https://peertube.dngr.us/videos/watch/83696734-42a8-49db-83cb-25572f3d92ef Join us on Patreon. Visit https://www.patreon.com/PeriscopeFilm These extraordinary home movies were shot circa 1939 by by Charles A.A. Modeer, an officer in the U.S. Lighthouse Service (note: the USLS was absorbed by the Coast Guard in 1939). Modeer served on various lighthouse tenders, including as commander of the tender Manzanita, based in Astoria, Oregon. Modeer's movies were discovered after his death and preserved by archivist Phil Nohl, but unfortunately most were subsequently lost to vinegar syndrome. This surviving reel includes footage of lighthouses and lightships, including the Columbia and Swiftsure lightships, and shows the work of the Coast Guardsmen. Film starts with rare footage of the Swiftsure lightship as seen from an approaching tender vessel. U.S. lightship Swiftsure (LV-83) had an all-steel hull, wooden decks, and a powerful double-expansion steam engine. At (2:25) the Lime Kiln Lighthouse is shown on the western side of San Juan Island, San Juan County, Washington. At (3:08) a large vessel marked Ecuador Sverige ("Ecuador Sweden") is seen, presumably an Ecuadorian merchant ship that provided bananas or other products to Sweden. The large markings on the side are consistent with WWII anti-submarine nationality paint scheme, designed to avert sinkings by U-boats. At (3:26) a cargo ship sails by. At (3:45) a buoy is unloaded by a tender. At (3:57) a signal buoy with a light on top is secured. At (4:22) the lightship Columbia is seen. The United States lightship Columbia (WLV-604) is now preserved in Astoria, Oregon, United States of America. Columbia was formerly moored near the mouth of the Columbia River. At (5:18) another cargo vessel is seen at sea, possibly the tanker SS Antietam (note: if Antietam -- the ship sank in 1946 after hitting a mine). At (5:39) a bell buoy is seen. At (5:44) a large ship marked Luckenbach is seen. This is probably the Andrea F. Luckenbach, or one of her sister ships. (Note: The Andrea Luckenach was sunk in 1943 by U-221.) At (6:09) more shots of a bell buoy being serviced. At (7:07) a Richfield oil tanker is seen at sea. At (7:35) a large buoy is seen being deployed. At (8:01) a Coast Guard crewman takes photos with a large format Crown Speed Graphic camera. At (8:46) shots aboard the U.S. Coast Guard tender vessel. At (9:46) a whale boat is launched to take crew over to the Swiftsure lightship. At (10:26) an oceangoing tug marked FOSS is seen towing a huge barge Nisqually full of trees (note: Foss Maritime is now the largest tug and towing concern on the west coast of the United States; the Nisqually was formerly known as SS Suremico). At (10:57) a Coast Guard cutter is shown, possibly USCGC Onondaga (WPG-79), an Algonquin-class patrol boat which was based in Astoria in this era. At (11;22) a dredge is seen. At (11:40) a busy lumber yard followed by images of the Coast Guard vessel putting to sea. At (12:55) a Northern Pacific steam locomotive is shown, #2262. This was a Q-6 Pacific locomotive built by American Locomotive Co. At (13:36) a seaplane is seen landing behind what appears to be a twin stack U.S. Navy seaplane tender Williamson marked #15 on the bow (ex-destroyer #244). At (15:22) good examples of USA ships marked with flag paint so as to identify them as neutral. At (17:47) another Coast Guard cutter is shown at sea. At (18:07) a ship marked Segundo Norge. At (18:50) cargo is moved aboard ship by net. At (20:23) shots on the bridge of the Coast Guard vessel. At (23:41) barrels of diesel are placed on a boat to be brought to what appears to be the Tillamook Rock Lighthouse, (nicknamed “Terrible Tilly”). The lighthouse is only briefly seen at (23:37) and appears to be under construction, probably after the 1934 storm damaged the building. At (25:31) the MobilGas petroleum barge is shown. At (27:08) the tanker SS Los Angeles is shown with a USA flag painted on its side. At (27:43) the USRC Snohomish, a seagoing tug, is shown. At (28:25) stunning skies at sunset. At (29:09) the merchant West Portal is shown making its way up river and into the locks with USA flag on side (this ship was sunk by a U-boat in 1943). At (31:00) the locks are shown in action as USS Eagle No. 57 aka PE-57 enters the river. At (32:07) the seaplane tender Williamson is shown (Seaplane Tender, Small AVP-15). At (32:44) the Columbia lightship is shown again. At (33:39) damaged buoy (?). At (34:03) the ship SS Columbian is shown, and at (35:41) an unidentified lighthouse. At (35:53) a large U.S. Coast Guard hangar is shown. At (37:40) another bell buoy is serviced. The film ends with shots of a large buoy being removed from the ocean, cleaned and serviced. This film is part of the Periscope Film LLC archive, one of the largest historic military, transportation, and aviation stock footage collections in the USA. Entirely film backed, this material is available for licensing in 24p HD, 2k and 4k. For more information visit http://www.PeriscopeFilm.com Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ceorIvxtLYM Mirrored from Periscope Film (https://www.youtube.com/@PeriscopeFilm) Sat, 13 Jun 2026 13:00:50 GMT https://validator.w3.org/feed/docs/rss2.html PeerTube - https://peertube.dngr.us https://peertube.dngr.us/lazy-static/avatars/41a6fee9-7f57-42d0-a5fc-5db4f1af2e31.png https://peertube.dngr.us/videos/watch/83696734-42a8-49db-83cb-25572f3d92ef All rights reserved, unless otherwise specified in the terms specified at https://peertube.dngr.us/about and potential licenses granted by each content's rightholder.