Coast Guard Operations in Wartime

Historical images of U.S. Coast Guard vessels during WWII, showcasing their roles in combat, rescue, and maritime surveillance.

Helping Hand. Wounded during the first fighting at Eniwetok Atoll, a Marine is helped aboard a Coast Guard manned troop transport for first aid treatment. Pharmacist Mate Clarence Conklin, of Louisville, Ky., aids the Marine up the gangway, as a Coast Guard landing boat crew stands by for new orders.

Sub Busters Win New Glory in Invasion Role. The U.S. Coast Guard's famous 83 footers, sub-busters in the Battle of the Atlantic, add to their laurels as rescue craft in the D Day sweep across the English Channel to the French Coast. These swift, little, intrepid craft are the Coast Guard boats that have been mentioned over and over again in radio and news dispatches for their gallant rescue role during the initial smash on France.

Coast Guard Lookout Talks to the Bridge. Aboard a Coast Guard-manned assault transport somewhere in the Pacific, a lookout communicates with the bridge from his post high above the deck. Trailing is another transport. The eyes of Coast Guard lookouts sweep the sea day and night and instant reports are made by telephone of any suspicious signs.

90 Rounds Fired By Coast Guard Cutter In Running Battle With Nazi Weather Ship. This image depicts Seamen clearing away empty cases of expended shells fired by a Coast Guard combat cutter in a dramatic pursuit through ice-filled waters off Greenland's coast.

Outward Bound. This image depicts a Coast Guard officer looking over the side for a last wistful glimpse of America.

Snow Storm on the Greenland Patrol. This image depicts the Coast Guard's Greenland Patrol encountering bad weather as they keep vigilant watch for German submarines.

Up the Landing Nets. Coast Guard-manned assault transport puts in at a British port and "sea taxis" (landing craft) swarm alongside packed with troops. Up the landing nets go the fighters and over the side with Coast Guardsmen giving the boys a hand.

Embarkation in Neum. March 1916..

Helping Hand. Wounded during the first fighting at Eniwetok Atoll, a Marine is helped aboard a Coast Guard manned troop transport for first aid treatment. Pharmacist Mate Clarence Conklin, of Louisville, Ky., aids the Marine up the gangway, as a Coast Guard landing boat crew stands by for new orders.

Awaiting Invasion Orders. This image depicts Coast Guard-manned LSTs.

With a Heavy List to Port, LCI. With a heavy list to port, this Coast Guard LCI craft pulls alongside a transport to evacuate her troops and wounded just before she capsized and sank during first invasion day.

Various vessels, including fishing boats, landing craft, and the USS Tripoli LPH-10, are seen in this image depicting American military activities during the Vietnam War. These boats played crucial roles in maritime operations and transport of personnel and supplies during the conflict.

Moro Guerrillas Contact Coast Guard Ship Off Malabang. At dawn of the day that American forces established a beachhead on Malabang in the Philippines, a small craft approaches a Coast Guard combat cutter with Moro Guerrilla fighters and U.S. fliers to report to staff officers that the beach is cleared of Japs. This information enabled the invasion force to occupy the beach without the usual pre-invasion bombardment from heavy guns.

Seaman in Striker Ship. This image depicts the rescue of an ill seaman aboard a striker ship.

Steward's Mates Ready to Serve a "Hot Dish". Five Steward's Mates stand at their battle stations, as a gun crew aboard a Coast Guard-manned frigate in the southwest Pacific. On the call to general quarters, these Coast Guardsman man a 20mm AA gun. They are, left to right: James L. Wesley, of Montgomery, ALA., standing by with a clip of shells; L. S. Haywood, 422 N. Fifth Avenue, Tucson, Ariz. firing; William Watson, of 1949 N. Gratz Street, Philadelphia, PA. reporting to bridge by phone from his Gun Captain's post; William Morton, of 5256 S. State Street, Chicago, Ill., loading a full clip, assisted by Odis Lane of Robertson, Mo., facing camera across gun barrel.

