Manteo in Dare County, North Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)

USLSS/USCG Station Pea Island Memorial

1880 - 1947

— [Richard Etheridge, 1842 - 1900] —

Station Pea Island Memorial Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Richard E. Miller, October 2003

1. Station Pea Island Memorial Marker

Inscription. Click to hear the inscription.

Located south of Oregon Inlet, Lifesaving Station Pea Island was the only unit in the history of the Coast Guard manned by all Black crews. This marker is dedicated to the crews of Pea Island who risked their lives and endured so that others might live.

Erected 1999 by The Coast Guard Association, on the Bicentennial of the US Coast Guard.

Topics. This historical marker and memorial is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Civil Rights • Heroes • Waterways & Vessels.

Location. 35° 54.519′ N, 75° 40.173′ W. Marker is in Manteo, North Carolina, in Dare County. Marker can be reached from Fernando Street. Marker is in the courtyard of the North Carolina Aquarium (formerly, the North Carolina Maritime Museum), Roanoke Island. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 106 Fernando Street, Manteo NC 27954, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Spirit of Roanoke Island (within shouting distance of this marker); Roanoke Marshes Lighthouse (within shouting distance of this marker); Manteo Weather Tower

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(within shouting distance of this marker); August 27, 2011 (within shouting distance of this marker); Dare County Veterans Memorial (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); To Virginia Dare (about 500 feet away); To Walter Raleigh's Colonists (about 600 feet away); The Roanoke Colonies (about 600 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Manteo.

Regarding USLSS/USCG Station Pea Island Memorial. The exploits of the Black life savers were legendary, but it was not until 1992 that those on duty in 1896 were finally awarded the Coast Guard Gold Medal (the service's highest decoration) for their particularly dramatic rescue of survivors stranded aboard the wrecked schooner, E.S. Newman on October 11, 1896.

Related marker. Click here for another marker that is related to this marker. To better understand the relationship, study each marker in the order shown.

Also see . . .
1. Pea Island Life Saving Station . - includes biography of Richard Etheridge, Civil War veteran (Regimental Commissary Sergeant, 36th U.S. Colored Infantry)

US Lifesaving Station, Pea Island image. Click for full size.

Photographed By U.S. Coast Guard, circa 1896

2. US Lifesaving Station, Pea Island

Black surfmen of the Life Saving Service pose with the station's first Black keeper, North Carolina waterman and Civil War U.S. Army veteran, "Captain" Richard Etheridge.

and the U. S. Life Saving Service's first Black station keeper - at Pea Island, 1879-1900. (Submitted on October 21, 2011, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland.)

2. Richard Etheridge Statue. NCpedia entry:
... a life sized bronze statue of Richard Etheridge, the first African-American United States Life-Saving Service Keeper at Pea Island Station. ... It was the latest addition to the Collins Park project, dedicated to the late Dellerva Collins, former Manteo Mayor Pro Tem and a founding member of the Freedmen’s Colony Coalition. The statue joins the refurbished Pea Island Cookhouse as part of the preservation and interpretation of the community’s African-American heritage. The cookhouse serves as a museum to honor African-American men who courageously served under Etheridge. (Submitted on October 22, 2011, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland.)

3. Fire on tht Beach. Recovering the Lost Story of Richard Etheridge and the Pea Island Lifesaver (Submitted on October 22, 2011, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland.)

Additional keywords. U.S. Life Saving Service; U.S. Coast Guard; surfmen; Richard Etheridge; North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island; Fire on the Beach; Station Pea Island

Pea Island, 2003 image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Richard E. Miller, October 2003

3. Pea Island, 2003

Memorial; Reconstruction; Jim Crow.

The Richard Etheridge (1842-1900) marker panel image. Click for full size.

Photographed By RadioFan, November 29, 2009

4. The Richard Etheridge (1842-1900) marker panel

at the Etheridge Family burial plot which, like the USLSS/USCG Station Pea Island Memorial is located on the grounds of the North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island.

Credits. This page was last revised on February 22, 2021. It was originally submitted on January 7, 2008, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland. This page has been viewed 2,707 times since then and 90 times this year. Last updated on October 22, 2011, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on January 7, 2008, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland. 4. submitted on October 22, 2011, by Richard E. Miller of Oxon Hill, Maryland. • Craig Swain was the editor who published this page.