Coast Guard Motor Lifeboat CG 36500 facts for kids
Coast Guard Motor Lifeboat CG 36500 as a museum boat
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| History | |
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 United States |
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| Name | CG-36500 |
| Operator | United States Coast Guard |
| Builder | |
| Completed | 1946 |
| Out of service | 1968 |
| Status | Museum boat |
| General characteristics | |
| Tonnage | 9.1 t (20,000 lb) |
| Length | 36 ft (11.0 m) |
| Installed power | 160 hp (119 kW) |
| Propulsion | General Motors 4-71 diesel |
| Crew | 4 |
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Coast Guard Motor Lifeboat CG-36500
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 Location in Massachusetts
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| Location | Orleans, Massachusetts |
| Built | 1946 |
| Architect | U.S. Coast Guard Yard Curtis Bay, Maryland |
| NRHP reference No. | 05000467 |
| Added to NRHP | 27 May 2005 |
The Coast Guard Motor Lifeboat CG-36500 is a famous 36-foot lifeboat. You can find it today at Rock Harbor in Orleans, Massachusetts. This boat was built in 1946. It is most famous for its incredible rescue of sailors from the tanker SS Pendleton in 1952. This was one of the bravest rescues ever done by the United States Coast Guard. The CG-36500 was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2005. Today, it serves as a museum boat that people can visit.
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What Makes the CG-36500 Special?
The CG-36500 is a special 36-foot lifeboat. It was built to work even in the worst storms. It has a super strong keel (the bottom part) made of heavy bronze. This part weighs about 2,000 pounds. The boat also has special sections that keep water out. Plus, it can empty water out by itself!
Its main parts are made of strong white oak wood. The outside is covered with cypress wood. The whole boat weighs almost 20,000 pounds! It is also covered with a special metal called Monel. This helps it break through ice in winter.
The CG-36500's Amazing History
This lifeboat was built in 1946. It was made at the Coast Guard Yard in Curtis Bay, Maryland. All 36-foot lifeboats were built there.
The Daring Pendleton Rescue
On February 18, 1952, a huge storm hit off Chatham, Massachusetts. A large oil tanker called the SS Pendleton broke in half! Eight crew members were on the front part, which sank. But 33 crew members were trapped on the back part of the ship.
The crew of the CG-36500 bravely went out to help. The team included Bernard C. Webber, Andrew Fitzgerald, Ervin Maske, and Richard P. Livesey. They managed to rescue 32 of the 33 trapped sailors! This rescue is known as one of the most daring in Coast Guard history.
The CG-36500 in Movies
The incredible story of the Pendleton rescue was made into a movie. It's called The Finest Hours. The movie came out in 2016. It is based on a book with the same name, written in 2009.
Becoming a Museum Boat
The CG-36500 stopped being used by the Coast Guard in 1968. It was then given to the National Park Service. They planned to show it at Cape Cod National Seashore.
However, the Park Service didn't do much to fix it up. So, in 1981, they gave the boat to the Orleans Historical Society. A group of volunteers from Chatham, Orleans, and Harwich, Massachusetts started working on it. They spent six months restoring the boat. It looked brand new when they finished! The boat was relaunched in a special ceremony. Bernard Webber, the coxswain from the famous rescue, was there with his wife.
