Grit....

North Carolina Couple Keeps Legacy Alive

When Gary and Judy Studer saw Caswell Beach’s former U.S. Life-Saving Station for the first time, they could never have imagined it would become their home. However, when they found it was on the market, the long-time St. Louis residents and history buffs saw an opportunity to keep a legacy alive.

“We had never been to North Carolina and, in fact, had thought our next chapter would take us to Vermont or Maine--where we would find an old grist mill or schoolhouse,” Judy says. “Instead, we found the romance of the sea irresistible. Being from the landlocked Midwest, we didn’t even know what a life-saving station was.”

Life-Saving Network

The building the Studers purchased in 1999 was originally part of the U.S. Life-Saving Service’s network of 279 stations on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, as well as along the Great Lakes. Founded in the 1870s--a pre-cursor to today’s U.S. Coast Guard--the Life-Saving Service continued until 1915. Many of the buildings have been lost to the sea or demolition. But several, like the Caswell Beach site, have survived and are now thriving in other uses.

Built in 1889, the Studers’ home was originally located across the street near the Oak Island Lighthouse, where crews watched from the still-present lookout tower for ships in distress. Braving hurricane-force winds and huge waves, the men rowed out to shipwrecks and saved passengers and crews of every nationality.

Dunbar Davis, who led the area's most famous rescues during an 1893 storm, ran the life-saving station for more than 15 years.

"There's actually a song written about him called 'The Long Day of Dunbar Davis,'" says Judy Studer.

Several pictures of Dunbar Davis adorn the dining room walls of the building, and, thanks to unexplained noises, some overnight guests have told the Studers that they believe Davis' ghost still resides int he room he once inhabited.

The Coast Guard occupied the building until the early-1940s and that’s when the Studers suspect it was moved across the street, turned 90 degrees, and situated right on a wide beach. It then generally served as a second or third residence for a variety of owners who, while respecting the integrity of the building, obviously didn’t become enmeshed in the history of the building nearly as much as the Studers.

Renovation

However, the previous uses as a residence meant there really wasn’t too much renovation work for Studers to do.

“Our vision was not to transform it, but to preserve it,” says Gary Studer. “In its early days, life-saving crews lived in the station only seasonally. As the first people to live here year-round, we prefer to think that we are bringing the life-saving station back to life!”

The Studers did have to replace much of the salt-corroded siding, but from paint colors to the original wood floor in the lookout tower, they’ve kept the building much as it’s always been. They also had to replace all of the original shutters and found that each of the 29 sets was a different size!

Visitors enter the house through a narrow door, where a plaque acknowledges that the building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Once inside, a cozy dining room has a virtual boatload of memorabilia about the building and the U.S. Life-Saving Service.

Just off the dining room, the huge living room once served as the boat room, where surfboats hung from the ceiling. Indentations still mark the spots from which the boats were hung and the woodwork and most of the windows in the former boat room are original.

The boat room leads to a bright sunroom and kitchen, which the Studers say were added once the building was moved.

Upstairs, there are three original rooms. The Studers converted the former sleeping quarters, which slept seven or eight surfmen, into a master bedroom suite. The smaller keeper’s room is now a guest room, offering visitors a beautiful view of the lighthouse and the ocean.

What was once a second floor storage area is now a modern bathroom. Worn steps lead to the third floor lookout tower.

History

Along with working for designation on the National Register of Historic Places, the Studers have thoroughly researched the history of their house and the U.S. Life-Saving Service. Gary says, “We even joined the U.S. Life-Saving Service Heritage Association," Gary Studer says, "where we’ve found many others interested in this intriguing part of our maritime history.”

The house is now furnished with an eclectic combination of antiques, purchases gathered during the Studers’ extensive travels, and many items specifically related to their house’s history.

“We were fortunate that this was a government building, in that we now have framed copies of logbooks, photos of the original building and crews, and much more,” says Gary Studer.

The Studers were able to meet with the last surviving surfman before he passed away last year. He shared recollections of life in the building and out at sea and the Studers honor his legacy with a picture of him in uniform that hangs in the dining room.

“We consider it a rare privilege to live in a place with this much documented history,” says Judy Studer. “We feel we are just passing through, as many before us have done. In the living room, we have a time capsule that will ultimately chronicle our existence here.”