u/djspacebunny

New Jersey lost *a lot* of her people on 9/11. Many of our friends and family were there responding and aiding our sister state in her time of need. Pause for a moment today and remember that our world was irrevocably changed in a matter of minutes. The people of NJ bore a significant amount of the terribleness from it. I am incredibly proud of how we came together and handled this tremendously chaotic and traumatic situation. Everyone really stepped up to help out however they could.

This post is for remembering that day. Describe it from from the perspective of you folks who were there experiencing it. Folks are welcome to ask questions that are CIVIL and mindful of how sensitive this topic is for some people. Younger folks who weren't even alive yet probably have questions that haven't been answered by a local. The impact it had on us as individuals, and us as a state, was absolutely monumental and I don't know anyone who was around for it in 2001 in NJ that wasn't impacted by it in some way.

Please be kind to each other. Any comments that are insensitive will be removed. This is a solemn day, but also a very VERY touchy topic. New information was just released regarding the air quality, and that has generated a whole new wave of 9/11 hate alllll these years later. It keeps impacting us in new ways. Remember that crowd control is on and you must be a subscribed community member in good standing to comment.

Ever drive past Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst and wonder who McGuire was? Today, we’re Turning Back Time to the final years of World War II, when Major Thomas B. McGuire, Jr. became a flying ace in two days.

Major McGuire was the second-highest-scoring American fighter ace of World War II. (His 38 aerial victories put him just behind Richard Bong, who finished the war on 40 victories.) Born in Ridgewood, New Jersey in 1920, McGuire flew a twin-engined P-38 Lightning across the Southwest Pacific with the Fifth Air Force’s 475th Fighter Group. In a romantic gesture, he named his P-38s ‘Pudgy’, his wife’s pet name. (Pudgy V, the fifth incarnation of Pudgy the P-38, is pictured with McGuire.)

In early August of 1943, while flying over New Guinea, McGuire shot down three enemy aircraft; the next day, he shot down two more, making him an ace in two days. He was widely recognized as a skillful pilot and a natural leader and was selected to fly several missions with the world-famous Charles Lindbergh as his wingman. (McGuire and Lindbergh can be seen together here.)

On January 7, 1945, McGuire was killed in action when he threw his fighter into a hazardous low altitude turn to protect a fellow pilot. His P-38 stalled and crashed. The other American pilot survived thanks to McGuire’s actions. The 24-year-old McGuire was posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor to accompany his Distinguished Service Cross with three devices, two Silver Stars, six Distinguished Flying Crosses, three Purple Hearts, and 15 Air Medals. His remains were recovered and laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery in 1949. McGuire Air Force Base, now an integral part of Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, was dedicated in his honor in 1948.

Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst is the military’s only tri-service installation and hosts units from all six branches of the armed forces. JBMDL is more than 65 square miles large, most of which is in Burlington County. A P-38 similar to McGuire's is preserved on the base and pictured here.

Credit goes to the "Burlington County" facebook page. Not sure if it's some official page, because it doesn't say so.

I was brunching and shopping across the river in PA and came home to this. Had to park blocks away and carry my groceries on my head with water up to my thighs. My road flooded a lot, but never like this before... not even during the hurricanes. Do note the smart neighbor with the canoe. Sorry for the image quality, it is 2013 android phone :P

(The images may be out of order because Reddit being Reddit. These were taken from their FB page.)

‘They also serve who only stand and wait’ *

They are a popular subject for Cape May postcards and photographs. You may pass one when you are on the beach, without giving them much thought, but they may save your life. Yes, they are lifeboats.