End Of A Greenland Adventure - 28 Nazi Captured by Coast Guard. This image depicts a the capture of a German expedition to establish a radio-weather station in Greenland; 28 Nazis surrendered to the Coast Guard cutter.

Cost Is High At Iwo Jima. This image depicts casualties being hoisted aboard a Coast Guard-manned invasion transport lying just off the landing area.

Coast Guard Men At Sea. This image depicts Coast Guardsmen at sea.

The DE's Doctor Serves the Convoy. Responding to a call for medical assistance, Coast Guardsmen on a destroyer escort fire a line by Lysle gun across the deck of a merchant vessel somewhere in the Mediterranean. Soon a breeches buoy or litter is rigged to transfer the patient or doctor from ship to ship. In foreground, front to rear; Coast Guardsman Gustav Peterson, chief boatswain's mate, of Chicago, IL; George S. Drew, chief gunners mate, of Seattle, WA; and Dominic Garofalo, gunner's mate first class, of Boston, MA.

Battle Stations!. This image depicts coast guardsmen manning a cut aboard a ship.

Troops Land on Pontoon Pier at Kwajalein. Sectional pontoon bridge is towed by a Coast Guard-manned LST into position to serve as a pier on the beach of Kwajalein during the invasion of the Marshall Islands. Here, reinforcements pour from Coast Guard-manned landing craft over the bridge toward the battle lines. These pontoons are used when shallow water blocks the LSTs off-shore.

Photograph of African American Coast Guardsmen at Their Posts Beside a Three-inch Gun. Negro Coast Guardsmen Man Their Gun Aboard a Combat Cutter. At their battle stations aboard a Coast Guard Combat Cutter somewhere in the North Atlantic, these negro Coast Guardsmen stand at their posts beside a three-inch gun and pass the ammunition. They await the order to commence firing. The negroes are Steward's Mates.

Troop-Packed Ship Arrives "Over There". Its decks crowded with American troops, this ship is photographed by a Coast Guard Combat Photographer aboard a combat cutter, as it glides majestically to its berth at a North African port.

Photo collection First World War. With the British Navy in War Time. In a Destroyer Patrol. 1914-1918}

Removing Makin Wounded. Soldiers badly wounded in the invasion of Makin are transferred from the Coast Guard manned transport to the Navy hospital plane that will fly them to a medical base in safer territory. The men were given first aid aboard the Coast Guard transport.

The Coast Guard is the Convoy's Body Guard. This image depicts a Coast Guard cutter defending merchant ships.

Photo collection First World War. The opvishing of a torpedo by a German warship. 1914-1918}

Photograph of American Hospital Ship as Observed from a Coast Guard-manned LST. Mercy Ship Leaves the Maelstrom. From embattled Leyte Island, an American hospital ship moves serenely across the bow of a Coast Guard-manned LST. Marked with the Red Cross and painted white, this mercy ship carries wounded American fighting men away from the flaming central Philippines. Equipped with the finest surgical facilities and staffed with doctors and nurses, the hospital ship saves lives and starts casualties on the recovery road even as it leaves the zone of conflict.

The Coast Guard Lands the British Marines. Down the ramps, through the surf and up the beach dash the Royal British Marines from U.S. Coast Guard-manned landing craft during final amphibious maneuvers on the coast of North Africa. The Britons came in aboard a Coast Guard-manned assault transport. Coast Guard landing craft, lake these, struck the Coast of France in the initial liberation waves on D-Day.

Serenity in Strife. There's beauty in the midst of war as a Coast Guard combat photographer framing his picture with the open mouth of an LST, captured the beauty of a glittering sea and cloud-strewn sky even as the warriors ride to the beaches of Saipan in the Marianas of the Central Pacific.

Coast Guard Eyes. This image depicts a merchant ship in the North Atlantic.

