VON PAULSEN-CARL

Captain Christian Von Paulsen, a Coast Guard aviation pioneer, earned his wings in 1920. He helped to establish the first successful Coast Guard air unit on Ten Pound Island in Gloucester Harbor in May 1925. Using borrowed U.S. Navy aircraft, they proved that aviation was useful in carrying out traditional Coast Guard operations, including law enforcement and search and rescue. The former was important during this time as Prohibition and the consequent increases in smuggling put the national spotlight on the Coast Guard. Von Paulsen continued experimenting with different techniques, insuring that aviation would become an indispensable part of the Coast Guard. He commanded Coast Guard Air Station Cape May from 1930 to 1932 and then Air Station Miami. While he was stationed here the Treasury Department awarded him a Gold Lifesaving Medal for a daring open-sea rescue. The rescue made him famous and he appeared in the "Unsung Heroes" comic book in the mid-1930s. He was also a respected sailor and ship's captain as well, and commanded the Greenland Patrol during World War II. Von Paulsen played an instrumental role in establishing the aviation arm of the Coast Guard.