Local family honors over 400 years of Coast Guard service starting at Pea Island

Joan L. Collins, founder of Beyond Pea Island, shared a guest column highlighting her family’s more than 400 combined years of service in the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) and its predecessor, the U.S. Life-Saving Service (USLSS).

The legacy began at the historic Pea Island station, where Collins’s great-grandfather, Joseph Hall Berry, served as a temporary surfman under Keeper Richard Etheridge. Berry formally enlisted in the USLSS in 1902 and continued service when it became part of the Coast Guard in 1915. After a work injury, he successfully fought for disability retirement in 1917.

Collins’s father and his twin brother enlisted in the Coast Guard shortly after turning 16 in 1939. They served during World War II and beyond, with her father patrolling the North Carolina coast during the dangerous Torpedo Junction period when enemy submarines attacked ships. Her uncle served in the Pacific, defending against kamikaze attacks.

These personal stories provide a human face to a remarkable record of service tied closely to the Pea Island station and the Elizabeth City area community.