**PHOTO RELEASE** Coast Guard Cutter Eagle arrives in Charleston for Harbor Fest

DATE: June 25, 2009 8:28:32 PM EDT

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Photo Release

Date: June 25, 2009

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Coast Guard Cutter Eagle arrives in Charleston for Harbor Fest

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CHARLESTON, S.C. - The Coast Guard Cutter Eagle, known as "America's Tall Ship," arrived in Charleston Thursday morning to participate in the Charleston Harbor Fest.

The present day Eagle has become a recognizable symbol of the U.S. Coast Guard. Known throughout the world for its history of belonging to the Germans, the Eagle was originally a training vessel for the German navy in World War II and was previously named Horst Wessel. In 1946, following WWII, the Horst Wessel was taken as a war prize by the United States and is the seventh ship to be named Eagle in Coast Guard history.

The operational crew of the Eagle consists of six officers and 55 enlisted personnel whose primary mission is to train future Coast Guard officers in fundamental leadership, teamwork and seamanship skills, and serve as an international ambassador when visiting foreign ports.

Eagle is an 1800-ton steel hull, three-masted sailing ship with more than 21,000 square-feet of sail and more than five miles of rigging. The 295-foot Eagle is the only active commissioned sailing vessel in the U.S. military service and is homeported at the Coast Guard Academy in New London.

The Coast Guard Cutter Eagle underway along the Charleston, S.C., coast Thursday, June 25, 2009.
The Eagle crew is participating in the Charleston Harbor Fest 2009 featuring numerous tall ships.
(Coast Guard photo/Petty Officer 3rd Class Nick Ameen)

Coast Guard Cutter Eagle crewmembers hose down the anchor chain as it is secured Thursday, June 25, 2009, in Charleston harbor.
(Coast Guard photo/Petty Officer 3rd Class Nick Ameen.)

Seaman Bryn Barley reports the heading of the Coast Guard Cutter Eagle to the captain as it enters Charleston for Harbor Fest 2009 Thursday morning, June 25, 2009.
(Coast Guard photo/Petty Officer 1st Class Bobby Nash)

Crewmembers aboard the Coast Guard Cutter Eagle steer the ship as it approaches Charleston for Harbor Fest 2009 Thursday afternoon, June 25, 2009.
(Coast Guard photo/Petty Officer 1st Class Bobby Nash)

3/c Anqi Zhao takes a magnetic bearing with an alidade as the Coast Guard Cutter Eagle approaches Charleston during Harbor Fest 2009 Thursday morning, June 25, 2009.
(Coast Guard photo/Petty Officer 1st Class Bobby Nash)

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The U.S. Coast Guard is a military, maritime, multi-mission service within the
Department of Homeland Security dedicated to protecting the safety and security of America.

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