Back From the Front in Southern France. Wounded American invaders are carefully transferred from a landing barge to a Coast Guard-manned assault transport on D-Day off the shores of Southern France. Large numbers of wounded were hospitalized on the Coast Guard-manned ship pending their removal to mre permanent hospital facilities.

Fighting Angels in Action. This image depicts a Coast Guard anti-submarine patrol, shown dropping a sub-shattering depth charge.

Luzon Invaders Plough Through China Sea. Luzon Invaders Plough Through China Sea. A flotilla of Coast Guard-manned LST's, those massive carriers of invasion armaments and troops, slog their way through the China Sea, headed for Lingayen Gulf and the Luzon beaches. Coordinated with the mighty Navy task force, they helped open the way for MacArthur's smashing drive on Manila.

From Transport to Invasion Barge. This image depicts Coast Guard-manned troop transports and invasion barges during training on the East Coast of the United States.

Some Return Quickly. These American invaders hardly reached shore at Empress Augusta Bay, Bougainville, before they returned to the Coast Guard manned transport - - - wounded. Coast Guardsmen and Marines are putting these heroes in the landing boats for the trip back.

Going Ashore at Bougainville. Crowding the deck of a Coast Guard Manned combat transport, U.S. Marines wait to go ashore at Bougainville in the Solomons. They carry full combat equipment and wear helmets camouflaged for jungle warfare. Coast Guardsmen have already ferried some of the Marines ashore in landing barges.

Bow Under. This image depicts a Coast Guard-Manned Destroyer as it takes a cupful of the North Atlantic over its decks.

Meeting of the "Wyatt Earp"., 1935-1936, Melbourne, by Alfred Saunders.

"Ambulance Run" From Eniwetok. A Coast Guard coxswain puts his landing craft "ambulance" to full speed as two wounded American fighters are rushed from the battle-torn beach of Eniwetok to a transport lying off shore. His Coast Guard crew, which aids in the manning of the landing craft, stand ready to hoist the wounded aboard the mother ship.

Smiling Bob Williams on "Cheer Up" Watch. Aboard a Coast Guard-manned assault transport crossing the Atlantic, Smiling Bob Williams, former "Rhythm Maniac" trouper and now Army Corporal Robert Williams, gives forth a program of his specialties such as "Way Out on the Outskirts of Town" accompanied by his own guitar. As he sings from the after deckhouse, soldiers and Coast Guardsmen give the Negro entertainer a big hand-one he will never forget. Smiling Bob, in peacetime, lives in Philadelphia, PA.

The Invaders Hit the Beach. From Coast Guard-manned "sea-horse" landing craft, American troops leap forward to storm a North African beach during final amphibious maneuvers. Lying off shore, extreme right, a Coast Guard-manned assault transport is visible. Coast Guard invasion craft, like these, were in the initial waves which rolled in upon Normandy's beaches before dawn D-Day.

Harbor Patrol. Officers of the Captain of the Port on whom responsibility rest for the safety of both in-bound and out-bound convoys are shown here taking a farewell look at the last section of the convoy headed for the war zone with the feeling of a job well done.

General Greene. The U.S. Coast Guard cutter General Greene approaching ice front of glacier at the head of Arsuk Fiord, Greenland.

Invading Okinawa. This image depicts artwork of a Coast Guard-manned LST during the invasion of Okinawa, painted by Coast Guard Combat Artist John J. Floherty Jr. (Alt. Name of artist - John F. Floherty).

On board a Dutch auxiliary mine sweeper (possibly HR.MS. Vikingbank) during the Second World War.

Photograph of Naval Bombardment of Balikpapen, Borneo.

His Blood Helped Pay for Tarawa. At Tarawa, U.S. Coast Guardsmen bring a wounded Marine aboard their transport. The Marine, removed from the beachhead as the battle raged, was one of the casualties that made Tarawa so costley a victory. Note the hunting knife on the belt of the Coast Guardsman in the center.

