Lewes Maritime History Trail

The United States Life Saving Service (U.S.L.S.S.) was

commissioned to rescue shipwrecked mariners

along our nation's coast. Established in 1876

and 1884, repectively, the Cape Henlopen and

Lewes stations worked together to save thousands

of lives, hundreds of ships, and recover millions

of dollars worth of cargo.

Perhaps the most significant event in the history

of the Cape Henlopen and Lewes stations was the

Great Blizzard of March 12 -14, 1888, when a clear

and calm late winter's day turned into a ferocious

"white hurricane". Years later, the Life-Saving

Service Surfman recalled that the winds blew ice

and sand so hard it "could cut your eyes out."

Sailors lashed themselves to the rigging to avoid

being washed overboard, but it meant death for

many who froze and died there.

In 1915, as sailing ships were replaced by

steam-powered vessels and wrecks occurred

with less frequency, the U.S.L.S.S. merged with

the Revenue Cutter Service to form the U.S. Coast Guard.

Marker is on Shipcarpenter Street near Pilottown Road when traveling north.

Courtesy hmdb.org

Credits and Sources: