In the late 1800’s, the U.S. Life-Saving Service built stations along the eastern coastline, especially the coast of North Carolina.  The islands off the North Carolina coast, called the outer banks, was notorious for shipwrecks.  This service, the precursor to the U.S. Coast Guard was on the lookout for shipwrecks during periods of bad weather.  Their job was to save crew and passengers.  In 1896, there was an all African-American crew manning the station at Pea Island.  These surfmen, along with a civilian boy and his horse, rescued the crew and passengers of the U.S. Newman (approximately 10 people).  Novel is based on a true account.  In 1995, nearly 100 years later, an eighth-grade girl was researching the event and wrote a letter to then President Bill Clinton requesting that these men be awarded (post-humously) a gold medal for bravery in the rescue of the survivors of this ship.  Semi interesting, not much detail.