Lawrence O. Lawson

Lawrence Oscar Lawson was appointed the keeper of the Evanston, Illinois, Life–Saving Station Number 12, District 11 of the United States Life-Saving Service in 1880 off the coast of Lake Michigan.[1] In 1899, Lawson led the crew of his surfboat on a heroic rescue of all 18 crewmen of the freighter Calumet.[2] He was awarded the Gold Lifesaving Medal on October 17, 1890.

Stationkeeper Lawrence O. Lawson, surrounded by the crew of his surfboat.

Life and career

Lawson was born September 11, 1842, near Kalmar, Sweden. He came to the United States in 1861 while serving a merchant seaman.[3] He married Petrine Wold in Chicago in 1876. He retired in 1903.

Legacy
USCGC Lawrence O. Lawson at sea

In 2010, Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard Charles "Skip" W. Bowen, the U.S. Coast Guard's senior enlisted person at the time, lobbied for the new Sentinel-class cutters to be named after enlisted Coast Guardsmen, or personnel from its precursor services, who had distinguished themselves by their heroism.[4][5] The USCGC Lawrence O. Lawson was the 20th cutter to be launched.[6][7]

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References
  1. "Northwestern University : a history : 1855-1905". Northwestern University. 1955. Retrieved 2016-10-20. Mr. Lawson's appointment, which was made July 17, 1880, was due to the general conviction of those most interested that the service demanded as responsible head a man of more mature years and experience than was likely to be found among the students.
  2. Stephanie Young, Christopher Havern (2014-01-20). "Coast Guard Heroes: Lawrence O. Lawson". United States Coast Guard. Retrieved 2016-10-20.
  3. Northwestern University. "Lawrence O. Lawson (1842-1912) Scrapbook", Archival and Manuscript Collections, identifier 0/22/1. Finding aid created by Kevin B. Leonard on April 9, 1998. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
  4. Susan Schept (2010-03-22). "Enlisted heroes honored". United States Coast Guard. Retrieved 2013-02-01. After the passing of several well-known Coast Guard heroes last year, Master Chief Petty Officer of the Coast Guard Charles “Skip” Bowen mentioned in his blog that the Coast Guard does not do enough to honor its fallen heroes.
  5. Ken Hocke (2016-10-20). "Bollinger delivers another USCG fast response cutter". Workboat.com. Retrieved 2016-10-20. The FRCs are named for an enlisted Coast Guard hero who distinguished him or herself in the line of duty. This vessel is named after Lawrence Lawson, who was awarded the Gold Lifesaving Medal on Oct. 17, 1890, for his leadership skills and heroic efforts in the successful rescue of the 18-member crew of the steam vessel Calumet.
  6. Mike Hill (2016-10-20). "Fast-response cutter delivered to Coast Guard". Houma Today. Retrieved 2016-10-20. The 154-foot patrol craft Lawrence Lawson is the 20th vessel in the Coast Guard's Sentinel-class FRC program, the company said. Bollinger said the decision to have two of these vessels at Cape May is significant because it expands the footprint of FRC operations beyond the Bahamas and the Caribbean.
  7. Eric Haun (2016-10-20). "Bollinger Delivers FRC to the US Coast Guard". Marine Link. Retrieved 2016-10-20.
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