A Checkered Past

The Story of Keeper Richard Etheridge and the Pea Island Lifesaving Station. Celebrate Black History Month by visiting a special exhibit by the Pea Island Preservation Society, Inc. For the month of February our Vault Gallery will feature paintings, photographs, and other information about the story of Keeper Richard Etheridge and the Pea Island Lifesaving Station. Come look, listen, and learn about the nation’s first black Keeper, the all-black crew he commanded, and about the story of integrated crews, known as checkerboard crews, that Keeper Etheridge and others once served on.