In 1930, the lightship "Chesapeake" was commissioned into service. The 133-foot lightship was used to guide ships in and out of the busy Chesapeake Bay. Its light was perched atop a 30-foot high beam. The lightship served the bay area proudly until World War II. Then, the ship was given two twenty-mm guns so the navy could use it as a patrol boat to help protect shipping while she was based in Sandwich, MA. When World War II ended, the lightship returned to duty marking the entrance to the Chesapeake.
A few years later, she was moved to the Delaware Bay, where she remained in service until she was decommissioned and has been used for educational purposes. Loaned to the city of Baltimore in 1988, the lightship is open to the public as part of the Baltimore Maritime Museum, which is located next to the National Aquarium on Baltimore's Inner Harbor. Admission to the museum is $6 (April 2003), which
