CG44301 was the first production series 44-foot steel-hulled motor lifeboat constructed by the U.S. Coast Guard’s shipyard in Curtis Bay, Maryland. Completed on 7 January 1963 and assigned to Station Chatham, it was designed and built as a more modern and capable replacement for the 36-foot wooden-hulled motor lifeboat. The type featured an overall length of 44 feet 1.5 inches, a maximum beam of 12 feet 8 inches, a draft of 3 feet 6 inches, and a displacement of 39,500 pounds. It was powered by twin 185 horsepower diesel engines with twin propellers and twin rudders, could reach 14 knots, and had an operational range of 215 nautical miles. With a crew of 3, a minimum survivor capacity of 21, self-righting and self-bailing design, Corten steel hull 3/16 inches thick, nine watertight compartments, and longitudinal and transverse frames spaced 18-22 inches apart, it could operate in seas up to 30 feet high, winds up to 50 knots, and tow up to 125 gross tons. One famous 36-foot predecessor, CG36500, had been used by BM1 Bernard C. Webber as coxswain to rescue 32 survivors from the disabled tanker SS Pendleton off Monomoy Island on 18 February 1952, and Webber later helped evaluate the 44-foot lifeboat’s capabilities. CG44301 served at Chatham from 25 March 1962 to 1971 and again from 2002 until 8 May 2009, when it was retired from active service. Forty-four-foot motor lifeboats were also used by lifeboat services in Great Britain, Italy, and Canada.