IT WAS A FINE CUTTER

Safely tucked away in an envelope were the original photographs Edward's niece had photocopied for me. Given to me in Buffalo, I was to take them back to Texas, digitally photograph them and return them when finished. Little did I know inside this envelope a tiny photograph would be a giant piece of another puzzle.

The puzzle was a postcard written by Edward's brother Charles. It was dated 1911, never having been posted to Edward, it contained a reference to a cutter. It was common knowledge that Alfred had followed his older brother Edward into the Revenue Cutter Service. There were photographs of Alfred in his uniform standing on the deck of the U.S.S. Morrill. There were also postcards written by Alfred while sailing on the Morrill and sent to numerous family members including Edward.

Yet, Charles wrote on his postcard he was, "on a fine cutter". He detailed a rescue that took place saving five men from a boat that, "stove a hole". No one remembered Charles ever serving on a cutter. And, there were no other correspondences written by Charles that mentioned a cutter. Charles had written to his brother Alfred that he was bored and wanted to do something meaningful with his life in another postcard. But, he never indicated what that might entail. The few postcards in the collection were posted when he was leaving for France during WWI. My research turned up no evidence any other vessel was referred to as a cutter. It remained a mystery until this particular morning in Washington D.C.

We sat in the Untied States Coast Guards' archives surrounded by the documents and history of the one branch of the United States military solely dedicated to saving lives. The Coast Guard as we know it today was formed through a succession of mergers. The newly formed nation realized it needed an organization to patrol the waters of oceans and the inland seas to make sure our coastlines were safe and also to collect revenues and seize illegal vessels. The Revenue Cutter Service was designated that organization and it was first under the auspices of the Treasury Department. There followed the United States Lighthouse Service and the United States Life Saving Service. Eventually, by the first half of the 1900's these three organizations would be merged into the United States Coast Guard, that branch of the military charged with keeping the nation's coastline safe and performing those heroic and dangerous water rescues. Today's Coast Guard stands on the shoulders of a long and proud tradition dating back to the early beginnings of our nation.

Yet, for all the history of their various branches, the office of the historians for the Coast Guard is rather small and staffed by only a few. Their dedication and knowledge is first rate among historians of any subject.

While the lighthouse log books had yielded a rich source of material I was left disappointed that I had not found a reference to the bi-plane in the photograph. How could this be? The area surrounding Marblehead Lighthouse was filled with the builders of planes and aviation knocked at its doors. The head keeper had not even mentioned Glenn Curtiss' historic flight on July 4,1908. Only the most mundane activities were recorded and if you blinked, the fact that it was our nation's birthday would pass by in an instant. For keeper Hunter the day was uneventful. The Coast Guard historian would answer this question, but I was to be left with one still unanswered mystery. Who was flying past the lighthouse in a bi-plane?

The keepers were required to log the passing of ships. They also logged certain historical events such as holidays, the election of new presidents, the death of presidents and so forth. Aviation was new and its historical events still unfolding. Keepers were not required to log the passing of airplanes until much later. The fact that he did not record the event did not mean it didn't happen, it meant he was not required by the government to do so. And, Charles Hunter was not a man given to many words. He wrote in the books only what was necessary for government documentation. Oddly, though bypassing this one historic event, on the last day of July 1908 he made a strange reference in the log book. He mentions in the evening he observed a bright star northeast of the lighthouse, so bright he thought it might perhaps be an, "air ship" !

No one from the Coast Guard that day was able to identify the bi-plane. Yet, other interesting events would make up for this unanswered question. The photographs of Edward and Alfred on the U.S.S. Morrill were previously unknown to the Coast Guard. In fact, they had very little information on the enlisted men that made up the crews of the Revenue Cutter Service. And, they were interested to learn two brothers had served on the same ship.

Now, I was to learn something very interesting about Charles. I mentioned the postcard and the reference to the cutter. My observation proved correct, no other sailing vessels were referred to as cutters. I learned it could have been possible for Charles to serve in the Revenue Cutter Service, if only for a short period of time. The Revenue Cutter Service was a seasonal job for most of the men. When the Great Lakes froze over, the navigational season ended. The men signed off and could return to sign on again the next year when the navigational season re-opened. Only a small crew remained permanently signed on with the Revenue Cutter service. And, this information would lead to something else we learned about Edward.

The uniform confusion was soon solved by the Coast Guard historian. Edward had quickly risen in the ranks of the Revenue Cutter Service. His uniforms had changed with each picture. In one photograph I had previously identified as a lighthouse keeper uniform we learned it was a Revenue Cutter Service uniform. Edward was the Master-At-Arms on the Morrill. This was an important position on a ship. It would be confirmed later when we looked at the muster sheets for the Morrill. In fact, Edward eventually became a Warrant Petty Officer of the U.S.S. Revenue Cutter Service. Learning this was the impetus for my decision to later photograph the muster sheets.

When we left the Coast Guard later that morning it seemed as though many pieces of the puzzle were being constructed into one picture. I did not know flying back to Texas I would soon be on another journey. And, the journey would have at its end a piece of interesting history relating to Edward's Master-At-Arms rank. I also did not know when we returned home I would find something small, but very significant in the photographs from Edward's niece I now carried with me. It would tell me a great deal about Edward's brother Charles.