Coast Guard Cutter Eagle visits Philadelphia

Courtesy Photo | The Coast Guard Cutter Eagle and its crew make their way to Penn's Landing in Philadelphia, March 18. The Eagle, homeported in New London, Conn., is the only active sailing square-rigger in U.S. government service and is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its construction. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Jonathan Lindberg)  

PA, UNITED STATES

03.18.2011

Courtesy Story

U.S. Coast Guard District 5   

PHILADELPHIA – The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Eagle, America’s Tall Ship, arrived Friday at Penn’s Landing, here.

The Eagle will be open for free, public tours Friday from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. until 7 p.m.

Philadelphia is the first port visit for the Eagle this year, as the Coast Guard celebrates the 75th anniversary of its construction in Hamburg, Germany, in 1936.

The Eagle is the largest tall ship flying the Stars and Stripes and the only active sailing square-rigger in U.S. government service. The Eagle originally served as a training vessel for the German Navy in the late 1930s. Since 1946, the Eagle has sailed each summer in support of United States Coast Guard officer training programs, providing an unparalleled at-sea leadership and professional development experience for future officers of the U.S. Coast Guard.

The 75-year-old Eagle is a 295-foot, three-masted barque, with more than 23,500 square feet of sail and six miles of rigging.

• Date Taken: 03.18.2011
• Date Posted: 03.18.2011 14:04
• Story ID: 67302
• Location: PA, US