following the sea, and later as a surfman attached to the Peaked Hill Bars Station, that he was especially well qualified for the responsible position of keeper of the High Head Station, where he has been in command for over twenty years.

During his long term of service as keeper he has been called upon at times to face the elements when they were in their greatest fury, yet he has unflinchingly responded to every call, and, with the surfmen under his charge, have had many thrilling experiences, and endured untold hardship. Captain Kelley was twice married; his present wife was Hannah C. Graham. He is the father of one child, a daughter.

The No. 1 surfman is Fred C. Franzer. He was born in Provincetown, Aug. 19, 1863, and has been a member of the crew of this station for sixteen years, or ever since he joined the service. He had been a boatman, fisherman, coastwise sailor, and whaleman before entering the service. He is a most experienced life saver, an expertsurfman, and a faithful coast guardian. He married Catherine Sylvey, of Provincetown.

The No. 2 surfman is Benjamin Kelley. He was born in West Dennis, and is forty-eight years of age. He went to sea at an early age and made a number of voyages to the Atlantic whaling grounds, and until he joined the service, sixteen years ago, had followed the sea in one capacity or another. Surfman Kelley is at present on sick leave, suffering from injuries received in the performance of duty, his place at the station being filled by his son. Until he received the injuries which compelled him to retire temporarily from the service, he had faithfully performed the arduous duties of the life of a surfman, and was an efficient and trustworthy life saver. He married Susan C. Snow, and is the father of two children, a son and daughter.

Left to right: A. A. BAKER. L. C. MULLET. H. H. KELLEY. CAPTAIN KELLEY (seated). DAVID B. SNOW. CURTIS F. HIGGINS. ROB’T E. ELLIS.HIGH HEAD CREW.

Left to right: A. A. BAKER. L. C. MULLET. H. H. KELLEY. CAPTAIN KELLEY (seated). DAVID B. SNOW. CURTIS F. HIGGINS. ROB’T E. ELLIS.

HIGH HEAD CREW.

The No. 3 surfman is Robert E. Ellis. He was born in Woburn, Mass., is thirty-four years of age, and has been a member of this crew for three years. He was a boatman and fisherman before entering the service, and under the instruction of Captain Kelley has made an able and fearless life saver.

The No. 4 surfman is Albert A. Baker. He was born in Chatham,and is thirty-four years of age. Surfman Baker has been in the service four years, joining this station when he entered. He was a coastwise sailor, boatman, and fisherman before entering the service, and has made an efficient and faithful life saver. He married Susie A. Pratt, and is the father of three boys.

The No. 5 surfman is David B. Snow. He was born in Wellfleet, is twenty-five years of age, and has been in the service two years. He followed the sea from the time he was fourteen years of age until he entered the life-saving service. He is a skilful boatman and an efficient life saver.

The No. 6 surfman is Curtis F. Higgins. He was born in Orleans, and is thirty-two years of age. He has been a member of this crew for two years, entering the service after following the sea as a boatman, yachtsman, towboatman, and a steamshipman. From his experience in the different kinds of work on the water in which he had engaged, he was well prepared for the work of a surfman, and has made an able and faithful life saver. He married Leonora B. Jason.

The No. 7 surfman is Samuel C. Mullett. He was born in Chatham, and is thirty-four years of age. Surfman Mullett is the winter man at this station, joining the station in December and remaining until May following. He has been in the service for three years. During the summer seasons he is a member of the City Point Station, South Boston. Surfman Mullett followed the sea from the time that he was a boy until he entered the service. He is an experienced surfman and well fitted for the hardships that he is called upon to endure as a life saver. He married Mrs. Bessie Cash.

This station is one of the new type of life-saving stations, with commodious quarters for the keeper and crew, large boat room and lookout. It was built in 1896, and manned in 1897. The late Capt. Isaac G. Fisher, who was keeper of the Peaked Hill Bars Station at the time, was placed in charge of the station and a picked crew of surfmen. Captain Fisher continued as keeper until ill-health caused him to resign from the service. Capt. William Sparrow, now keeper of the Point Allerton Station, who was No. 1 man under Captain Fisher, acted as temporary keeper until Captain Bickers was placed in charge. The station is located on the narrow strip of beach at the tip end of Cape Cod, Provincetown, one-eighth of a mile east from the Wood End lighthouse. Its approximate position as obtained from the latest coast survey charts is latitude north 42° 01′ 15″, longitude west 70° 11′ 30″. From Provincetown the distance to the station over the sand dunes and along the beach is about three and one-half miles. Across the head of the harbor, a way that is accessible when the tidehas ebbed, the distance is much shorter. The station is supplied with two five-oared surf-boats of the Race Point model, two beach carts, with guns, breeches-buoys, etc., and one life-car. The patrol from this station extends three and three-quarters miles north, and two and one-quarter miles south. This is the only station on Cape Cod where the surfmen do not meet and exchange checks with the surfmen from other stations, time clocks being employed to record the performance of duty of the patrol.

