Coast Guard history stretches back to August 4, 1790, when a small fleet of revenue cutters was created to enforce tariff laws and fight smuggling. Over time, that mission grew into one of maritime safety, national security, rescue work, environmental protection, and service during both war and peace. These 24 vintage hotos capture the evolution of a force that has spent centuries patrolling coastlines, protecting lives at sea, and standing watch for the country.
1. The U.S. Coast Guard during Operation Overlord at Normandy Beach, France, 1944
2. Army nurses sunbathing next to a 40 mm gun on a troop ship, 1945
3. Coast Guard Fireman Charles Tyner, inspecting his helmet that was damaged by an artillery fragment in France, 1944
4. Cadets looking over their textbooks at the Academy, 1941
5. Rescuing a man who rode out Hurricane Betsy in Louisiana, 1965
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6. Dodging mines under the surface, a U.S. Coast Guard LCVP ferries troops to Omaha Beach, 1944
7. Listening intently for distress calls in the Atlantic, 1940s
8. Theodore James Miller photographed after stepping aboard transport after two days in combat at the Battle of Eniwetok, 1944
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9. Cats had official Coast Guard posts in the 1940s
Cats were welcomed aboard ships both to boost crew morale and to help control rodent populations, which posed a risk of spreading disease if left unchecked.
10. A captured German boy soldier enjoys a cup of coffee aboard the U.S. Coast Guard LCI, 1944
11. JFK looking awfully photogenic on a Coast Guard Yacht, 1962
12. The Coast Guard’s mascot, Sinbad, who served eight years at sea and sailed more than a million miles, 1946
13. A 1940s recruitment advertisement for the Coast Guard
14. Teaching engine maintenance to Cadets, 1943
15. “My great-grandfather, Ukrainian immigrant and Lt. Commander in the U.S. Coast Guard (1948)”
16. New Cadets just after enlisting in Wichita, Kansas, 1943
17. “My pops, looking like a movie star, serving during Vietnam, 1966”
18. US Navy WAVES and US Coast Guard SPARS inductees travel by special subway train from New York City Hall to commissioning ceremonies at Hunter College, 1943
19. The 1977 graduating class of Cadets at the Cape May raining center
20. A Coast Guard on horseback, patrolling the beach in New York, WWII
21. Coast Guard soldiers landing with their dogs for support, WWII
22. A 75-foot patrol boat, WWI
23. Soldiers preparing their rations on the Elsie
24. Transferring wounded soldiers for evacuation, 1950s
Want to see more vintage military content?
Check out 20 Vintage Navy Photos From The Past (1930s-1980s), or if you want to see photos from the First World War, take a look at 25 Vintage Photos From The First World War. Finally, if you want to see colorized photos of soldiers from the 1910s, check out 20 Colorized Photos of Soldiers in the 1910s.
