why tell a lifesaver’s story at an aquarium?

portrait of crew
Portrait of the crew of the first all-black US Lifesaving station by local artist James Melvin. Photo courtesy of NC Aquarium

Anyone who loves a good mystery will enjoy this story by Jeff Hampton for The Virginian-Pilot. Who was Richard Etheridge? And why would his grave be at the North Carolina Aquarium site on Roanoke Island? The answers to these questions can be found in the story that follows, and on exhibit at the Aquarium.

portrait of crew
Portrait of the crew of the first all-black US Lifesaving station by local artist James Melvin. Photo courtesy of NC Aquarium

“The remains of the keeper of the nation’s first all-black lifesaving station are buried in the front yard of the North Carolina Aquarium.

Visitors often wonder about the grave’s peculiar placement and the man interred there – Richard Etheridge.

An exhibit inside the aquarium answers much of the mystery.

But a recently uncovered document found deep in the archives of the nearby Dare County Airport reveals why Etheridge and his family’s headstones lie flat rather than upright and were discovered beneath a building.”

[box type=”bio”] Read the rest of this story on Pilotonline.com![/box]