For much of America's history, shipwrecks were a common occurence off the coast of New England and other parts of the country. Hazardous waters, poor navigation technology, and lack of swimming ability among mariners made maritime transportation a particularly hazardous—and often deadly—task.
But the odds of surviving a wreck in America got much better in the nineteenth century, when an organization called the Massachusetts Humane Society began establishing lifesaving stations along the coast of Massachusetts. These sheds housed lifeboats that could be launched through the surf and rowed out to a stricken vessel.
In 1848, the United States Life-Saving Service (USLSS) was formed by the Federal Government. This brought similar lifesaving stations to other parts of the U.S., including up and down the eastern seaboard and along the Great Lakes.
These stations are largely forgotten now, and shouldn’t be. The following images offer a glimpse of the heroic work of these lifesavers and their stations.