As a Rehoboth Beach Patrol lieutenant alumnus and co-founder of the RBP Alumni Association, I was delighted to see the excellent June 21 (first day of summer!) Cape Gazette article by Chris Flood about the 1949 Hickman section RBP logbook. That it was saved, let alone not tossed out, is a miracle. Special thanks to Sarah Dougherty for her efforts to save it.
It also raises some questions. It appears that guards would sit on the same stand all summer and not rotate, as became the practice under Frank Coveleski, who came on board as captain in the early 1950s.
That being said, Hickman has always been a lieutenant’s stand and thus perhaps why the log comes from guards who sat on that special place. I would be surprised if logs were kept for non-lieutenant stands. Anything happening on those beaches might be relayed to the lieutenants and entered into the logbooks they kept.
The logbook itself is priceless, and thank goodness wise eyes saw and preserved it. You can never put a value on something like that. Sarah Dougherty deserves special thanks and recognition. I hope this discovery encourages more people to look for similar/complementary things. Rehoboth is one of the oldest beach resorts in the country, and has a long and excellent legacy. Similar goes for its beach patrol. One year after the guys in the article guarded, the Korean War started and the U.S. was caught with its pants down. I wonder if the two guys in the article got caught up in that. They might have been at draft age; they look like it in the photo. Also, one’s last name was “Carney.” Any relation to John Carney?
Something else about the logbook: the cartoons and messages written by hand. Any historian can tell you that this often adds to the value of a historical artifact. I hope this discovery encourages other people to look over old and often forgotten items which their families have. And I hope that the material in the logbook gets copied. Once gone, gone forever.
-
A letter to the editor expresses a reader's opinion and, as such, is not reflective of the editorial opinions of this newspaper.
To submit a letter to the editor for publishing, send an email to viewpoints@capegazette.com. All letters are considered at the discretion of the newsroom and published as space allows. Due to the large volume of submissions, we cannot acknowledge receipt of each submission. Letters must include a phone number and address for verification. Keep letters to 400 words or fewer. We reserve the right to edit for content or length. Letters should be responsive to issues addressed in the Cape Gazette rather than content from other publications or media. Letters should focus on local issues, not national topics or personalities. Only one letter per author will be published every 30 days regarding a particular topic. Authors may submit a second letter within that time period if it pertains to a different issue. Letters may not be critical of personalities or specific businesses. Criticism of public figures is permissible. Endorsement letters for political candidates are no longer accepted. Letters must be the author’s original work, and may not be generated by artificial intelligence tools. Templates, form letters and letters containing language similar to other submissions will not be published.