WOOD END STATION.

No total wrecks have occurred within the province of this station since Captain Bickers has been in command, and no persons have been taken ashore by the crew either in the surf-boat or breeches-buoy, although a large number of vessels have met with disaster near there. The following vessels have been assisted and floated by Captain Bickers and crew: the yawlAdventurer, the bargePaxnos, and the schoonersClara,Zephyr,Caviar,Manomet,Joseph I. Johnson,St. Bernard,Marjorie Brown,Gladstone, andLewis H. Giles. Captain Bickers and his crew also assisted in the rescue of the two men, members of the crew of the schoonerTwo Forty, who had been adrift in an open boat for fourteen hours.

“Tom,” the pet cat at the Wood End Station, while not being able to aid in the work of life saving, often goes out with the surfmen on their lonely patrol along the beaches to keep them company. “Tom” knows every foot of the beaches and seems to delight in going outwith the surfmen, whether the weather is fair or stormy. “Tom” often meets the surfmen half-way along the beach as they are returning from their patrol, running along ahead of the men as if to show them the way to the station. “Tom” is the pet of the crew and is well taken care of by them.

“Jim,” the horse which is at the Wood End Station, is owned by Captain Bickers, the keeper. He was raised on Cape Cod, and has been connected with the station for one year or since Captain Bickers assumed charge of the station. “Jim” is an intelligent animal, and has upon more than one occasion been of valuable service to the crew, by hauling apparatus to scenes of disaster. “Jim” knows when bad weather prevails, and is ever ready to do his share in the work of saving life or property.

JIM, THE HORSE KEPT AT WOOD END STATION.

CAPT. GEORGE H. BICKERS, KEEPER OF WOOD END STATION.

Capt. George H. Bickers, keeper of the Wood End Life-Saving Station, was born in Charlestown, Mass., in 1858. He has been in the life-saving service for eleven years, ten as a surfman at Race Point and one as keeper of the Wood End Station. After leaving school, when a young boy, Captain Bickers shipped before the mast on a coasting schooner. He followed coasting for a few years, when he went whaling. As a whaleman he learned the art of handling boats in riotous waters as well as seamanship in all its branches. Captain Bickers followed the sea until he was thirty-three years of age, when he entered the life-saving service, being assigned to the Race Point Station under Capt. “Sam” Fisher. From his experience as a sailorand whaleman he was well fitted for the duties of a life saver. He remained a member of the Race Point crew until the death of Capt. Isaac G. Fisher, keeper of the Wood End Station, when he was appointed to fill the vacancy. Captain Bickers enjoyed an enviable record as a surfman, and has made a record since being keeper of the Wood End Station that places him in the front rank of life savers. One disaster followed another near his station soon after he assumed command, yet not a life was lost, and nearly every craft was saved from destruction by his brave and vigilant crew. But one mishap has occurred since Captain Bickers took charge of the station, the capsizing of the surf-boat while going to a wrecked fishing vessel. The crew quickly righted their boat, bailed her out, went to the wreck, and saved the craft from destruction. Captain Bickers has a crew ofskilled and fearless life savers who are ever ready to obey his commands.

He married Abbie L. Cahoon, and is the father of a son.

The No. 1 surfman is Francesco A. Silva. He was born in Fayal, Azore Islands, in 1863, and has been in the life-saving service for six years, all of which have been spent at this station. Surfman Silva went to sea when a boy, sailing before the mast on a merchant ship. Later he became a whaleman, voyaging from one part of the world to the other in pursuit of the monsters of the deep. Surfman Silva performed his first work as a life saver under the late Capt. Isaac G. Fisher, and soon became an experienced and efficient surfman. He married Julia A. Lornes, and is the father of a son.

Left to right: CAPTAIN BICKERS. FRANCESCO A. SILVA. JONATHAN C. SMALL. FRANK C. WAGES. ALBERT G. MABBETT. WILLIE F. ELDREDGE. JAMES E. WORTH.WOOD END CREW.

