Qualla: Rasmus Midgett

Rasmus Midgett: Introduction

Sun, 22 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

At 3:00 in the morning on August 18, 1899, Rasmus Midgett climbed onto his horse Gilbert and rode south from the Gull Shoals Lifesaving Station into the teeth of a hurricane. The San Ciriaco storm, packing 100-mph winds, was tearing across the Outer Banks, flooding the narrow ribbon of sand between the Atlantic Ocean and Pamlico Sound. Three-quarters of a mile out, Midgett spotted debris washing ashore. Two miles further, he heard the sound of sails frapping against rigging and, faintly beneath the roar of the storm, human voices. He swung his lantern toward the ocean and saw the remains of a ship, keeled over barely 25 feet from shore, with men clinging to whatever wood still held together. It was 4:30 a.m., and Rasmus Midgett was entirely alone.

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Rasmus Midgett: The Priscilla's Last Voyage

Sun, 22 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

The 643-ton barkentine Priscilla had sailed from Baltimore on August 12, bound for Rio de Janeiro under Captain Benjamin Springsteen. His wife, his 12-year-old son Elmer, and a crew of twelve accompanied him, including another son, William Nate. When the hurricane struck, the sea...

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Rasmus Midgett: One Man Against the Atlantic

Sun, 22 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Midgett faced a choice that has defined his legacy. He could ride three hours back to the station for help, but by then the men would almost certainly be dead. Or he could attempt the rescue alone, knowing that if the sea took him too, no patrol would pass for hours and every sou...

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Rasmus Midgett: The Mighty Midgetts

Sun, 22 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Rasmus Midgett was born Erasmus S. Midgett in 1851 on Hatteras Island, then part of Hyde County. Named for St. Elmo, the patron saint of sailors, he grew up in the small community of Southern Woods, now called Waves, where he proved a sharp student of arithmetic and handwriting b...

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Rasmus Midgett: In Testimony of Heroic Deeds

Sun, 22 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Lieutenant C. E. Johnston reviewed the station log, the keeper's wreck report, and the investigator's account of the lives lost that night, and recommended the highest honor the service could bestow. On October 18, 1899, the Secretary of the Treasury awarded Rasmus Midgett the Go...

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