The “last keeper” of Life-Saving Station Pea Island in Manteo, N.C., was honored in a ceremony that dedicated a boathouse at Collins Park in his name.
Herbert M. Collins enlisted in the Coast Guard in 1939. He had several assignments to cutters and shore assignments until he was stationed as a surfman with the all-African American Life-Saving Station Pea Island, a Coast Guard news release said.
He remained at Pea Island through World War II. During that time, he participated in several search and rescue missions, including one to respond to a distressed ship that had been struck by a torpedo between the Pea Island and Chicamacomico Coast Guard stations.