Photo collection First World War. Inspizierungsreise Sr. Exz. Des Landeschefs und Kommand. Generals in Bosnien, Herzegowina und Dalmatien General-Oberst Stephan Freiherr Sarkotic v. Lovcen. G.O. Sarkotic Beim Verweld S.M.s. "Dalmat" in Castelnuovo.The Austrian-Hungarian General-Superior Stephan Sarkotic (4.10.1858-16.10.1939) in the Inspectionism in the Austrian Warshaven Castelnuovo (at Cattaro) when leaving the S.M.s. "Dalmat" .. 1914-1918}. Castelnuovo, Montenegro

""General Quarters - Gas Attack!"". This image depicts the an emergency drill for Coast Guardsmen aboard a Coast Guard cutter. They adjust their gas masks and race to their battle stations.

Fylgia (depicted name).Fylgia (depicted name)

On board one of the K-V class submarines. Commanders of the Submarine Division in conference on the semi-deck.

Backing Up the Line in the Philippines. Backing Up the Line in the Philippines. A Coast Guard-manned LST (tank landing ship), loaded to capacity with troops, supplies and fighting equipment, moves into the Central Philippines to deliver the stuff of war to General MacArthur's forces now occupying Leyte Island. At the left, a chow line of soldiers moves slowly over the deck crammed with trucks, jeeps and other materiel. At the bow a Coast Guard gun crew keeps alert watch for enemy attackers.

Commander Umberto Cagni at the steering oar in Tripoli port, Libya, Italian-Turkish war, from L'Illustrazione Italiana, Year XXXVIII, No 48, November 26, 1911.

Rocket Attack Paves Way for Angaur Invaders. Over the shores of Angaur Island in the Palaus, clouds of smoke rise as rocket-firing LCI's and battleships blast at Jap defenses before the first waves or American invaders hit the beach. This picture was made by a Coast Guard combat photographer in a landing barge, packed with troops, ready to spearhead the assault upon the battered island, six miles south of Peleliu.

Photograph of Coast Guard Gunners Aboard Landing Ship. COAST GUARD LST BAGS THREE JAP PLANES. Gunners of a Coast Guard-manned LST (Landing Ship, Tanks) shot down three Japanese bombers in a recent battle off Cape Gloucester, New Britain, and they are justly proud of their marksmanship. They call their LST the "Little Joe," in honor of a Coast Guard shipmate who was killed in that battle. Left to right; they are: Cleo Kidd, Seaman First Class, of Perkins, Oklahoma; Kenneth Gundling, Radioman Second Class, of West New York, N.J.; Julio Pascuito, Moto Machinist's Mate, Second Class, of Hyde Park, Mass.; and John Langston, Fireman First Class, of Newport, Arkansas.

Photo collection First World War. With the British Navy in War Time. Hoisting Boat. 1914-1918}

Crew bails out swamped landing craft. This image depicts Coast Guardsmen bailing out a landing craft during training in the Pacific.

Sinking of the German cruiser Mainz in the Battle of Heligoland. The photograph, taken from the deck of a British warship, shows the cruiser in flames and settling in the water. 1915

Suez Canal, Africa.. Hawley C. White Company

Coast Guard Firefighters. This image depicts two men operating fire hoses.

Coast Guard Invaders Display Battle Souvenir. Coast Guard Invaders Display Battle Souvenir. Advancing upon Hollandia on the north coast of Dutch New Guinea, four Coast Guardsmen aboard an LST display a Jap battle flag - their souvenir from a previous invasion in the South Pacific. The three Jap flag designs, painted on the bulkhead, testify to three enemy planes shot down by the Coast Guard-manned LST's crack gun crews. Left to right: Coast Guardsmen Cleo E. Kidd, carpenter's mate third class, of Oklahoma City, Okla.; Elmer Litchfield, gunner's mate third class, of Princess Anne, Va.; Noble A. Hardee, carpenter's mate third class, of Fernandina, Fla.; and Winston S. Bourgeois, seaman first class, of New Orleans, La.

