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A Turning Point at Sea: The Coast Guard, Thomas E, and Disabling Fire
—Under a blacked-out sky off Cay Sal, warnings went unanswered—until disabling fire cracked the dawn.
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“They periled their lives for others”—The City of Columbus disaster and the dead of winter
—Night surf, shattered boats, and men lashed to frozen masts—volunteers and a cutter crew fought a killing gale to wrench life from a North Atlantic wreck.
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Remembering BMCS Terrell Horne—father, friend, hero, mentor, and FRC namesake
—What began as a routine interdiction became a lethal ambush: a ramming at sea, a split‑second shove that spared a shipmate and a sacrifice the Coast Guard will never forget.
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Rear Admiral Frederick Billard — commandant, commander, warrior, educator and mastermind of rapid expansion
—Billard oversaw the largest and fastest peacetime expansion in Coast Guard history.
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Capt. Francis Martin—the most ancient of “Ancient Mariners” with 63 years of service!
—The Coast Guard established the Ancient Mariner Award in 1978 to honor the officer and enlisted cuttermen who personify the dedication and professionalism associated with long service at sea and have held the distinction of cutterman longer than any other officer or enlisted member.
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“CG 1”—the Coast Guard’s first aircraft
—In 1926, the Coast Guard’s Loening OL-5 launched aviation for Prohibition interdiction, with Gloucester and Cape May air stations aiding cutters to counter rum-running.
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Rescuers on the Rio Grande: Coast Guard team saves lives at the border
—Search and rescue cases typically have a clear beginning, middle and end. Search and rescue on the Rio Grande, however, is different.
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Local enforcer to global responder—235 years of Coast Guard transformation!
—In 1790, Alexander Hamilton established a small fleet of coastal law enforcement vessels to patrol off East Coast seaports. Over the next 235 years, the service experienced rapid growth in its responsibilities, missions, and organization.
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Combat Cutter Pickering—lost 225 years ago, now an OPC namesake
—After refitting late in the summer of 1800, the master and crew of revenue cutter Pickering boarded their vessel at Newcastle, Delaware, for their next Caribbean war patrol. It would be the last time they set foot on dry land.
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America’s first ice ships and icebreakers
—From fragile wooden hulls of the Age of Sail to the steel giants of the early 20th century, the U.S. Revenue Cutter Service—and later the Coast Guard—evolved to meet the icy challenges of America's northern waterways. As steam power and steel hulls unlocked frozen frontiers, cutters shifted from surviving the winter to breaking its grip. Discover how daring missions, innovative ship design, and a presidential mandate forged the legacy of America’s first icebreakers.