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Surfmen

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25-664: Surfmen was the terminology used to describe members of the United States Lifesaving Service . It is also currently the highest qualification in the United States Coast Guard for small boat operations. Coast Guard Surfmen are rated to operate the 47-foot Motor Lifeboat in its most extreme operating conditions after undergoing training at the National Motor Lifeboat School . The Surf Station designation

50-630: A volunteer fire department . In September 1854, a Category 4 hurricane , the Great Carolina Hurricane of 1854 , swept through the East Coast of the United States , causing the deaths of many sailors. This storm highlighted the poor condition of the equipment in the lifesaving stations, the poor training of the crews and the need for more stations. Additional funds were appropriated by Congress, including funds to employ

75-698: A full-time keeper at each station and two superintendents. Still not officially recognized as a service, the system of stations languished until 1871 when Sumner Increase Kimball was appointed chief of the Treasury Department 's Revenue Marine Division. One of his first acts was to send Captain John Faunce of the Revenue Marine Service on an inspection tour of the lifesaving stations. Captain Faunce's report noted that "apparatus

100-731: A member of the National Security Council , and fifth in the U.S. presidential line of succession . Under the Appointments Clause of the United States Constitution , the officeholder is nominated by the president of the United States, and, following a confirmation hearing before the Senate Committee on Finance , will take the office if confirmed by the majority of the full United States Senate . The secretary of state ,

125-620: A member of the National Security Council . Under the Appointments Clause of the United States Constitution , the officeholder is nominated by the president of the United States, and, following a confirmation hearing before the Senate Committee on Finance , is confirmed by the United States Senate .     Federalist (4)     Democratic-Republican (4)     Democratic (30)     Whig (5)     Republican (34)     Independent (1) Status The secretary of

150-489: Is reserved for locations where wave conditions exceed 8 feet (2.4 m) for 36 days or more per year. This United States Coast Guard article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . United States Lifesaving Service The United States Life-Saving Service was a United States government agency that grew out of private and local humanitarian efforts to save the lives of shipwrecked mariners and passengers. It began in 1848 and ultimately merged with

175-680: The Revenue Cutter Service to form the United States Coast Guard in 1915. The concept of assistance to shipwrecked mariners from shore-based stations began with volunteer lifesaving services, spearheaded by the Massachusetts Humane Society . It was recognized that only small boats stood a chance of assisting those close to the beach. A sailing ship trying to help near to the shore stood a good chance of also running aground, especially if there were heavy onshore winds. The Massachusetts Humane Society founded

200-577: The treasurer of the United States must sign Federal Reserve notes before they can become legal tender . The secretary also manages the United States Emergency Economic Stabilization fund . The secretary of the treasury is a Level I position in the Executive Schedule , thus earning the salary prescribed for that level ( US$ 246,400, as of January 2024). The United States secretary of

225-792: The " Act to Create the Coast Guard ," merging the Life-Saving Service with the Revenue Cutter Service to create the United States Coast Guard . By the time the act was signed, there was a network of more than 270 stations covering the Atlantic Ocean , Pacific Ocean , the Gulf of Mexico Coasts, and the Great Lakes . United States Secretary of the Treasury The United States secretary of

250-575: The Coast Guard in 1915, and Section 252 was copied word for word into the new Instructions for United States Coast Guard Stations, 1934 edition. That section gave rise to the rescue crew's unofficial motto, "You have to go out, but you don't have to come back." Before 1900, there were very few recreational boaters and most assistance cases came from ships engaged in commerce. Nearly all lifeboat stations were located at or near port cities. Here, deep water, combined with piers and other waterfront structures, allowed launching heavy lifeboats directly into

275-556: The Ohio at Louisville, Kentucky , on the Ohio River . Houses of refuge made up the third category of Life Saving Service units. These stations were on the coasts of South Carolina , Georgia , and Florida . A paid keeper and a small boat were assigned to each house, but the organization did not include active manning and rescue attempts. It was felt that along this stretch of coastline, shipwrecked sailors would not die of exposure to

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300-956: The President's Economic Policy Council, Chairman of the Boards and Managing Trustee of the Social Security and Medicare Trust Funds, and as U.S. Governor of the International Monetary Fund , the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development , the Inter-American Development Bank , the Asian Development Bank , and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development . The secretary along with

