[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 17]
[House]
[Pages 23588-23589]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




RECOGNIZING 130TH ANNIVERSARY OF CREATION OF LIFESAVING STATIONS ON THE 
                              GREAT LAKES

  Mr. SIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to 
the resolution (H. Res. 750) recognizing the 130th anniversary of the 
creation of lifesaving stations on the Great Lakes, which became part 
of the United States Life-Saving Service, and for other purposes.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                              H. Res. 750

       Whereas in 1871 Sumner Increase Kimball was appointed as 
     the Chief of the Revenue Marine Division of the Department of 
     the Treasury;
       Whereas in overhauling the Revenue Marine Division and 
     decentralizing the system of lifesaving stations, Mr. Kimball 
     recommended the establishment of lifesaving stations on the 
     Great Lakes;
       Whereas in 1874 Congress authorized the organization of the 
     Life-Saving Service into 12 districts, including 3 on the 
     Great Lakes;
       Whereas the 8th district consisted of Lakes Erie and 
     Ontario, the 9th district consisted of Lakes Huron and 
     Superior, and the 10th district consisted of Lake Michigan;
       Whereas in 1878 these lifesaving stations were organized 
     with others around the Nation as a separate agency of the 
     Department of the Treasury known as the United States Life-
     Saving Service;
       Whereas in 1854 at the direction of the Secretary of the 
     Treasury, lifesaving capabilities were first introduced to 
     the Great Lakes with 9 lifeboats placed on Lake Ontario, 14 
     lifeboats placed on Lake Erie, 23 lifeboats placed on Lake 
     Michigan, and 1 lifeboat placed on Lake Superior;
       Whereas the forgotten heroes who served at lifesaving 
     stations contended with giant squalls, wrecked vessels, and 
     low pay;
       Whereas these men performed amazing rescues, but by far the 
     largest amount of work for the crews revolved around drilling 
     with the rescue equipment, patrol and lookout duty, and 
     general station upkeep;
       Whereas the United States Life-Saving Service enabled the 
     shipping industry to rapidly grow on the Great Lakes;
       Whereas when the United States Life-Saving Service ended in 
     1915, 63 Great Lakes stations were in operation, including 
     one on the Mississippi River in Louisville, Kentucky;
       Whereas during the years of its operation, the Great Lakes 
     Life-Saving Service contended with 9,763 disasters, saving 
     55,639 people and $110,038,860 in property;
       Whereas over the course of the United States Life-Saving 
     Service, 20 brave employees gave their lives while performing 
     their duties;
       Whereas the organization that Mr. Kimball formed provided 
     the basis for the new search and rescue organization of the 
     Coast Guard; and
       Whereas the constant attention to practice with rescue 
     equipment and inspections employed by the United States Life-
     Saving Service is still in use today: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the House of Representatives--
       (1) recognizes the 130th anniversary of the creation of 
     lifesaving stations on the Great Lakes, which became part of 
     the United States Life-Saving Service;
       (2) commends the personnel of the United States Life-Saving 
     Service whose efforts saved lives and property on the Great 
     Lakes; and
       (3) acknowledges Sumner Increase Kimball for his foresight 
     in the field of marine safety and commitment to maritime 
     safety on the Great Lakes.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Connecticut (Mr. Simmons) and the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. 
Oberstar) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Simmons).
  Mr. SIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H. Res. 750, which was introduced by the gentleman from 
Michigan (Mr. McCotter), recognizes the 130th anniversary of the 
creation of life-saving stations on the Great Lakes. It commends the 
personnel of the United States Life-Saving Service for their efforts to 
save lives and property on the Great Lakes and acknowledges the 
leadership of Sumner Increase Kimball in protecting maritime safety.
  The United States Life-Saving Service was established in 1874. The 
Life-Saving Service operated as an independent agency within the 
Department of the Treasury before these operations were transferred to 
the newly established United States Coast Guard in 1915. The efforts by 
the brave heroes of the Life-Saving Service formed the basis for the 
Coast Guard's search and rescue functions that continue to this very 
day.
  As part of the service, numerous life-saving and lifeboat stations 
were built on the Atlantic, Pacific and Gulf coasts and along the 
shores of the Great Lakes. Over a period of 40 years, the men of the 
Life-Saving Service saved the lives of more than 55,000 people, and 
they saved more than $110 million in property in the Great Lakes region 
alone. These rescues were often made in the face of dangerous storms 
and under treacherous conditions. Twenty brave men gave their lives 
while performing their duties as employees of the Life-Saving Service, 
and we honor their service and their sacrifice with this resolution 
here today.
  I certainly commend my colleague, the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. 
McCotter), for introducing this legislation, and I urge my colleagues 
to join me in recognizing the anniversary of the creation of life-
saving stations on the Great Lakes.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. OBERSTAR. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Those of us who live on or along the Great Lakes or within the Great 
Lakes basin know what a great resource this extraordinary collection of 
individual bodies of fresh water is. It is 20 percent of the fresh 
water on the face of the earth. We think of it as a great fresh water 
resource, but it is also a highway of commerce, and we recognize today 
that in this highway of commerce

