Coast Guard Motor Lifeboat ''CG-36500'' is a historic, 36-foot lifeboat that is berthed at Rock Harbor in

Orleans, Massachusetts Orleans ( ) is a town in Barnstable County, Massachusetts situated along Cape Cod. The population was 6,307 at the 2020 census. For geographic and demographic information on the census-designated place Orleans, please see the article Orleans (CD ...

. Built in 1946, it is notable for its involvement in the 1952 SS ''Pendleton'' rescue, one of the most daring such events recorded in the

history of the United States Coast Guard The history of the United States Coast Guard goes back to the United States Revenue Cutter Service, which was founded on 4 August 1790 as part of the Department of the Treasury. The Revenue Cutter Service and the United States Life-Saving S ...

. It was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 2005, and now serves as a museum boat.

Description

''CG-36500'' is a standard 36-foot lifeboat, a vessel specifically designed to remain operational under extremely difficult conditions. It has a heavy bronze

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element on a vessel. On some sailboats, it may have a hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose, as well. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in the construction of a ship, in Br ...

and

skeg A skeg (or skegg or skag) is a sternward extension of the keel of boats and ships which have a rudder mounted on the centre line. The term also applies to the lowest point on an outboard motor or the outdrive of an inboard/outboard."A small fin f ...

, watertight compartments, and self-bailing features. Most of its wooden elements are

white oak The genus ''Quercus'' contains about 500 species, some of which are listed here. The genus, as is the case with many large genera, is divided into subgenera and sections. Traditionally, the genus ''Quercus'' was divided into the two subgenera ''C ...

frames, with cypress planking and it has a total weight of nearly . It is sheathed with

Monel Monel is a group of alloys of nickel (from 52 to 67%) and copper, with small amounts of iron, manganese, carbon, and silicon. Monel is not a cupronickel alloy because it has less than 60% copper. Stronger than pure nickel, Monel alloys are res ...

plating, which allows for winter time ice breaking.

History

The boat was built in 1946 at the Curtis Bay Maryland Coast Guard Yard, where all 36-footers were built. On 18 February 1952, the crew of ''CG-36500'', which consisted of Boatswain's Mate First Class

Bernard C. Webber Bernard Challen Webber (May 9, 1928 – January 24, 2009) was a United States Coast Guardsman."Bernard C. Webber, USCG, 1928-2009", Coast Guard Heroes, U.S. Coast Guard Historian's Office He was a petty officer assigned to Coast Guard Stati ...

(coxswain), Engineman Third Class Andrew Fitzgerald, Seaman Ervin Maske, and Seaman Richard P. Livesey,Tougias, p. 37 rescued 32 of 33 crewmen trapped on the stern section of the tanker , which had broken in half in a storm off Chatham, Massachusetts. (The ship's eight other crew members, including Captain John Fitzgerald, were on the bow section when it broke off and sank.) The rescue of the survivors of the shipwrecked ''Pendleton'' is considered one of the most daring rescues of the United States Coast Guard. The story is told in the 2016 motion picture '' The Finest Hours'', based on the 2009 book by the same title. The boat was taken out of service in 1968, and was given to the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propert ...

for use as an exhibit at

Cape Cod National Seashore The Cape Cod National Seashore (CCNS), created on August 7, 1961, by President John F. Kennedy, encompasses on Cape Cod, in Massachusetts. It includes ponds, woods and beachfront of the Atlantic coastal pine barrens ecoregion. The CCNS includ ...

. In November 1981, the Park Service, which had not effected any significant restoration work on the vessel, deeded it to the Orleans Historical Society, and a restoration started by a group of volunteers from

Chatham Chatham may refer to: Places and jurisdictions Canada * Chatham Islands (British Columbia) * Chatham Sound, British Columbia * Chatham, New Brunswick, a former town, now a neighbourhood of Miramichi * Chatham (electoral district), New Brunswic ...

, Orleans, and

Harwich, Massachusetts Harwich ( ) is a New England town on Cape Cod, in Barnstable County in the state of Massachusetts in the United States. At the 2020 census it had a population of 13,440. Harwich experiences a seasonal increase to roughly 37,000. The town is a ...

.Tougias, p. 177 Restoration work was completed in six months and the boat was re-launched in a public ceremony that was attended by Bernard Webber and his wife.Tougias, p. 179 It is currently powered with a Detroit Diesel 4-71 built in 1948, with about 95 horsepower. During the rescue, it was powered with a 6 cylinder Sterling Petrel gas engine, made in Buffalo, New York. The carbureted engine was problematic during the rescue.

External links

CG-36500 Gold Medal Boat

Notes

Citations References used * {{DEFAULTSORT:Coast Guard Motor Lifeboat Cg 36500 Ships of the United States Coast Guard Ships on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts Buildings and structures in Barnstable County, Massachusetts Orleans, Massachusetts National Register of Historic Places in Barnstable County, Massachusetts Museum ships in Massachusetts 1946 ships Ships built in Maryland Maritime incidents in 1952 Motor lifeboats of the United States

Description

History

External links

See also

Notes