325-897: The coast of Maine , Cape Cod , the Outer Banks of North Carolina , and Port Aransas , Texas . The next year, more stations were added to serve the Great Lakes and the Houses of Refuge in Florida . In 1878, the network of lifesaving stations were formally organized as a separate agency of the United States Department of the Treasury , called the Life-Saving Service. The stations of the Service fell into three categories: lifesaving , lifeboat , and houses of refuge. Lifesaving stations were manned by full-time crews during

350-729: The coast of New Jersey". That same year the Massachusetts Humane Society also received funds from Congress for lifesaving stations on the Massachusetts coastline. Between 1848 and 1854 other stations were built and loosely managed. The stations were administered by the United States Revenue Marine (later renamed the United States Revenue Cutter Service ). They were run with volunteer crews, much like

375-537: The cold in the winter as in the north. Therefore, only shelters would be needed. The U.S. Volunteer Life-Saving Corps were meant to be a supplement to the U.S. Life-Saving Service. In some areas where there were no stations of the Life-Saving Service or the Humane Society, the USVLSC manned lifeboats and provided services on the coast and on inland waters. On January 28, 1915, President Woodrow Wilson signed

400-423: The first lifeboat station at Cohasset, Massachusetts . The stations were small shed-like structures, holding rescue equipment that was to be used by volunteers in case of a wreck. The stations, however, were only near the approaches to busy ports and, thus, large gaps of coastline remained without lifesaving equipment. Formal federal government involvement in the lifesaving business began on August 14, 1848, with

425-636: The formulation of broad fiscal policies that have general significance for the economy, and managing the public debt. The Secretary oversees the activities of the Department in carrying out its major law enforcement responsibilities; in serving as the financial agent for the United States Government ; and in manufacturing coins and currency . The Chief Financial Officer of the government, the Secretary serves as Chairman Pro Tempore of

450-492: The period when wrecks were most likely. On the East Coast , this was usually from April to November, and was called the "active season." By 1900, the active season had now become year-round. Most stations were in isolated areas and crewmen had to perform open beach launchings. That is, they were required to launch their boats from the beach into the surf. The Regulations of Life-Saving Service of 1899, Article VI, "Actions at Wrecks," Section 252, remained in force after creation of

475-468: The secretary of the treasury, the secretary of defense , and the attorney general are generally regarded as the four most important Cabinet officials, due to the size and importance of their respective departments. The current secretary of the treasury is Janet Yellen , who is the first woman to hold the office. The Secretary is responsible for formulating and recommending domestic and international financial, economic, and tax policy, participating in

500-621: The signing of the Newell Act, which was named for its chief advocate, New Jersey Representative William A. Newell . Under this act, the United States Congress appropriated $ 10,000 to establish unmanned lifesaving stations along the New Jersey coast south of New York Harbor and to provide "surf boat, rockets, carronades and other necessary apparatus for the better preservation of life and property from shipwreck on

525-400: The treasury is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury , and is the chief financial officer of the federal government of the United States . The secretary of the treasury serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all matters pertaining to economic and fiscal policy. The secretary is, by custom, a member of the president's cabinet and, by law,

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550-400: The treasury is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury , and is the chief financial officer of the federal government of the United States . The secretary of the treasury serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all matters pertaining to economic and fiscal policy. The secretary is, by custom, a member of the president's cabinet and, by law,

575-531: The treasury is fifth in the presidential line of succession , following the secretary of state and preceding the secretary of defense . On August 16, 2016, President Barack Obama signed Executive Order 13735, which changed the order of succession for filling the Treasury Secretary's role when necessary. At any time when the secretary and the deputy secretary of the treasury have both died, resigned, or cannot serve as secretary for other reasons,

600-608: The water by marine railways on inclined ramps. In general, lifeboat stations were on the Great Lakes , but some lifesaving stations were in the more isolated areas of the lakes. The active season on the Great Lakes stretched from April to December. An exception was the nation's first rescue center on the inland waterways, the United States Life Saving Station #10 , established in 1881 at the Falls of

625-458: Was rusty for want of care and some of it ruined." Kimball convinced Congress to appropriate $ 200,000 to operate the stations and to allow the Secretary of the Treasury to employ full-time crews for the stations. Kimball instituted six-man boat crews at all stations, built new stations, and drew up regulations with standards of performance for crew members. By 1874, stations were added along

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