New Jersey Congressman William A. Newell helped pass the Newell Act in 1848. It secured $10,000 to fund life saving stations and lifeboats on the New Jersey coast. Cape May had two of these stations, one in Cape May City {now the Kiwanis club house on Beach Ave.} and one in Cape May Point, near the lighthouse. Shipwrecks were common along the New Jersey coast due to the lack of accurate charts and markers. Their main purpose was to save people from wrecked ships. These lifeboats had a crew of about six men. (Photo 1)

It was the major Cape May hotels that began providing lifeboats to help save any of their guest that might be in distress. The Stockton Hotel had a lifeboat in the 1870s. It also served as a prop for family photographs.(2)

Before you read any farther and discover it, I will confess that I know nothing about boats or their construction. I know it is bow and stern, not front and back, but that is about it. Internet searches have only helped a bit. Just enjoy my stupidity as you read on.

In the early 1900s, lifeboats used for the general public appeared on Cape May beaches The wheels used on the carts that held them appear to be an assortment of types that came from various animal-drawn wagons. (3)

The boards forming the sides of these boats are applied in a manner developed by the vikings over 1000 years ago, known as ‘Shiplap’. These are overlapping planks bent to form the exterior contour. You will notice that the number of planks used varied from boat to boat.

By 1909, Cape May had a uniformed volunteer lifesaving corps {VLC}. One photograph shows them on the beach in front of the Lafayette Hotel. (4)

In the early 1920s, the boats had identification numbers painted on them. (5)

By the late 1920s “Cape May” and the boat number was lettered across the stern. (6)

A 1941 home movie of the beach being cleaned, shows automobile wheels on the lifeboat carrier. (7)

Lifeboat races were one of the Cape May summer activities as early as 1936, when they were held in Cape May Harbor. In 1947, they were held at Stockton Beach.(

Lifeboats in the 1950s were marked with “Cape May Beach Patrol” painted on both sides of the bow. The wheeled carriers had, by then, been replaced with the wooden slat rollers.(9)

Around 1980, the Hobie Cat Regatta was introduced as a Cape May event. This catamaran boat race was held on Grant Street beach. Around the same time, lifeboats with a Victorian-style “Cape May” logo began appearing. (10) Sections of white plastic drain pipe replaced the wooden slat rollers.

By 1997, flying seagulls became the cross strokes on the ‘A’s in the “Cape May” logo, and the boat number was the year it was purchased. (11) Double-wheel carriers now help move the life boats on the sand.

Brothers John and Sam Van Duyne built their first fiberglass rescue boat in a former chicken coop in 1951. Their lightweight fiberglass lifeboats would eventually go on to replace the traditional wooden boats that could weigh as much as 500 pounds. The Van Duyne rescue boats are 17’3” long, 5’2” wide in the middle, and weigh 350 pounds. It was not until 1962, that the Van Duyne Bros. Company, of Mays Landing, NJ, sold their first lifeguard rescue boat. It was purchased by the Seaside Heights Beach Patrol after their captain gave it an ocean trial. Cape May became one of the Van Duyne Bros twenty New Jersey customers. In 2014 their boats cost $9,850.

Like M&M’s™, Cape May’s lifeboats are made in a variety of colors. Regardless of their color, they all stand ready to save lives.

Notes * ‘They also serve who only stand and wait’ is the last line of a sonnet by seventh-century poet John Milton.

Information sources:

enwikipedia.org - Newell act and station information.

U. S. Life-Saving Service Heritage Association, website - Cape May Point station information.

WorthPoint and eBay- Postcards.

Dick Gibbs collection - 1900-1930 postcards, photos.

Bruce Murray (1893-1969) -1930 photograph, Copyrighted)

YouTube - 1941 home movie.

1947, Aug. 15, Evening Courier - Lifeboat races.

Carl V. Thulin, Jr., photographer - 1950s postcard

Laura Thistle - 2017 photo of 1997 boat.

Nick DiUlio , May 22, 2014, New Jersey Monthly article about Van Dunye Bros.

Joe Evangelista - Row of white boats photograph

Beach Day Gifts & More - Red 1997 boat photograph.

Redbubble website - Green 2006 boat, ScottL photograph.

Google image search- Blue 97 boat photograph.