Storm Warriors of the Maine Coast

From 1874 until 1915, the “Storm Warriors” of the Fletchers Neck Life Saving Service and the citizens of the Village of Biddeford Pool shared a common history. During the 19th century, the stretch of Maine coast between Portland and the busy docks at Portsmouth, New Hampshire was among the most dangerous passages along the coast of Maine. Rocky beaches, hidden ledges, dangerous currents, and small, low-lying islands were treacherous to mariners. In December 1874 the Biddeford Pool Life Saving Station began its first active season. Six "surfmen" made up the crew charged with protecting this transit. Gleaned from local newspapers, stations logbooks, official records of the Life Saving Service, and the papers and memories of involved families, these are tales of men at odds with the fury of nature— men who subscribed to the motto: “You have to go out but you don’t have to come back.”