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Iceberg Smith and the 1931 Graf Zeppelin Arctic Expedition
—Suspended above uncharted ice in a heated cabin, a young Coast Guard scientist watched the Graf Zeppelin map islands, mountains, and sea ice no one had ever seen from the air—and foresaw how aviation would transform Arctic safety.
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From Overland Rescue to Polar Security Cutters: The Evolution of U.S. Ice Operations
—From reindeer-driven rescues and wooden “ice resistant” cutters to Northwest Passage breakthroughs and new Polar Security Cutters, this story traces 150 years of operations that turned a frozen frontier into a year round mission set.
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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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To Europe and Far East — A brief history of the Coast Guard’s Pacific Area
—From rounding Cape Horn to icebreaking the Northwest Passage, the service built a vast Pacific footprint—cutters, lighthouses, LORAN nets, and air detachments—supporting missions from Manila Bay to Vietnam across 180 years of war and peace.
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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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Frank Erickson—Coast Guard pioneer of helicopter flight 80 years ago!
—Blizzard skies, grounded planes—yet a lone rotor lifted off with lifesaving plasma, igniting a revolution in rescue born of one officer’s relentless push against doubters.
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Phil Eaton—Coast Guard’s Winged Warrior of World War I
—A wrench for a weapon. Haze, shellfire, and the first air‑sea clash in home waters—told through a daring low‑level attack that sent a marauding U‑boat diving for its life.
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Yuba City—A Christmas rescue that changed aviation history!
—Just past midnight on Dec. 24, 1955, a levee on California’s Feather River collapsed releasing a 21-foot wall of water into Yuba City and surrounding farmlands. As the flood victims huddled on rooftops and clung to tree branches, they could hear in the distance the throbbing noise of a Coast Guard helicopter coming to their rescue.
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Surgeon Call—Arctic Hero of the Coast Guard and Public Health Service!
—Winter darkness. Reindeer sleds. A 1,500-mile push over sea ice and tundra to reach ice-locked whalers—led by a tireless frontier physician whose care, grit, and camera preserved a rescue for the ages.
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Courage Like Kate—The Legacy of Keeper Kathleen Moore
—Kate began assisting her father with tasks around the station as a small child. By age 12, she had assumed all the duties her father could not accomplish due to his physical limitations and was, for all practical purposes, the lighthouse keeper.