Finding the unexpected in the everyday.
June 20, 1860 In New York City, a 78-foot (23.8-meter)-long pilot boat was launched from the foot of 12th Street and into the East River. This type of vessel operates in the vicinity of a port and is used to transport maritime pilots to ships in the area. While on board a ship, the maritime... Continue Reading →
Hispanic-American surfmen Pablo Valent, Mariano Holland, and Indalecio Lopez were among those serving at the U.S. Coast Guard’s Texas-based Brazos Life-Saving Station (the present-day South Padre Island Station) who undertook a high-risk rescue operation in the Gulf of Mexico during a severe storm in September 1919. (Valent had entered the U.S. Life-Saving Service in 1912... Continue Reading →
October 5, 1872 In southern California, construction on a major wooden pier along the Pacific coast was completed in the city of Ventura. “At last a steamer can lay alongside of the wharf, and discharge and take on cargo and passengers,” reported the Ventura Signal newspaper. “It is a grand improvement upon the old way,... Continue Reading →
Transportation History 