Coast Guard Helicopter Rescues Salvage from Wrecked Freighter SEAGATE. This image depicts the recovery of salvage from the wrecked freighter SEAGATE by a Coast Guard helicopter.

High Sea. This image depicts sturdy U.S. Coast Guard vessels steam along on the highly dangerous game of 'hide and seek' which features the anti-submarine patrol.

Sailors looking over side of Terra Nova Description: 'Photograph (Cinematograph Film) entitled 'With Captain Scott Royal Navy to the South Pole (British Antarctic Expedition)'. 'Sailors looking over sides of Steam Yacht 'Terra Nova' No 3' by Herbert Ponting (1870-1935). Date: c.1911 southpole, captainscott, britishantarcticexpedition, herbertponting

United States of America, American and Foreign Views From all Parts of the Globe, Sailors next to a machine gun on a ship, recto - stamped, stereograph, stereo photo, photos, 26476, height 89 mm, width 176 mm, photographer, 1885 - 1920, cardboard, photographic paper, photo paper, albumen print, albumine print

Coast Guardsmen Unloading at Tarawa. Crew members of a Coast Guard manned LST unload heavy equipment at Bititu island, Tarawa, during the invasion. The alligator at the right was used for unloading during high tide the equipment of Marines carried aboard the vessel.

Photo collection First World War. The Greeks Who Fought the Bulgars. Great WHO Fought The Bulgars at Serrives Arriving at Salonica .. 1914-1918}. Greece, Saloniki, Serres

Invasion Tactics. Steel-helmeted Coast Guardsmen.. Somewhere on the Pacific.. aboard an invasion barge, standing ready to repel the enemy. Men of the Coast Guard played an important part in the landing of Marines on the Solomon Islands.

Melilla, 1916. Troop movement in Morocco. Embarkation in the port of Melilla, aboard the steamship 'Sagunto', of the Sixth Taxdirt Cavalry Squadron, destined for Larache.

Amtracs Creep Toward Saipan's Smoky Beaches. Kicking up creamy foam in the waters off Saipan, Army alligators leave a Coast Guard-manned assault transport and crawl toward the shores of the Jap bastion less than 1,500 miles from Tokyo. The striking power of American Pacific invasion forces met stiff resistance, but after three weeks of fighting held seven-eighths of the Mariana Island, including its capital Garapan.

Military maneuver war day 1935.

View on the deck of a Panzerschiffe of the Reichsmarine, Anonymous, 1906 stereograph Germany cardboard. paper albumen print crew ~ ship

Japanese Junk. A Coast Guard combat photographer moved right in with this American salvage detail shown dismantling a Japanese airplane motor on the coral beach of Noemfoor Island. The reclaimed parts and scrap will soon be returned to the Japs, - in the form of American weapons.

Highflyer Explosion Remains. This image depicts the remainder of the Wilson B. Keen in it's slip. A twisted ship section at the head of the slip where the Highflyer exploded.

Marines from German warship on blockade duty, Suda Bay, Crete , Boats, Marines Military personnel, Warships, Bays Bodies of water, Alexandre Benois Collection

Crew of U.S. Monitor "Saugus". Brady album, p. 172 1861-65 Formerly attributed to Mathew B. Brady American. Crew of U.S. Monitor "Saugus". Brady album, p. 172. 1861-65. Albumen silver print from glass negative. Photographs

Night Action. This image depicts artwork of the ramming of a Nazi U-boat by the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Campbell. Artwork by Hunter Wood.

The Wounded Come Out of Southern France. An American infantryman, falling wounded from fire from Nazis retreating from the shores of Southern France, is carried to a Coast Guard-manned landing craft at Bougan Bay for transfer to a Coast Guard-manned assault transport standing out in the Mediterranean. A beach battalion handles the litter. Allied casualties were light in the D-Day sweep against the Riviera area.

Beach , Beaches. Photographs of the First Naval District

Photograph of Coast Guardsmen. This image depicts a group of Coast Guardsmen standing on a doc, looking at a small craft.