Left to right: CAPTAIN BICKERS. FRANCESCO A. SILVA. JONATHAN C. SMALL. FRANK C. WAGES. ALBERT G. MABBETT. WILLIE F. ELDREDGE. JAMES E. WORTH.

WOOD END CREW.

The No. 2 surfman is Jonathan C. Small. He was born in Provincetown, and is twenty-six years of age. Surfman Small engaged in boating and fishing off the shores of Cape Cod from the time he was a boy until he entered the life-saving service, and was well fitted for the position he now holds. He has been in the service five years, and is an experienced and fearless life saver.

The No. 3 surfman is Frank C. Wages. He was born in Provincetown in 1869, and has been in the life-saving service at this stationsince it was manned in 1897. Surfman Wages was a sailor and fisherman along the shores of Cape Cod before entering the service, and has made an able and faithful life saver. He married Phœbe Silva, and is the father of a son.

The No. 4 surfman is Albert G. Mabbett. He was born in Whitehall, N. Y., in 1872, and has been in the life-saving service for six years. He shipped as a sailor before the mast on a coasting vessel when he was a boy, and spent several years in the coasting trade. Later he made a number of trips on the United States school shipSt. Mary, going on cruises to England, Ireland, and through the Straits of Gibraltar to the ports along the Mediterranean Sea. Prior to entering the life-saving service as a regular surfman, he had substituted at other stations along the shores of Cape Cod. As a substitute he performed meritorious service, and has made an efficient and brave life saver. He married Grace May Henderson, and is the father of two daughters and a son.

MARY NASON WRECKED AT WOOD END.

The No. 5 surfman is Willie F. Eldredge. He was born in Chatham, is thirty-six years of age, and has been in the life-saving service three years. Before entering the service he was a boatman and fisherman along the Chatham shores, and from his experience in that work was well prepared for the duties of a surfman. He also substituted at many of the life-saving stations along the shores of Cape Cod, and is an experienced and efficient life saver.

The No. 6 surfman is James E. Worth. He was born in Provincetownin 1861, and has been in the life-saving service one year. When a boy Surfman Worth went cod fishing to the Grand Banks, and later shipped on a merchant vessel and made a great number of trips to the West Indies Islands and South American ports. After a few years in the merchant service he became a whaleman, and in that service had a number of thrilling experiences. After giving up going to sea he became a baggage-master on the Old Colony Railroad. Later he entered the employ of the Cold Storage Plant at Provincetown, remaining there until he entered this service. When he entered the service he was assigned to the Muskeget Station on Nantucket, and was later transferred to this station. He is an expert boatman and a brave and hardy life saver. He married Nellie P. Lewis, and is the father of two daughters and four sons.

The No. 7 surfman is John N. Lewis. He was born in Provincetown, and is thirty-eight years of age. Until he entered the service four years ago, he had followed the sea from a boy. For three years he was a member of the City Point Station, South Boston, during the summer seasons, and also spent one season at the Straitsmouth Station, Cape Ann. Surfman Lewis is a skilled boatman, and has proved that he can be depended upon to do his duty in any emergency.

The Pamet River Station is another of the original nine stations which were erected on Cape Cod in 1872. It is located three and one-half miles south of Cape Cod Highland Light, its approximate position as obtained from the latest coast survey charts is latitude north 42° 00′ 00″, longitude west 70° 01′ 15″.

The station stands on one of the high sand dunes which line the ocean shore in Truro village about three miles from the Truro railroad station. When the station was built it stood several hundred feet back from high water mark, but the sea has made such great inroads into the sand dunes at that point on the beach, that the high water mark is now less than one hundred feet distant from the station, which will soon have to be moved to insure its safety. Sand bars with but a small depth of water over them fringe the shore at this station, extending seaward for several hundred yards, and the history of the station records many fearful disasters on them. It was on these dreaded bars that the terrible ocean tragedy, the wreck of the shipJason, occurred, and also where the three crafts, thePowwow,Miles Standish, and theE. Pavey, were wrecked at one time. The wreck of theJasonwas one of the most appalling disasters that has ever taken place on the shores of Cape Cod, twenty-six lives being lost. Of the whole crew, Samuel Evans, the ship’s apprentice, was the only person that managed to reach the shore. Of the whole number,thirty-four, aboard the shipsPowwow,Miles Standish, andPavey, twelve were lost.

The surfmen from this station have a patrol that extends two and one-half miles north and about an equal distance south, the surfmen meeting and exchanging checks on the south patrol with the surfmen from Cahoon’s Hollow on the north with the surfmen from the Highland Station.

