Coast Guard Station Marquette dedicates new facility

NEWS RELEASE

U.S. COAST GUARD

************************** Coast Guard dedicates new facility for historic Station Marquette

MARQUETTE - U.S. Coast Guard Station Marquette will commission its new station and boathouse on Lakeshore Boulevard during a dedication ceremony with Rep. Bart Stupak in attendance Thursday, August 13, at 3 p.m.

The new station will incorporate the finest of modern architecture and technology, and it will be among the first Department of Homeland Security facilities to earn the coveted Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification for green buildings. 

Using geo-thermal energy tapped from thirteen nearby wells for heating and cooling, the six-thousand square-foot building was designed to be eco-friendly by recycling wastewater for other uses throughout the building and on the building’s grounds. 

The new station will be named for Capt. Henry Cleary, the station’s first keeper and developer of the nation’s first motorized lifeboat.

Capt. Cleary was also coxswain aboard the lifeboat used to rescue the crew of the Charles J. Kershaw. 

The current station was constructed in 1890 for the U.S. Life Saving Service, which later merged with the Revenue Cutter Service in 1915 to form today’s Coast Guard. 

Station Marquette has played a critical role in preserving maritime safety in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and has been involved in a variety of dramatic rescues, including what has been called one of the greatest rescues on Lake Superior - the rescue of 13 crewmembers from the grounded Steamer Charles J. Kershaw in 1895.

The station has continued its impressive legacy, more recently during its 2003 response to flooding along the Dead River, the rescue of a stranded surfer in February 2009, and numerous other dramatic search and rescue operations.

Other guests of distinction who are scheduled to attend are Rear Adm. Steven E. Day, deputy commander for mobilization and reserve affairs and Rear Adm. Peter V. Neffenger, commander of the Ninth Coast Guard District.

A brief reception and refreshments will follow the ceremony.

The station is located at 294 Lakeshore Blvd.

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