Station Pea Island, North Carolina USLSS Station #17, Sixth District Coast Guard Station #177 Captain Richard Etheridge and his Pea Island Life-Saving Station crew in 1896. Etheridge was the first African-American keeper of a U.S. Life-Saving Station and he commanded the only all African-American crew in the U.S. Etheridge is on the far left. No official caption/photo number/date; probably 1896.