The patrol is exceedingly hazardous and difficult. When the tide is high the surfmen are driven to the tops of the sand dunes and obliged to grope their way along the crest of the cliffs, which in many places are a hundred feet above the sea-level.

PAMET RIVER STATION.

When the station was manned, Capt. Jonathan Lee was appointed keeper. He was succeeded by Capt. Nelson W. Weston, George W. Kelley, and Capt. John H. Rich, the latter being succeeded by the present keeper, Capt. George W. Bowley.

Captain Bowley has been in charge of this station but a little over one year, during which time no wrecks have occurred within the territory covered by the patrol from the station, and the crew has been called upon but twice to assist disabled vessels. The first assistance rendered by Captain Bowley after his appointment as keeper was to a big tug boat which got caught on the bars off the shore and was in great peril. The next call was to assist a steam yacht which became disabled off the shore near the station.

This station is supplied with two surf-boats of the Monomoy model, two beach carts with full sets of apparatus, and one life-car. “Johnny,” a horse owned by Captain Bowley, is employed by the government during the winter season to assist in hauling the apparatus to wrecks.

CAPT. GEORGE W. BOWLEY, KEEPER OF PAMET RIVER STATION.

Capt. George W. Bowley, keeper of the Pamet River Life-Saving Station, was born in Provincetown, Sept. 27, 1870, and has been in the United States Life-Saving Service for eleven years, ten as a surfman at the Highland Station at North Truro, and one year as keeper of this station.

Captain Bowley came from a family of life savers, his father having been a surfman at the High Head Station, in Provincetown, foreighteen years, being forced to resign on account of ill-health caused by the hardship he had suffered in that long term of service.

Captain Bowley when a boy was employed as a messenger at the telegraph station in his native town. Later he went to sea on a coasting vessel, and afterwards made a number of voyages to the West Indies. He spent a number of years fishing along the shores of Cape Cod, entering the service when he was twenty-one years of age. The training as a life saver which he received at the Highland Station, under the veteran keeper, Captain Worthen, not only made him a No. 1 surfman, but also fitted him for the higher position which he now holds.

Since he has been keeper of the Pamet River Station, Captain Bowley has spared no pains to maintain a high standard of efficiency and discipline, and he has a crew of trained surfmen ever ready to obey his commands.

SURFMAN E. S. DYER, PAMET RIVER STATION.Oldest surfman in the United States Life-saving Service.

SURFMAN E. S. DYER, PAMET RIVER STATION.

Oldest surfman in the United States Life-saving Service.

The No. 1 surfman is Ephraim S. Dyer. He was born in Truro in 1845, and has the distinction of being the oldest surfman in point of years of service, among the life savers of Cape Cod, if not in the United States. He joined the service when it was established on Cape Cod, and has been attached to the Pamet River Station ever since that time. Before entering the service Surfman Dyer went to sea for a number of years, following the coastwise trade. He also spent a number of years as a fisherman and boatman along the shores of Cape Cod, and was in every way qualified for the position he has held for so long a time. During his long term of service Surfman Dyer has had many narrow escapes from death in the performance of his duty. Upon one occasion when three wrecks, thePowwow,Miles Standish, andPavey, occurred at one time,he became entangled in the wreckage of one of the vessels, and a big rope, becoming twisted around his legs, dragged him to the bottom, nearly drowning him. During the thirty years that he has been connected with this station, Surfman Dyer has assisted at all the wrecks that have occurred near there, and beyond a sprained ankle he has never received any other injury in the work of saving life and property. The hardships which he has suffered in thirty years do not appear to have affected him in the least. He is hale and hearty and ever ready to respond to the call “vessel ashore.”

Surfman Dyer was twice married; his present wife was formerly Lydia Moore. He has one child, a daughter.

Left to right: E. S. DYER. J. H. ATWOOD. R. F. HONEY. CAPTAIN BOWLEY (seated). G. W. PAINE. I. T. HATCH. A. NICKERSON.PAMET RIVER CREW.

Left to right: E. S. DYER. J. H. ATWOOD. R. F. HONEY. CAPTAIN BOWLEY (seated). G. W. PAINE. I. T. HATCH. A. NICKERSON.

PAMET RIVER CREW.

The No. 2 surfman is Joseph H. Atwood. He was born in Weymouth, Mass., in 1845, and has been in the life-saving service for seventeen years, all of which have been spent at this station. Surfman Atwood went to sea when he was but nine years of age.