Torpedo being Fired. Firing a torpedo from deck of a german destroyer. The torpedo has just left the tube. Dropping into the water it will continue its course, like a small submarine, straight to its mark. The time period is World War I, but the photo dates to 1916 at the latest.

Coast Guard Pours Supplies Into Eniwetok. Mountains of supplies rise on the beaches of Eniwetok Atoll in the Marshalls from landing craft operated by Coast Guard invaders. Here a Navy tractor pulls heavy fighting materiel down the ramp from a Coast Guard-manned landing craft.

Men of the 337th Field Artillery, 88th Division, file aboard the "Ro- e Hambeau" in the port of Bordeaux, France during World War I.

James River, Virginia Deck and turret of U.S.S. Monitor , "The Monitor" deck view from the stern, July 1862. Selected Civil War photographs, 1861-1865 , Exhibited: "Capitol Visitor Center" at the U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C, 2011, Original glass negative: LC-B815-659, Copy negative for right half of stereograph: LC-B8184-659. United States, History, Civil War, 1861-1865, Naval operations, Union, Warships, Union, 1860-1870.

Sub-Busters in Action. This image depicts a depth charge exploding from the perspective of someone on a Coast Guard ship.

German Prisoners Taken by Coast Guard Cutter Icarus. German prisoners taken when U.S. Coast Guard patrol craft ICARUS sank German submarine. While U.S. Marines with fixed bayonets stand guard, the 33 survivors of a German submarine are lined up in front of the U.S. Coast Guard patrol craft, ICARUS, which sank their raider off the Carolina coast. The sub's commanding officer, Kapitan Leutnant (Lieutenant Commander) Helmutt Rathke, stands beside his men in the front row (extreme right) while the barefooted executive officer and a sailor (left center) approach the formation. The men were lined up for marching to quarters at the Charleston, S.C. Navy Yard.

Elsevier photo collection. Mobilsatie 1939?. Dutch soldiers provisional casemate Dutch coast. 1939. Scheveningen, South Holland

Naval Stemälde by Willy Stöwer (1911). .

Massachusetts - Minots Ledge. Minots Ledge, Massachusetts. Sunday morning, July 11, 1858.

Ramming Through an Ice Field. This image depicts the ice fields of the Arctic, where a Coast Guard combat cutter smashes a path through the frozen sea wastes.

First Aid On The Tossing Deck Of A Landing Barge. This image depicts a Coast Guard-manned landing barge getting under way to bring wounded from the beach of Guam to ships standing off shore.

Debarking in New Britain. Ready for action, a tank splashes out the open doors of a Coast Guard manned LST (Landing Ship, Tanks) during the invasion of Cape Gloucester, New Britain. Coast Guard and Navy manned LSTs participated in the invasion.

A / B of a Dutch auxiliary mine sweeper in W.O. II

Photo collection Government information service. Series Print Anefo RVD Own Without Caption. Collection Photo collection Risk information service own, photo number 156-0247. 1956

Arctic Resupply Mission. During the first leg of the journey to the Arctic, the Coast Guard icebreaker WESTWIND leads the way through ice off the coast of Greenland enroute to Thule Air Force Base. To the left in the background can be seen her sister ship, the Coast Guard icebreaker Eastwind, alongside the Navy USS Glynn (PA-239). This was the second mission to the Arctic for the WESTWIND since her return on lend-lease from Russia to the United States in 1952. The WESTWIND and Eastwind accompanied a Navy Task Force Group on a joint U.S.-Canadian Resupply Mission to far northern weather stations.

Loading and detachment on the quay of Tandjong Prique; Pressed TDJ: priok on the 1st April 1932. "Goodbye Java." Part of photo album offered to the resident of the Lampong districts f.J. Junius through studying officials from the board school in Batavia.

Fishermen catch an empty boat on the beach, Jan Vrolijk, 1860 - 1894

Fylgia (depicted name).Fylgia (depicted name)

Marine in Le Havre ..

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