Fire on the Beach: Recovering the Lost Story of Richard Etheridge and the Pea Island Lifesavers [Hardcover]

David Wright (Author), David Zoby (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 3, 2001

FROM THE CIVIL WAR TO THE TURN OF THE CENTURY, THIS IS THE TRUE-LIFE STORY OF THE ORIGINAL COAST GUARD AND ONE CREW OF AFRICAN-AMERICAN HEROES WHO FOUGHT STORMS AND SAVED LIVES OFF NORTH CAROLINA'S OUTER BANKS.

"Fire on the Beach" recovers a lost gem of American history. It tells the story of the U.S. Life-Saving Service, formed in 1871 to assure the safe passage of American and international shipping and to save lives and salvage cargo. A century ago, the adventures of the now-forgotten "surfmen" who, in crews of seven, bore the brunt of this dangerous but vital duty filled the pages of popular reading material, from "Harper's" to the "Baltimore Sun" and "New York Herald." Station 17, located on the desolate beaches of Pea Island, North Carolina, housed one such unit, and Richard Etheridge -- the only black man to lead a lifesaving crew -- was its captain.

A former slave and Civil War veteran, Etheridge recruited and trained a crew of African- Americans, forming the only all-black station in the nation. Although civilian attitudes toward Etheridge and his men ranged from curiosity to outrage, they figured among the most courageous surfmen in the service, performing many daring rescues. From 1880 to the closing of the station in 1947, the Pea Island crew saved scores of men, women, and children who, under other circumstances, would have considered the hands of those reaching out to help them to be of the wrong race. In 1896, when the three-masted schooner E. S. Newman beached during a hurricane, Etheridge and his men accomplished one of the most daring rescues in the annals of the Life-Saving Service. The violent conditions had rendered their equipment useless.Undaunted, the surfmen swam out to the wreck, making nine trips in all, and saved the entire crew. This incredible feat went unrecognized until 1996, when the Coast Guard posthumously awarded the crew the Gold Life-Saving Medal.

The authors depict the lives of Etheridge and his crew against the backdrop of late-nineteenth-century America -- the horrors of the Civil War, the hopefulness of Reconstruction, and the long slide toward "Plessy v. Ferguson" that followed. Full of exploits and heroics, "Fire on the Beach," like the movie "Glory," illustrates yet another example of the little-known but outstanding contributions of a remarkable group of African-Americans to our country's history.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Fire on the Beach is a wonderful book on a forgotten piece of history: The story of an all-black unit of the U.S. Life-Saving Service on North Carolina's "beautiful and unforgiving" Outer Banks. Stationed on Pea Island, near the hazardous "Graveyard of the Atlantic," the men of the segregated Station 17 showed that African Americans were just as capable as their white peers when it came to saving the lives of sailors and passengers whose ships foundered on deadly shoals. Their leader was Richard Etheridge, an inspiring figure born into slavery. He fought during the Civil War and later entered the LSS. Much of the book is a reconstruction of his life, and Civil War buffs will appreciate the extensive treatment given to his military service.

Yet Fire on the Beach is not a mere biography. It's a fascinating portrait of 19th-century Outer Banks culture, long before these isolated little towns became tourist destinations. Authors David Wright and David Zoby, for instance, describe "wreckers" whose main occupation--a surprisingly profitable one--was combing the beach for the detritus of shipwrecks. The town of Nags Head apparently derives its odd name from this weird heritage: "Many claim that the name Nags Head originated in an era when malicious wreckers would tie a lantern around an old horse's neck and lead it up and down the dunes. From the sea, the rising and falling light would give the impression of a ship safely moored in a harbor, taunting unsuspecting ship captains to sail to their destructions." Even without these manmade deceptions, the seas off the coast of North Carolina were plenty treacherous, giving Etheridge and his men lots of rescue work. Race is a necessary and fundamental theme of the book, and Etheridge knew he would have to defy white skeptics by proving his abilities over and over: "There was no room for error. The continuation of the black station could be compromised by any slipup, no matter how slight. Misjudgment or poor performance could result in his or one of his crewmen's dismissal. Inadequacies, no matter how slight, could lead to the reinstatement of a white keeper and crew. They had to excel if they were to maintain their station." Fire on the Beach ultimately rises above the parochialism of race: It is a gripping story about "a man among the men" and his harrowing exploits. When Wright and Zoby describe Etheridge's role in saving the crew of the schooner E.S. Newman in hurricane conditions, the skin color of Etheridge and his men does not matter at all. Fans of The Perfect Storm and Isaac's Storm--books that mix thrilling sea stories with calamitous weather--are sure to enjoy Fire on the Beach. --John Miller