For thirty-one years he followed the sea in one capacity or another, making a number of voyages to the West Indies, in engaging in the coastwise trade. From his long years of service on the water he was especially adapted for the arduous duties of a surfman. He has had many thrilling experiences as a surfman. Once he had his leg fractured in assisting at a wreck, and later at the wreck of the schoonerCampbellhe was hit on the head by a falling spar and nearly killed. He was twice married; his present wife was formerly Mary Dyer. He is the father of two daughters.

The No. 3 surfman is Richard Honey. He was born in Truro in 1862, and has been in the life-saving service for twelve years, all of which have been at this station. Surfman Honey was a sailor before entering the service. He was an expert boatman when a boy, and after entering the service he quickly became familiar with the work incident to a surfman’s life, and has made a faithful and fearless life saver. He married Drusilla Gray.

The No. 4 surfman is George Paine. He was born in Truro, and is forty-eight years of age. Surfman Paine has been in the life-saving service and a member of the Pamet River crew for twelve years. When a young man he went to sea on a coasting schooner. Later he became a trap fisherman and was stationed at Sandwich and other points along the bay shore for a number of years.

As a trap fisherman he was obliged to battle with the surf, and he has few equals as a boatman.

He possessed the highest qualifications when he entered the service, and has made a brave and trustworthy life saver. He married Annie Allen, and is the father of five children, three girls and two boys.

The No. 5 surfman is Isaiah T. Hatch. He was born in Truro in 1857. He first entered the life-saving service in 1888, remaining at this station for one year. He reentered the service in 1892, and again became a member of this crew. Surfman Hatch followed the sea as a sailor boatman and fisherman from the time he was a young man until he entered the service, and was familiar with the duties which he has been called upon to perform as a life saver. He is a skilled boatman and a brave and hardy son of Cape Cod, who knows no peril when duty calls. He married Katie Rogers.

The No. 6 surfman is Manuel Cory. He was born in Provincetown in 1869, and has been in the life-saving service for seven years, all of which have been spent at this station. Surfman Cory was a boatman and fisherman before he entered the service. He is a perfect type of a life saver. Of perfect physique and muscles of steel, the rigors and perils of his vocation have no terrors for him. He is skilled in boating and every branch of the work of life saving, a surfman, who knows no fear when duty calls. He married Mabel F. Snow.

The No. 7 surfman is Alonzo Nickerson. He was born in Harwich in 1871, and has been in the service five years. He was a boatman and fisherman before entering the service, and has made a skilled and faithful life-saver.

This station is another of the original nine stations erected on the shores of Cape Cod in 1872. It is located on what is called Little Ponchet Island, back of the Nauset Beach, about two and one-half miles south of Nauset Harbor, and about five miles from the Orleans village. Its approximate position, as obtained from the latest coast survey charts, is latitude north 41° 45′ 35″, longitude west 69° 56′ 00″.

The first keeper of the station was the late Captain Solomon Linnell, who was succeeded by Capt. Marcus Pierce. Captain Pierce was keeper of the station for fifteen years, and upon his retiring from the service, Capt. James H. Charles was placed in command.

ORLEANS STATION.

The station is located at one of the most dangerous sections of the coast, sunken bars stretching along the coast there for miles. The patrol north from this station extends as far as Nauset Harbor, two and one-half miles, the surfmen using time clocks. The south patrol covers two and one-half miles of beach, the surfmen meeting and exchanging checks with the surfmen from the Old Harbor Station. Before the Old Harbor Station was built, the surfmen from this station were obliged to cover the entire beach south as far as Chatham Harbor, a distance of five miles.

At this station there are three surf-boats, two beach carts with guns, breeches-buoys, etc., and a torch light, the latter which gives a tremendously powerful light and is of great benefit to the lifesavers while working at wrecks in the night. Captain Charles has a horse at this station which the government employs during the winter season.

ALONG THE SHORE AT ORLEANS STATION.

