Thomas E. Price
captain of the Ocean City life guard · active 1942
Employed by the Mayor and Council of Ocean City on 6 May 1942 as captain of the life guard at twenty-five dollars a week, the men under him at twenty. A Mr Craig had applied for the post on 2 May and the council took no action on his letter.
In the record (2)
1942 · 1942-05-06
With the coast dimmed out and bodies from a torpedoed freighter lately at its Coast Guard station, Ocean City hired a lifeguard captain, three extra policemen and voted $1,750 of public money to advertise the 1942 season.
The clearest measure of what a resort does in the first summer of a war at its own beach is what it spends. At a special call meeting on Wednesday evening 6 May 1942 — four days after the blackout ordinance, five weeks after the Atwater — the council employed Thomas E. Price as captain of the life guard at $25.00 a week and set the men's pay at $20.00; decided to have McCabe repaint the peeling road signs and 'the new signs to let go for this year'; agreed, on Harold Rayne's motion seconded by Raymond Bounds, that 'the City agreed to finance them for $1750.00 for the season', 'them' being the Chamber of Commerce and its advertising; and told the chief of police to take on three extra police 'and if more were needed to try to secur more as needed'. Set that against 1941, when the town paid its lifeguards $17.50 a week: the men's wage rose to $20 in the year the visitors were least likely to come. The season was run, and it was run in the dark — on 11 September the council's own minute says 'we were dimed out and not sufficent light'.
Ocean City Chamber of CommerceClifford P. CropperHarold J. RayneE. Raymond BoundsL. B. Cropper
Source · checked 2026-08-11
1946 · 1946-03-12
Ocean City hired Robert S. Craig as Captain of its life guards for the 1946 season at $45 a week - nearly double what the post had paid in 1942, and won by the man who had been turned down for it four years earlier.
A letter from Craig asking for the job as Captain of Life Guard was read on 5 March and the council said to write him and find out what he wanted as salary, and they would give him their answer as soon as they knew. A week later: 'Letter from Robert S. Craig was read and Council instructed Secretary to write Mr. Craig that they would give him $45.00 week as captain for life guard.' On 2 May 1942 a Mr Craig had applied for the same post and the council took no action on his letter, employing Thomas E. Price four days later at twenty-five dollars a week with the men under him at twenty.
Unverified — sourced but not confirmed against a primary record.
Source · checked 2026-08-15