1840Massachusetts Humane Society provided life-saving boats for mariners.Economy and Industry, Maritime & Fishing Industry

The Massachusetts Humane Society was organized in 1786 to prevent the loss of life from marine disasters. It was modeled after the British Royal Humane Society. Incorporated five years later, it built and provisioned huts on remote Massachusetts coastlines to shelter shipwrecked mariners before local townspeople could rescue them. The service expanded to include rescue boats in 1807 and served as the model for the US Life Saving Service that was created by Congress in 1871, which in turn was replaced by the U.S. Coast Guard in 1915. Six Massachusetts Humane Society lifesaving stations were located on Cape Ann.