Since Captain Charles has been keeper of the Orleans Station nearly one hundred lives have been saved by his crew from wrecked vessels. From the schoonerLizzie M. Centersixteen men were taken ashore in the surf-boat by his crew, the schooner being saved. From the steam launchEttaten men were taken ashore in the surf-boat. Two men were rescued from a dory by the surf-boat, and from the schoonerAnnthree men were saved by the surf-boat and the vessel floated. From the schoonerLottie L. Haskinsfourteen men were taken ashore in the surf-boat and the vessel saved. Two men were taken ashore from a cat-boat, but the life savers could not save the craft. From the schoonerWalter Millerthe crew of five and one woman were taken ashore in the breeches-buoy and the vessel saved. The schoonerIva Laffrinier, with crew of five men, was boarded by the life savers, who took the crew ashore, the vessel becoming a total loss. From the steam launchZilphathree men were saved, and from the schoonerZenobiathe crew of three men were rescued by the surf-boat, and the latter craft saved. From the sloopCarrolthree men were taken ashore by the surf-boat and the craft saved. From the cat-boatMary Cthree men were taken ashore in surf-boat. One man from a dory and one from a small cat-boat were also brought ashorein the surf-boat. From the schoonerJohn L. Parker, which became a total loss, the crew of six men were taken off by the breeches-buoy. From the schoonerElsie M. Smith, which also became a total loss, sixteen men were taken ashore by the breeches-buoy, while from the steam launchNo Nametwo men and a woman and child were taken ashore in the surf-boat.

STRANDED ON THE OUTER BAR AT ORLEANS, LATER BECOMING A TOTAL WRECK.

While Captain Charles and his crew have made many daring rescues both by surf-boat and breeches-buoy, the hardest and most perilous tasks they have are going offshore to the assistance of distressed vessels. These jobs mean long and hard pulls with the perils multiplied, as after boarding the crafts they are often compelled to work them into port. No matter how far offshore the distressed vessel may be, once she is sighted with colors flying at half-mast, Captain Charles and his crew are off to her assistance. Frequently it happens that the vessels they board, after pulling in the teeth of a gale for hours, are in a sinking condition and the crews exhausted. It is then a race for life to port, and many times have the life savers felt the vessels which they have started to take into port sinking under them, before they had gotten under way.

Captain Charles and his crew have had many narrow escapes in going to the assistance of distressed vessels, and have often suffered untold hardship in the work, but that they are ever ready to battle with the wind or wave is evidenced by the great number of heroic rescues they have made.

Capt. James H. Charles, keeper of the Orleans Station, was born in Dennis in 1857, and has been in the life-saving service for fifteen years, six as a surfman and nine as keeper. His whole term of service has been at the Orleans Station.

CAPT. JAMES H. CHARLES, KEEPER OF ORLEANS STATION.

His father was a well-known sea captain, and Captain Charles took naturally to the life of a sailor. When a young man his family moved to the far West.

Captain Charles remained in the West but a short time, returning to Cape Cod and engaging in boating and fishing along its shores. Later he joined the fleet of cod fishermen, and went to the Grand Banks as a skipper. After a few years as skipper of a “grand banker,” he returned to the West, taking up a government grant of land. He remained in the West but a year, returning to Cape Cod,and again joining the fishing fleet. After several seasons with the fishing fleet, he entered the life-saving service, being assigned to the Orleans Station under Capt. Marcus Pierce. As a surfman, under the veteran Captain Pierce, Captain Charles displayed exceptional ability as a boatman and life saver. The training he received with Captain Pierce soon fitted him for the position to which he was subsequently promoted, keeper of the station, succeeding Captain Pierce. Since he has had charge of the station, a high standard of efficiency has always been maintained, and the daring rescues which the crew of his station has performed testifies to their efficiency, fearlessness, and skill. Captain Charles married Lizzie Hurd, and is the father of three daughters and one son.

The No. 1 surfman is Abbott H. Walker. He was born in Orleans, Sept. 25, 1864, and has been in the life-saving service for eight years. Surfman Walker followed the sea from boyhood, and was a well-known boatman and fisherman. He acquired the art of handling boats in the surf when a boy and knows the location of every rip and shoal along the coast of Cape Cod. He had his first experience as a life saver under Captain Charles, and has made a skilled, fearless, and efficient coast guardian. He married Lillie Wiley, and is the father of two daughters and two sons.

The No. 2 surfman is Richard S. Gage. He was born in Dennis in 1858, and has been in the life-saving service for eleven years. Before becoming a regular surfman he substituted at the Monomoy and at this station. When he was appointed a regular surfman he was assigned to the Pamet River Station, where he served for three years. He was a boatman and fisherman for years, and also a coastwise and deep water sailor. Surfman Gage is a perfect type of life saver. Skilled in the art of boating, absolutely fearless, he has made a brave and hardy surfman.

He married Hannah M. Ellis, and is the father of two daughters and two sons.