From Publishers Weekly

Etheridge, a slave from the Outer Banks of North Carolina, fought in the Civil War before returning to Pea Island to head the first all-black Life-Saving Service unit, the forerunner of the modern Coast Guard. Wright, assistant professor of English at the University of Illinois, and Zoby, who teaches at Caspar College, readily admit they know little about Etheridge himself; though literate, he apparently confined his writing to terse entries in his logbook. So they construct this account of his adventures from his troops' movements in the war and the subsequent development of the Life-Saving Service, whose "surfmen" were important role models since shipwrecks and rescues were pivotal in North Banks culture. Just as black soldiers had to work twice as hard as whites to prove their worth, so Etheridge's rescue unit held itself to extraordinary standards. Yet while the authors studied public records and interviewed locals about this fascinating history, they never hit their stride. In particular, several narrative sequences entitled "The Life of a Surfman" are unconvincingly personal. A straightforward history of Outer Banks black culture or a historical novel would have worked better than this turgid, speculative hybrid, which leans too often on tragic shipwrecks for drama. Details of battle strategy, storm movements and the rescue stations' geography are difficult to follow for lack of maps. Simple diagrams of the two major pieces of rescue technology the Lyle gun and the surfboat would also have been helpful. Still, African-American, Civil War and naval history enthusiasts will find this of interest.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Scribner (July 3, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0684873044
• ISBN-13: 978-0684873046
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.4 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,203,953 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining History!, January 6, 2002

By 

ADAM D DUNBAR (Tampa, FL United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fire on the Beach: Recovering the Lost Story of Richard Etheridge and the Pea Island Lifesavers (Hardcover)

I am admittedly not a history buff. I do however treasure the three years I was lucky enough to live on North Carolina's Outer Banks. "Fire on the Beach" was recommended to me & now I would like to pass that gift on to anyone who reads these reviews. This book tells a fantastic tale of a man & a period of time that are both truly inspiring. It does not read like a "historical text", but more like a well plotted out novel. If you have any interest in Post Civil War South, Turn of the century maritime history, North Carolina's Outer Banks, or the US Coast Guard, do not pass this book up!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Bravery At The Beach, September 17, 2001

By 

The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers (RAWSISTAZ.com and BlackBookReviews.net) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fire on the Beach: Recovering the Lost Story of Richard Etheridge and the Pea Island Lifesavers (Hardcover)

I have been a resident of North Carolina for over 12 years and had never heard of Richard Etheridge and the Pea Island Life Savers. The book Fire On The Beach by authors David Wright and David Zoby is a very important history lesson not just for those of us living in North Carolina but also for people living all over the world.

Richard Etheridge began life as a slave in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, he was property of the Etheridge family and was considered a part of the family. At the age of 21 Richard, without asking the permission of his owners, joined the army and became a Union soldier. Richard was proud to be fighting to try to end slavery. He was prepared to fight to the death to make life better for himself and those around him. While in the Army, Etheridge and other Black soldiers were known as the "African Brigade." These men fought valiently and after the war they all went back home to some of the same problems and issues they had before the war.

The Outer Banks of North Carolina had always been a problem for ships;they often ran aground on the North Carolina shores. As a result, in 1874, life saving stations were opened all over the Outer Banks. Initially most of the crews were checkered or made up of Black and White men. The Lifesavers of the Outer Banks had a troubled history of haphazardly run patrols, poorly trained lifesavers, and stations that were run erracticly. Many lifesavers got positions because of who they knew and were related to. The Lifesavers of the Outer Banks were in desparate need of an image change.

In February 1880, that image changed radically, Richard Etheridge was named keeper of Pea Island Station 17, and what made it even more special is that he had an all Black crew. A Keeper is a man who could keep stroke with an oar, knew the local currents and had a disposition that allowed for high risks at low pay. This appointment was historic and even as racially divided as the United States was at that time, everyone agreed that Richard Etheridge was more than qualified for the position.

Being a member of the Life Saving Service was not an easy task, add to that being Black and that makes for a lot of drama. This book is very informative and important for people of all races and all over the world. The dates,the facts,and the many stories told are put together well. On the RAW scale it is a 4.

Reviewed by Simone A. Hawks

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars suberbly written, well researched, October 2, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Fire on the Beach: Recovering the Lost Story of Richard Etheridge and the Pea Island Lifesavers (Hardcover)

This history of the Pea Island Lifesavers is beautifully written so that the story captivates from start to finish. In fact, I wasn't sure that this was my kind of book, but the early, vivid description of the dangerous coast and the duties of the men who walked the Outer Banks looking for shipwrecks hour after hour convinced me that I had to read the whole book. Clearly well researched, this book taught me a great deal about the Civil War and U.S. maritime history but, more importantly, explored the humanity in our country's history. It takes saavy authors to recognize that the real beginning of the Pea Island Lifesaving Station begins not with its inception but with the lives of the men, namely Richard Etheridge, who served there. Because of the emphasis on people and place, the book reads quite like a novel and, therefore, can be appreciated by a wide audience. Fire on the Beach deserves to be read, for it demonstrates that history must be revealed and retold with all its contradictions, complications, and individuals.