[[Page 23589]]

there are dangers for those who ply the waterways.
  The story of today's legislation begins in 1871, when a young lawyer 
from Maine named Sumner Kimball was appointed chief of the Treasury 
Department's Revenue Marine Division.
  Not many people know, or if they knew recall, that the Coast Guard we 
know today started out as a revenue cutter service. It was the main 
source of revenue for the fledgling U.S. government. So the Revenue 
Marine Division leader began a review of the Department's life-saving 
network. He found equipment old, rusty, in need of replacement and that 
the Department's lifesaver employees were too old for life-saving 
missions, few were competent, and that their selection depended more on 
politics than qualifications in handling boats.
  It was indeed a very dark time for life-saving, especially on the 
treacherous waters of the Great Lakes, whether it is Superior, 
Michigan, Huron, Erie or Ontario.
  Kimball went to Congress to ask for and was successful in getting an 
appropriation of $200,000 to hire the necessary life-saving personnel. 
He instituted six-man boat crews at all stations, built new stations, 
set performance standards, physical standards for crews and also 
schedules for the life-saving stations.
  Within 3 years, by 1874, Mr. Kimball's life-saving stations had been 
established not only across the Great Lakes but all across the country, 
three of those in particular on key points on the Great Lakes.
  By 1878, the life-saving mission within the Department of Treasury 
was split off as a separate organization, named the U.S. Life-Saving 
Service. Sumner Kimball would be named superintendent of this service 
and remain there until his civilian service was merged with the revenue 
cutter service that I mentioned a moment ago in 1915 to create what we 
know today as the U.S. Coast Guard.
  For over 10 years, the Life-Saving Service and the Coast Guard 
operating the Great Lakes have encountered over 10,000 disasters, saved 
55,000 people, and over $110 million in property damage protected. Over 
40 life-saving and Coast Guard personnel have sacrificed their lives in 
the pursuit of this service and their duties.
  The legacy of Sumner Kimball and the Life-Saving Service continues in 
the Great Lakes. The Great Lakes region is part of the 9th Coast Guard 
District, with two air stations, two air facilities, five group 
offices, eight marine safety offices, 10 cutters and 46 small boat 
stations, protecting more than 6,700 miles of coastline in the eight 
States in the 9th Coast Guard District.
  We talk a great deal about homeland security in this post-9/11 era, 
and that certainly is one of the missions of the Coast Guard, but far 
predating homeland security was that of life security, and there is no 
organization in the Federal Government better suited to saving lives 
than the U.S. Coast Guard. Its personnel are rigorously trained, highly 
skilled, a great sense of mission, and today we recognize a great sense 
of history in the carrying out of their life-saving responsibilities 
that we know today as the search and rescue service of the U.S. Coast 
Guard.
  With great pleasure, we bring to the House floor from our Committee 
on Transportation and Infrastructure H. Res. 750 recognizing the 
extraordinary and valiant service of the men and women of the Life-
Saving Service and the U.S. Coast Guard on our Great Lakes.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. STUPAK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commemorate the 130th 
anniversary of the creation of life-saving stations on the Great Lakes.
  Congressman McCotter and I recently introduced House resolution 750 
to recognize the heroes who paved the way in improving modern maritime 
safety and enabling the Great Lakes shipping industry to take hold and 
expand in the early part of the 20th century.
  Despite facing long hours and low pay, these individuals risked their 
lives--tackling giant squalls and wrecked vessels to ensure the safety 
of individuals and property traveling on the Great Lakes. In all, the 
Great Lakes Life-Saving Service saved over 55,000 people and $110 
million in property.
  In the late 1870s while Chief of the Revenue Marine Division of the 
Department of Treasury, Sumner Increase Kimball played a key role in 
redesigning the network of life-saving stations around the country and 
championed the idea of establishing stations on the Great Lakes.
  These life-saving stations, which became part of the United States 
Life-Saving Service, combined with the Revenue Cutter Service in 1915 
to form the United States Coast Guard.
  The organization provided in these units serving the Great Lakes 
provided a basis for the new United States Coast Guard's search and 
rescue organization for years to come.
  I would like to thank Congressman McCotter for his efforts to 
acknowledge the heroic performance of the Life-Saving Service on the 
Great Lakes.
  Please join me in recognizing the personnel of the United States 
Life-Saving Service, especially the 20 brave rescuers who gave their 
lives in duty during the Services' existence, and Mr. Kimball for his 
commitment to marine safety on the Great Lakes, by supporting this 
resolution.
  Mr. SIMMONS. Mr. Speaker, seeing that there are no more speakers on 
this side, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Simmons) that the House suspend the 
rules and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 750.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the resolution was agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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