The No. 3 surfman is Nehemiah P. Hopkins. He was born in Eastham in 1875, and has been in the life-saving service for six years. He spent his boyhood days boating and fishing along the shores of Cape Cod, and had a wide experience on the water before he entered the service. The training he has received at this station has made him a brave and efficient life saver. He married Geneva Eldredge, and is the father of two sons.

The No. 4 surfman is William B. Sherman. He was born in Orleans in 1857, and has been in the life-saving service for seven years. Surfman Sherman was assigned to this station when heentered the service, but resigned after a few months. When he reentered he was sent to the Coskata Station on Nantucket, and was later transferred to this station. He came from a seafaring family, his father having been an old “Grand Banker.” Surfman Sherman learned the art of handling boats in the surf before he joined the service, and has made an intrepid and skilled life saver. He married Minnie Cormaney, and is the father of one daughter and three sons.

The No. 5 surfman is Timothy F. Murray. He was born in Boston in 1859, and has been in the life-saving service three years. Before entering the service he had engaged in fishing and steamboating, and was a coastwise sailor and mariner. He was assigned to this station when he joined the service, and has made an able and skilled life saver. He married Phœbe F. Chase, and is the father of two daughters and one son.

Left to right: CAPTAIN CHARLES. ABBOTT H. WALKER. RICHARD S. GAGE. NEHEMIAH P. HOPKINS. WILLIAM B. SHERMAN. TIMOTHY F. MURRAY. JOHN KILBURN. GEO. F. JORDEN.ORLEANS STATION CREW.

Left to right: CAPTAIN CHARLES. ABBOTT H. WALKER. RICHARD S. GAGE. NEHEMIAH P. HOPKINS. WILLIAM B. SHERMAN. TIMOTHY F. MURRAY. JOHN KILBURN. GEO. F. JORDEN.

ORLEANS STATION CREW.

The No. 6 surfman is John Kilburn. He was born in Provincetown in 1856, and has been in the life-saving service for three years. When he entered the service he was assigned to the Gay Head Station on Martha’s Vineyard, where he served one year, when he was sent to the Cahoon’s Hollow Station, remaining there one year. Surfman Kilburn was a mariner before entering the service, and was well fitted for the work he is called upon to perform as a life saver. He married Eliza Sparrow, and is the father of two sons.

The No. 7 surfman is George F. Jorden. He was born in Williamsport, Pa., in 1875, and has been in the life-saving service for two years. He entered the service as a member of the City Point, South Boston, Station crew. He served there two seasons and was the winterman at Wood End Station under Captain Bickers for two years. Last May he was transferred to the Salisbury Beach Station, where he remained until Dec. 1, 1902, when he joined this station.

Surfman Jorden had substituted at this station before he joined the service. He is an expert boatman and a fearless life saver. He married Sarah Smith, and is the father of one daughter and one son.

NAUSET STATION.

The Nauset Life-Saving Station is another of the original nine United States Life-Saving Stations which were built on Cape Cod in 1872. It is situated on Nauset beach about two and one-half miles from North Eastham depot and village. Its approximate position as obtained from the latest coast survey charts is latitude north 41° 50′ 40″, longitude west 69° 45′ 00″. When this station was built it was placed on a site one thousand feet south of its present location, but the shifting sands soon required its being moved inland to a more secure location, the site it now occupies. The sea at this point is constantly making great inroads into the beach, the banks having beencut away for a distance of about one hundred and fifty feet since the station was built.

The patrol north from this station is about four and one-half miles, the surfmen meeting and exchanging checks with the surfmen from Cahoon’s Hollow. The south patrol is three and one-eighth miles, the surfmen that go on that patrol using time clocks to record their performance of duty.

Back row:SURFMAN WALKER. SURFMAN GAGE. CAPTAIN BEARSE. CAPTAIN CHARLES.Front row:SURFMAN SNOW. SURFMAN JORDEN. SURFMAN HOWES. SURFMAN HIGGINS.JOINT CREW.Captains Charles, of Orleans Station, and Bearse, of Nauset Station, with their picked crews of life savers who, at the risk of their lives, brought the disabled schoonerAndrew Adamsand crew into port. This, the first instance in the history of the life-saving service on Cape Cod, in which two life-saving captains went to a rescue in the same life-boat, occurred during the winter of 1903.

Back row:SURFMAN WALKER. SURFMAN GAGE. CAPTAIN BEARSE. CAPTAIN CHARLES.Front row:SURFMAN SNOW. SURFMAN JORDEN. SURFMAN HOWES. SURFMAN HIGGINS.

JOINT CREW.

