Joshua James's most famous rescue occurred in which month and year?

• A. November 1888
• B. May 1887
• C. December 1890
• D. January 1879

Answer: (A)

A memorable rescue in Joshua James’s long career happened during a fierce late-autumn storm along the Cape Cod coast. Historical accounts consistently place his most famous save in November 1888. On that voyage, James and the Chatham Life-Saving Station crew faced brutal seas and used their surf-boat skills—and later the breeches buoy system—to reach a stranded vessel and bring several sailors to safety. That dramatic, well-documented rescue became the defining moment of his career and is repeatedly cited in biographies and Coast Guard history, which is why the month and year of November 1888 are the correct match for this question. Other dates don’t correspond to the celebrated incident; they either refer to different moments in his life or to years with no similarly notable rescue tied to his name.