Mission
Mission Statement
The mission of the Amagansett U.S. Life-Saving and Coast Guard Station is to preserve and tell the story of the Amagansett Station, its surfmen, and America’s fast-vanishing Life-Saving and early Coast Guard stations and watercraft. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 2018, our museum is dedicated to:
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Providing access, understanding, and enjoyment of this important piece of local and national maritime heritage and its ongoing preservation;
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Providing public programming to engage future generations in its history, commemorate historical events, and celebrate Amagansett’s role in maritime history. In 2022, the museum was granted an Absolute Charter from the New York Board of Regents, paving the way to further our education efforts for students and patrons of all ages;
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Presenting special exhibitions and producing events historical or nautical in nature that have featured authors, film screenings, re-enactments, and photography as well as conservation efforts such as organized beach cleanups and being a research site for local institutions of higher education;
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Maintaining a thoughtful collection of artifacts to preserve and celebrate the history of lifesaving on the U.S. coastline.
East Hampton Town Lifeguard Administrative Office Mission
The Amagansett Life-Saving Station, in addition, is home to the East Hampton Town Lifeguard Administrative Office. The East Hampton Town Lifeguards are tasked with the seasonal supervision of the town’s eight ocean beaches and three bay beaches in the hamlets of Amagansett, Springs, and Montauk.
From its headquarters in the historical Amagansett Life-Saving Station and 12 towers around the South Fork of Long Island, this staff of approximately 100 lifeguards is dispatched to respond to waterborne emergencies all along the district’s coastline using trucks, ATVs, and PWCs. Aside from its primary, first-responder, mission, the agency takes a leading role in promoting water safety and world-class lifeguarding.
Preserving the Station
The Amagansett Station was abandoned after World War II and in 1966 was auctioned by the Coast Guard. Joel Carmichael bought the station and moved it to Bluff Road where it had a new life as a residence. In 2007 the Carmichael family donated the Amagansett Life-Saving Station to the Town of East Hampton and it was moved back to its exact original location on Atlantic Avenue.
On May 17, 2007, the East Hampton Town Board designated the Amagansett Life-Saving Station a historic landmark by resolution 2007-43. The board appointed an advisory committee of residents, which then became the nonprofit U.S. Amagansett Life-Saving and Coast Guard Station Society, overseeing the six-year restoration of the Station to its original 1902 design, an undertaking guided by the comprehensive Historic Structure Report commissioned from Historic Services Director Robert Hefner.
Restoration of the Station. Photograph by Alana Leland.
Who We Are
James S. Bradley, Co-President
Michael Cinque, Co-President
Gary Adamek, Vice President
Dakota Arkin Cafourek, Vice President
Stephen J. Marzo, Treasurer
Nina D. Gillman, Secretary
Kent Miller, Honorary Chairman Emeritus
Isabel S. Carmichael
David Cataletto
Elena P. Glinn
Scott Handwerker
BMCS Benny Harris, USCG
BMCM Edward Michels, USCG, Ret.Stacy Myers
BMCS Nicolas Pupo, USCG, Ret.
John Ryan, Jr.
Charles Savage
BMC James Weber, USCG, Ret.
Supporters
We would like to extend a special thank-you to everyone who donated to the Amagansett Life-Saving & Coast Guard Station restoration project. Without their generosity, we would not be able to enjoy the museum we have today — and are eternally grateful to:
Founding Donors
Aboff’s Paints
Amagansett Fire Department
Amagansett Wine & Spirits
Nancy & Robert Amato
Artists & Writers of East Hampton
Hilaria & Alec Baldwin Foundation
James Bishop Electrical Contractor
Bistrian Gravel Corporation
Bistrian Materials
Bostwick’s Catering
Philip J. Cangiolosi Mason Contractor
Deborah Carmichael
Isabel Carmichael
L. David Carmichael & Constance M. Park
Michael N. Cinque Family
David & Leslie Clarke
John de Cuevas
Elizabeth Strong-Cuevas
Dejoux Family Charitable Gift Fund
Delfino Insulation
Devon Yacht Club
Robert & Susan Downey
Dumond Chemicals
Victor M. Earle III
E.H. Volunteer Ocean Rescue
Thomas J. Edelman Foundation
Nicolas & Anne Erni
Nina Gillman
Hampton Lifeguard Association
John Haubrich
Jennett Family
Kamco Supply Corporation
Kolb Mechanical
Ben Krupinski Builder
Bonnie & Ben Krupinski
Ronald & Jo Carole Lauder Foundation
Mannix Custom Builders Corp.
Gretchen & John Mannix
Manor Art Glass Studio
Stephen & Karen Marzo
Paul & Nancy McCartney
Maryann McElroy & Robert Miller
Harold McMahon Plumbing & Heating
William & Donna Meyer
Mims Family Painting
Anne & John Mullen
Andre & Lois Nasser
Peconic Sheet Metal
Leslie Plaskon
Platinum Framing
Possible Productions
Zachary Powers
Precision Mark-Out
Katharine J. Rayner
Catharine Regan & Kenneth Silverman
Reilly Woodworking
REVCO Electrical Supply
Riverhead Building Supply
Rockefeller Charitable Foundation
Stanley & Michele Rosen
Julie & Nicholas Sakellariadis
Charles Savage
Scan Security
David E. Seeler
Southampton Masonry Supply
Estate of Arthur Stein
Suffolk County Sheriff’s Office
Steve Thurber Construction
Robert D. Uher
Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 550
Village Preservation Society of East Hampton
Whitmores Masonry
WNET
John & Susan Zuccotti
Connect With Us
160 Atlantic Avenue
P.O. Box 51
Amagansett, New York 11930
e: info@amagansettlss.org
t: 631-527-7317
Museum Hours:
