Amagansett Life-Saving Station
About
The Peconic Land Trust worked with the Carmichael family and the Town of East Hampton to preserve the Amagansett Life-Saving Station.
Built in 1902, the Amagansett Life-Saving Station is an example of a Quonochontaug type station. Evolutionary in it's time for organizing the boat room and living quarters under one roof. This station type was also the first to have three separate equipment bays, each with its own doorway. The building was inducted into the National Register of Historic Places in 2018.
Learn more about the construction of the station at the Art & Architecture Quarterly East End website.
From 1902 to 1944 the station was served by members of the U.S. Life-Saving Service and later the U.S. Coast Guard. The station was one of a network of thirty life-saving stations along the South Shore of Long Island. Members responded to ships in distress to perform rescue operations.
During World War II, Coast Guardsman John Cullen discovered Nazi agents that had landed on the shores of Amagansett off a U-boat. Chief Boatswain’s Mate Warren Barnes and his men discovered four boxes of explosives buried in the sand. These explosives were brought back to the station for examination.
Learn more about the station’s history during WWII on the Amagansett U.S. Life-Saving Station Museum website.
After WWII, the Amagansett Life-Saving Station was abandoned and later auctioned off the U.S. Coast Guard. Joel Carmichael purchased the station in 1966 and moved it to Bluff Road to be used as a summer residence.
In December 2006, Joel & Isabel Carmichael donated the historic 1902 Amagansett Life-Saving Station to the Peconic Land Trust, with the future expectation of the historic building being donated to the Town of East Hampton and reestablished at its original location.
In 2007, the Amagansett Life-Saving Station was relocated to Atlantic Avenue, and a multi-year restoration was undertaken by the Town of East Hampton. Today, it is now a public museum dedicated to the historical preservation of the building and to all who served at the Amagansett U.S. Life-Saving & Coast Guard Station from 1902 to 1944.
Visitor Information
Visit the Amagansett U.S. Life-Saving Station Museum website for hours and information. The Museum is typically open on weekends in the summer from 11:00 - 3:00 p.m.
Amagansett Life-Saving Station
160 Atlantic Ave, Amagansett, NY 11930