The history of the Coast Guard service anthem “Semper Paratus” Story by Cmdr. Krystyn E. Pecora The story of the Coast Guard’s service song began in the winter of 1922 on the decks of the Coast Guard Cutter Yamacraw. Capt. Francis Saltus Van Boskerck, the commanding officer, was suddenly struck by a moment of inspiration and descended below to his cabin. When he emerged, he brought with him a ballad strewn with the legendary feats of the small seagoing service. A career cutterman, Van Boskerck truly served from the Aztec shore to the Arctic Zones. One may imagine the veteran officer battling “the surf and storm and howling gales” while in command of the famed Coast Guard Cutter Bear during his six- month Bering Sea patrol in 1921. Drawing upon his experiences and the service’s rich heritage, Van Boskerck wrote the song with the intent of “keeping alive and building of our fine traditions, morale of the service and general pride in the Coast Guard.” Expecting a lukewarm reception from the wardroom, Van Boskerck was shocked when he was encouraged to set the rhyme to music. That wouldn’t happen until four years later. Van Boskerck’s last Coast Guard tour was as the Captain of the Port for Norfolk, Virginia. It was there, in the neighborhood of Ghent, that "Semper Paratus" was publicly debuted in the winter of 1926-27. Played by an orchestra at a meeting of the League of Coast Guard Women (known today as Coast Guard Mutual Assistance), the song was excitedly received. In fall of 1927, Van Boskerck traveled to Washington, D.C., to meet with the editor and publisher of the U.S. Coast Guard magazine, Lt. Col. Harvey Miller. He carried with him a well- worn copy of "Semper Paratus" and implored Miller to make his song as recognizable as the service songs of the other military services. Miller promised to try, and Van Boskerck departed to catch his ferry back to Norfolk. That evening, as the ferry plowed the waters of the Chesapeake, Van Boskerck was struck by an apparent heart attack and died at sea, leaving the future of his contribution to the Coast Guard in Miller’s hands. Miller’s vow to Van Boskerck became deeply sentimental— he felt obligated to fulfill the captain’s final wish. Miller enlisted the help of Lt. William Sima, the ninth U.S. Naval Academy bandmaster, to expand the simple melody into a full orchestral presentation. With the entire composition complete, a gala musical event was held in Washington to formally premiere "Semper Paratus". Seizing upon the enthusiastic reception, Miller published the song and piano score in the April 1928 issue of the U.S. Coast Guard magazine with the Commandant of the Coast Guard, Rear Adm. Frederick Billard, endorsing the song as the service’s anthem. Miller even took the additional step to copyright the April issue of the magazine, with the Service Publishing Company located at Coast Guard Headquarters listed as the rightful owners, protecting the enclosed song. However, despite his efforts, years later, Miller struggled to distribute the song outside of the national capital region, sending copies to bands and orchestras throughout the nation at his own expense. Despite the service’s devotion to the song, musical society continuously rejected the composition. Fate finally smiled on Miller’s quest, and the song was used in two movies, Border Flight and March of Time, which garnered Reservist Magazine A Light on Yesteryear 32 Reservist . Issue 4 • 2023 Celebrating Celebrating 70 70 years of the Reservist years of the Reservist