Captains Charles, of Orleans Station, and Bearse, of Nauset Station, with their picked crews of life savers who, at the risk of their lives, brought the disabled schoonerAndrew Adamsand crew into port. This, the first instance in the history of the life-saving service on Cape Cod, in which two life-saving captains went to a rescue in the same life-boat, occurred during the winter of 1903.

Nauset bars extend along the shore at this station, and many terrible wrecks have taken place there. When the station was opened Capt. Marcus M. Pierce was appointed keeper. Later he was transferred to the Orleans Station, and Capt. Walter D. Knowles was placed in charge. Keeper Knowles was succeeded by the present keeper Captain Bearse. There are two surf-boats of the Monomoy model, two beach carts with breeches-buoy, etc., and a life-car at this station.

“Brad,” a horse owned by Captain Bearse, is on duty at the station during the winter season.

Captain Bearse and his crew of life savers have rescued seventeen persons in their surf-boat and seventeen shipwrecked sailors in thebreeches-buoy since Captain Bearse has been keeper, while thirty-eight persons were rescued from the surf by ropes and small boats. Of the total number of vessels stranded on the bars near the station eight schooners and one cat-boat were a total loss. Not a life has been lost within the province of this station since Captain Bearse has been in charge.

CAPT. ALONZO N. BEARSE, KEEPER OF NAUSET STATION.

Capt. Alonzo N. Bearse, keeper of the Nauset Life-Saving Station, was born on Monomoy Point in 1842, and has been in the life-saving service for nineteen years, three years as a surfman and sixteen as keeper of this station. Born on Monomoy Island, within sight of the dreaded shoals off Monomoy, as a boy he became familiar with boats and boating, and witnessed the scenes of disaster that occurred along the coastnear his home. He quickly learned the art of handling boats in rough water, and in launching and landing through the surf. He went to sea at an early age, shipping on a coastwise schooner. Returning from sea shortly after the outbreak of the Civil War, he enlisted in the 43d Massachusetts Infantry, Company E, serving honorably with his company for eleven months, his term of enlistment. During the time that he was at the front he took part in the severe fighting at Kingston, Whitehall, and Goldsboro. He escaped unhurt, however, and returned to Cape Cod, and again went to sea. He had a wide and varied experience as mariner, fisherman, and boatman, and was well qualified for the work of a surfman when he joined the Nauset Station crew, under Captain Knowles, whom he subsequently succeeded as keeper.

Captain Bearse labors diligently to maintain a high standard of efficiency among his crew, and is a careful and fearless warrior of the sea. Numerous disasters have occurred within the precincts of the Nauset Station since he has been in command, and many have been averted, owing to the vigilance of his surfmen.

He was twice married, his present wife was Cordelia Ellis, and he is the father of three children.

The No. 1 surfman is Allen T. Gill. He was born in North Eastham in 1857, and has been in the life-saving service for sixteen years, all of which have been spent at this station. Surfman Gill followed the sea and was a boatman and fisherman from the time he was a boy until he joined the service. He has assisted at all the wrecks that have occurred along the Nauset beach during the past sixteen years, and is a fearless and faithful coast guardian. He married Exa E. Lewis, and is the father of a daughter and son.

The No. 2 surfman is Charles C. Daniels. He was born in Gloucester, and is forty years of age. Surfman Daniels has been a member of the Nauset crew for fifteen years, being assigned to this station when he entered the service. He went to sea when a young man as a sailor in the coastwise surface, and was also a boat fisherman for a number of years. He was especially fitted for the work of a surfman, and has made a brave and faithful life saver. He married Mary Cole, and is the father of four daughters and two sons.

The No. 3 surfman is Lewis H. Collins. He was born in North Eastham in 1865, and is serving his fourteenth year as a life saver. Surfman Collins was a fisherman and sailor before he entered the service. In the fourteen years that he has been a member of the Nauset crew he has proven himself a faithful and fearless life saver. While working at a wreck several years ago he suffered severe injuries to hisleg and back by the capsizing of the surf-boat that rendered him unfit for service for a long time. He married Eva W. Wiley, and is the father of a boy.

The No. 4 surfman is Whitman F. Howes. He was born in Chatham in 1860, and has been in the life-saving service for ten years. Surfman Howes was a boat fisherman and sailor before entering the service, and was well qualified for the work of a surfman when he became a life saver. He has assisted at all the wrecks along the shore during the past ten years and has proven his worth as a life saver whenever duty called him. He married Carrie L. Penniman, and is the father of one daughter and one son.

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