Search for the U.S. Revenue Cutter Bear
Past Expedition
Overview
From September 14-28, NOAA and the U.S. Coast Guard searched for the U.S. Revenue Cutter (USRC) Bear. USRC Bear, which served nearly 80 years in the Revenue Cutter Service, the Coast Guard, and the Navy, has a rich history of meritorious service in the Arctic, the North Atlantic, and Antarctica. Originally built as a sealer in 1874, it went down in 1963 in waters near the U.S./Canada international boundary approximately 260 miles due east of Boston and 90 miles south of Cape Sable, Nova Scotia.
Features
Remote sensing operations for the “Search for the US Revenue Cutter BEAR” are complete.
October 24, 2019
The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Bear has arrived back at the Coast Guard pier in Boston, completing a very successful mission.
September 28, 2019
In the summer of 2019, the Coast Guard and U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Bear (WMEC-901) were approached by NOAA with a daunting challenge to jointly conduct an exploratory mission in search of the wreck of the Revenue Service Cutter (RSC) Bear during the unit’s 72-day District One Maritime Security Response Operations deployment.
September 23, 2019
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Several months ago, when there was a scant possibility that I might be able to join the expedition to find the revenue cutter BEAR, I was thrilled.
September 20, 2019
Inevitably, weather is likely to get in the way of the “best laid plans” of any at-sea mission, and ours is no exception.
September 19, 2019
One objective of the first leg of the recent Deep Connections 2019 expedition on NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer was to collect information about the seafloor using the ship’s mapping system to help in the search for the U.S. Revenue Cutter (USRC) Bear off the coast of Nova Scotia, Canada.
September 15, 2019
Yesterday, 14 September, the USCGC BEAR took in lines and slipped from her mooring in Boston.
September 15, 2019
After nearly two decades of planning, the “Search for the BEAR” is finally happening!
September 12, 2019
US Revenue Cutter Bear is one of the most storied ships in Coast Guard history. Largely associated with polar exploration, and particularly its Arctic service, the ship’s history is a series of compelling stories of bravery, dedication to duty, and legendary exploits.
September 9, 2019
As a Bering Sea Patrol cutter, Bear saved lives at sea but it also preserved the lives of those surviving in Alaska’s frozen frontier.
September 9, 2019
In 1881, Lt. Adolphus Greely, a member of the U.S. Army’s Signal Corps, led an expedition to Ellesmere Island, northwest of Greenland, to study its weather and winter conditions. Attempts to relieve Greely’s expedition in 1882 and 1883 proved unsuccessful and members of the expedition began to die of disease and starvation.
September 9, 2019
Few icons of Arctic history are more significant than the United States Revenue Cutter Bear.
September 9, 2019
During World War II, Greenland sat on the northern edge of the Battle of the Atlantic and, early in the conflict, the Germans established weather stations there to provide forecasts for their European operations.
September 9, 2019
Revenue Cutter Bear served every year on the Bering Sea Patrol, which cutters had initiated in 1874.
September 9, 2019
The Bear is more than just a famous ship; she is a symbol for all the service represents—for steadfastness, for courage, and for constant readiness to help men and vessels in distress.
September 9, 2019
After the cutter’s retirement by the Coast Guard and its brief career as a floating museum, Arctic explorer Richard Byrd re-activated the famous cutter.
September 9, 2019
Revenue Cutter Service officer David Henry Jarvis wrote the above quote in his diary journaling the Overland Relief Expedition, considered one of the most spectacular rescues in the history of the Arctic.
September 9, 2019
The Bear’s story did not end with the sinking of the cutter. Instead, a new chapter of the cutter’s history had begun and, within about 15 years of its sinking, the search for Bear was on.
September 9, 2019
In 1885, Bear began its service career along with Thetis, an Arctic whaler turned over to the Revenue Cutter Service by the U.S. Navy. By today’s standards, these first revenue cutters to operate in the ice were considered “ice resistant” vessels.
September 9, 2019
Healy’s career tied him to the taming of America’s western maritime frontier, earned him the nickname “Hell Roaring” Mike Healy, and made him the most famous captain in Coast Guard history.
September 9, 2019
Multimedia
Featured multimedia assets associated with this project.
Education
Our Learn & Discover page provides the best of what the NOAA Ocean Exploration website has to offer to support educators in the classroom during this expedition. Each theme page includes expedition features, lessons, multimedia, career information, and associated past expeditions. Below are related top education themes for this expedition.
Meet the Exploration Team
Learn more about the team members and their contributions to this project.
NOAA Office of National Marine Sanctuaries Maritime Heritage Program – Bear Mission Coordinator
CSA Ocean Sciences Inc. – Operations Supervisor
U.S. Coast Guard – Assistant Historian
NOAA Office of National Marine Sanctuaries Maritime Heritage Program – Mission Principal Investigator and Chief Archaeologist
Maritime Studies Department, East Carolina University – Graduate Student
(1955-2009)
NOAA Office of National Marine Sanctuaries Maritime Heritage Program – Maritime Archaeologist
NOAA Office of National Marine Sanctuaries Maritime Heritage Program – Maritime Archaeologist
Resources & Contacts
Media Contacts
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NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research
Emily Crum
Office: (843) 460-9772 | Mobile: (202) 424-0081
Email Address: emily.crum@noaa.gov -
NOAA Research
Monica Allen
Acting Director of Communications for NOAA Research and Director of Media
Relations for NOAA Research
Office: (301) 734-1123 | Mobile: (202) 379-6693
Email Address:
monica.allen@noaa.gov -
NOAA Office of National Marine Sanctuaries
Vernon Smith
National Media Coordinator
Office: (301) 713-3125 x248
Email Address:
vernon.smith@noaa.gov -
U.S. Coast Guard First District Public Affairs Office
LT Adam Schmid
Email Address:
Adam.M.Schmid@uscg.mil